The sun rose slowly in the sky. You
could see its glinting gaze through the clouds, like the eye of a lazy dragon in a manga anime. It felt surreal. It was over an hour since the six thousand women including myself had
all assembled on the grounds. The guy leading the zumba routine and his two female
sidekicks were now on a fast beat and their rhythm was catching on, much like
the fun Mexican wave he'd taught us a little earlier.
And then it was our turn—the 3k
participants. Like skittish livestock we took tentative steps out of the ground
and on to the street. Here I was, participating in my first run. Finally. Well,
I walked mostly, but also ran much more than I ever have. There were so many first
timers like me and of different ages, shapes, and sizes, and we were all determined
to finish what we had undertaken to do.
