Perseverance equals pain equals success.

That is my reality right now. On a weak day last January, I told a friend I'd run a half marathon with her in April. I should have looked outside at the blizzard when I made that promise. Sure, I cross train like crazy in the winter, but it's not the same as pounding the ground, one foot in front of the other.

When the weather finally started to warm up and clear up, I decided I had to have an unconventional training plan. I went for an eight mile run. Sure, I made it, but it was painful. And the only run I took that week. Last week it was a nine miler--again the only run for the week. I should have gone ten this week, but I am unrealistic when it comes to distance and thought I ran farther than I did. When I measured the distance, I was disappointed to see I only went 7.2 miles.

I tried to run this morning, but halfway up the hill, it started to snow. And snow around here can turn into a blizzard in a matter of seconds, so I ran the rest of the way up the hill as fast as I could and turned back for home. 1.4 miles.

How am I going to make it 13.1 miles training like this? Perseverance equals pain equals success. I will keep running farther and farther until I hit 13 miles on April 10, the week before the race. It is a race where I will be a winner, only because I persevered and ended up n pain.

Writing feels like this some days. It is painful to pound the keyboard day after day, hoping to make it as a writer.

Perseverance equals pain equals success. It's just the way it is.