First run of the season....Michigan style....

Meeting for the first group run of the season, meaning post holiday and horrible worst winter on record in the state of Michigan season....5 of the 7 of us "running girls" met for a 5 mile run.  Bolded for a reason (later)All of us up early, meeting for what we all knew would be a hilly route.  Why?  Because our route planner/former secret service person/drill sergeant had planned the route and we were prepared as best as we could be.  As best as we could be.....all of us have run multiple half and/or full marathons.  All of us are avid runners.  But all of us have just been through the worst winter in Michigan history coupled with the heels of the holiday season and thus....all of us have barely run over the past few months.  Swapping runs for indoor workouts, although cardio, not the same as running.  I have admittedly swapped my running shoes for my bare feet on the yoga mat in the warm yoga studio.  Maybe I'm hiding?So we meet, set our garmin watches, and set out for our run.  It's FREEZING.  Thoughts:  Are we dressed warm enough? Are we really ready for this?  Are we really this slow?  And most importantly, Oh my gosh isn't great to all be together?There is comfort in numbers.  In having each other to motivate us through the miles.  In the giggling and the chatter that quickly consumes our route.  Sometimes it is quiet (though not often) as we marvel at the beautiful houses in the neighborhoods we're running past (no, it's not our 'hood) or the splendor of the snow.  Ok....scratch that.....after 3 solid months of snow, it no longer is splendid by any stretch.  It's old.We rejoice as we ALL MAKE IT UP THE DREADED FIRST HILL.  This is remarkable, especially, because there have been training runs in the past, when we were far more conditioned, when some or all of us couldn't run the entire way up the hill.  Yay!3.5 miles into the route, one of us said "hey....how far is this route again?"Route planner/former secret service person/drill sergeant giggles saying "Oh....closer to 7"..... giggle. giggle. giggle.Wait.....didn't all of us slugs, who can barely call ourselves "runners" at this point sign up for the "5 mile" route????That's when beauty of having friends whom you run with comes into play.  Route planner/former secret service person/drill sergeant knows us well enough to know together, we can get through more than we can alone.  Route planner/former secret service person/drill sergeant knows the ice, the snow, the speedy cars, the rude motorists, the puddles, the hills....none of it is as daunting together as it is alone.6.5 miles together.  Done.  All we could talk about, after they all chuckled at how priceless my face was when I realized we had to run 3.5 miles back to our starting point (yes....I'm directionally challenged and I think they take advantage of me, slightly..... ha.),was when we would all be able to run together again."Pain is inevitable.  Suffering is optional." Haruki Murakami. Peace.....