Our Uber Driver Reminded Me Of My Dream
The dream of running the New York City marathon as a Type 1 Diabetic
I have the habit of romanticizing important events of life like writing, traveling & running. I have dreamed about running New York City marathon and London marathon from the time I got to know about it. I have imagined prepping for it, seeing my family cheering me, and crying at the end of it.
Then 4 years ago, I got diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. This mostly means that I should quit dreaming of running a marathon when I let alone could not walk around the park for the 1st year. NO. I planned even bigger things. Instead of quitting the dream of running, I started to think how motivating it will be for all new Type 1 Diabetics if I can run for them. This did push me to move my body more and understand Type 1 Diabetes.
But I am not a runner. My back has always given me problems but I never stopped to pay attention to my back. Hence, this was inevitable.
This is me. Running the 5 k which was the first and (so far) last race of life. I injured my back after this thanksgiving race in 2021 and I have been nursing severe pain for the last ( almost ) 4 months. I was really happy on the day of the race but since that evening, my life took a twist — doctors, pain killers, high & low blood sugars, lack of sleep, tests, physical therapy & many tearful mornings.
I got spooked by running and announced to the world that I am never running again until I met our Uber driver today. He had this giant gold medal of the New York City marathon hanging in the front. Upon asking, he shared that he is a runner. He started running in his 40s and has run several marathons. He has this big aim of getting qualified for the Boston marathon.
What was impressive about our talk was his excitement about running in his voice. He was pumped to even talk about it and at the time a little part of me started to feel a tingling — maybe I can still do it.
But if I really have to do it then it has to take a long route. I definitely can not make the same mistake of just running with no preparation. My back is still in therapy and I am still experiencing a lot of pain. Maybe this excitement will die down when tomorrow I will wake up again with tears. At the same time, this feeling of ‘maybe I can do it again’ is creating a certain momentum inside. Like I am a runner who got injured. Many athletes get injured and they take a sabbatical for a while to regain strength. Maybe this will take a long time for me but I might be able to get back on track.
