You're Never Too Old!

Today I was given one more reason to be proud of my Dad and brother Landon. A while back, my brother Landon returned from serving a mission in Lithuania. When he got home he set a goal to run a marathon. Well, he not only ran a marathon, but at this point, he has completed 4! Knowing that my dad has always been a runner, he thought it would be fun if they ran a marathon together. But, dad mostly jogged for health purposes and never seemed to have the desire to enter a marathon, so when Landon approached him with the idea, he quickly declined. Well, Landon, along with his wife Marianne, and my brother Steve (who is serving a mission in Paraguay) thought it would be a great idea to surprise dad for Father's day with a "gift" which covered his entrance fee to run the "Top of Utah" marathon. When he opened the gift he said, "After all I've done for you over all these years, this is the kind of gift you give me...a death sentence! This is how you show your appreciation toward me by basically asking me to commit suicide!" We got a good laugh out of his reaction, but needless to say - they began training together. They would do their long runs on Saturdays. Dad would always say that he was too old for this kind of stuff and claimed that he didn't really run, he just trudged along. Each time he would come home from a long run, he would immediately fall on his knees leaning over the ottoman in the living room and pray that God would take him now and relieve him of his pain and suffering! He would eventually get up, shower, and them email Steve on his mission with a report of his progress. Dad was really nervous that at his age (56) he was never going to make it. So, Landon talked him into doing a practice run. They went up to Logan the morning of our family reunion and began running the course. A little over 4 hours later, they had run all 26.2 miles! When I greeted him at the reunion I was completely astounded that they had just ran a marathon as practice for their marathon!!! Seriously - who does that? Well, at least he knew he could do it. So, the day of the marathon, they drove to the starting point around 5:00am. Landon, said dad was cheering on everyone that he passed, telling them, "Keep up the good work! Keep going - You're almost there!" Landon even mentioned that there were several times that he wanted to stop and walk, but dad kept him going strong! When we saw them approach the finish line, so many emotions filled all of our hearts. Over the loud speaker we heard the announcer say, " Finishing together - Sharman and Landon Pitcher!" We rushed over to greet them and I couldn't keep my emotions in any longer when I saw them embrace each other, knowing that they finished the race together! I was so proud of them! I don't know any of other men who have decided to run their first marathon at the age of 56 and finish as strong as my dad did! He has always amazed me with his ability to persevere and to be so disciplined. My Dad is not only strong physically, but his mental strenght is what I admire him for the most. Anyone who really knows my dad, understands my reasoning for this, yet even without knowing him anyone will agree that this is truly an amazing accomplishment on his part. I'm blessed to have such great examples in my family and can't help but think that if this life were like a marathon, the people I would want to cross the finish line with are the ones I call "My Family."

So, to Landon and Dad, all I can say is "Good Work!" "I'm so proud of you guys!" Greeting Landon and Opa at the finish line.
What an amazing accomplishment for a Father and Son to enjoy together!
Mom was so proud of "her man!"