My very first race was an awesome Chick-Fil-A event in town

I'm super thankful for my friends because they cheered for me and never left my side.

They reassured me that true friends will always stick by you no matter what chapter of life we are in or how far apart we are.

LaGrange is always full of suprises. I came to this Awesomesauce Race to cheer for my friends. What I didn’t realize was that God wanted me to race as well.

My week was full...

of emotional heartache. When I arrived to this race my mind and heart were in a completely different place. I even had a panic attack while trying to figure out where to park.

Thankfully, a nice lady brought me down to earth by encouraging me to register to race. “You don’t have to run.” she told me, “You can walk. We even have a “fun run” that is just a mile long.”.

Maybe it was the free chicken biscuit that Chick-Fil-A gave to the registered racers, or maybe it was the kind words of that nice woman after my panic attack but the next thing I knew I had my first race number. I also got a free t-shirt and other goodies.

When my friends arrived...

I told them I was doing the Fun Run. They were doing the 5k and said they wished they chose the Fun Run instead. I just laughed and told them I believed in them and will be cheering them on.

I didn’t know any racers who were competing in the 10k. I just know they were super fast. The 5k racers left shortly after that. Us Fun Runners stayed and got to chill out for a while.

One Fun Runner and her dad wanted to take a picture with me. They said they felt I had the best costume. I was just being myself but I do enjoy the compliments.

I took photos of all my friends making it across the finish line (I will put them all in the bottom of this article). I don’t like running, so I admire people who do run.

Then came time...

for the finale: The Fun Run. I was so scared. I don’t want to run. I kept telling myself. I don’t want to run.

A nice kid gave me tips on how to pace myself. “Don’t start by sprinting. You won’t be able to make the turns that way.”

Three, two, one, “EAT MOR CHIKIN!” we cried aloud as we began our run. I don’t know how as my brain had not caught up with my legs but they were jogging.

Every step I took...

had my breathing stay steady. I was being cheered on by the line guiders. I was running in a race! My body kept me going for half a mile. Once I made it to the halfway mark, I high fived a cow and started walking back.

The line guiders were still cheering for me. “You’re almost there!” they yelled. I was so worried I would fall apart, but my body felt so much better with all the fresh air. Once I had a quarter of a mile to go, my legs started running again. The final stretch.

I heard my name...

being chanted as I made it closer to the finish line. Those were my friends! They were there for me because they wanted to share this experience with me: my first race.

I crossed the finish line! My friends came up to me and congratulated me. They were so proud of me because I told them I wasn’t sure I would run. I told them I ran half a mile and they were super happy! I almost cried because I had such an emotional week that I forgot how supportive true friends are.

I was the last racer...

to finish that day. I didn’t care I was last. What I cared about was how my friends stayed by my side to the end.

They didn’t abandon me because true friends don’t do that. They knew about the bad week I had, so their support helped me finish my race. I didn’t quit because they would never quit on me.