volunteering at the annual run

eden medical center photo

i feel good today. i’ve done my civic duty by volunteering at the annual run to the lake event sponsored by the local hospital benefiting its trauma center.

for a change, the off-duty nurses and hospital staff did not come in their usual uniforms but in a more relaxing outfit worthy of my admiration. even my doctor came in shorts displaying his skinny legs. it made him less scary and more human to my eyes. i think the only person who looked out of place was me. i came in a tan polo shirt, cargo pants, and rockport shoes as if i was going to a beach party. that made me stand out from the crowd in the wrong way.

i served as a course monitor in the 10k run event. my job was to be visible and to give clear directions to runners. i was assigned inside the park near the marina parking lot it was a nice spot to be in. there were plenty of trees to shelter me from the sun. it was also a little dangerous as evidenced by the sign ‘beware of mountain lions’.

i went to my spot an hour before the race. i put on a race crew t-shirt on top of my polo and then an orange vest. all around i heard birds singing, punctuated by my sneezing. while standing there alone, thoughts of lions entered my mind. i was told that lions are shy of people and that they usually hunt at night. but in the event that you encounter one, you should heed the following advice:

• do not attempt to run
• do not turn your back
• try to appear as big as you can be to scare the lion

in volunteering for this job, i was asked to sign a paper freeing the organizers from responsibility for personal harm incurred during the course of the event. now i think i know the reason why.

to my relief, the runners started pouring from the distance. they came in various shapes and sizes, pushing themselves to the limit. as they passed me by, they panted. they groaned. they did everything to get to the finish line. since they weren’t professional runners, it made their accomplishment all the more admirable.

no lions came. darn, they probably didn’t like the smell of my deodorant.

after some coffee and pastries, my tour of duty was over.

next year, i think i should run. if i give myself enough preparation, i can finish the race like the rest of these folks.