1,000 miles in 2013!

Back in December 2012, I was training for my first half marathon and averaging around 23 miles a week.  During the last week of the year, I found a facebook group with the goal of running 1,000 miles in 2013.  That is about 19 miles a week - which sounded doable.  And I am a goal oriented person, so.....
I signed up to join the group.  I believe my exact post was

 "Barring injury, I think I'll give this a try."
I added the bold here to relay a sense of foreshadowing.

Enter 2013.

The evening of the very first day of 2013 I went for a 7 mile run. 
(Cue the "shark approaching" music from Jaws)

Near the end of the run I tripped and fell.  Not the kind of fall where you think "Whoops, I'm falling!" and spread out your hands to catch yourself.  This was the type of fall where one second you are running, and the next micro-second your face is planted against concrete.  

And your hand is jammed underneath you.  

And you immediately know that this is very, very bad!

(Right hand - pinkie broken, ring finger pretty much shattered, but I'm still wearing my Road I.D.!)

It has been a long recovery.  I still - 4 months later - cannot bend my last two fingers and my first two fingers have limited movement.  My Dr. told me not to run at all - but I did manage to run the 1/2 marathon 3 weeks later.  (I'm sure I'll do a report on that in the future.)  However, I ended up injuring the tendons in the top of my left foot during the half, and ultimately was knocked out of running until March.
Oh the irony!
But here is my very good news!
Last week was the first week I was able to run over 20 miles.  23 in fact!! 

It feels so good!

I am incredibly grateful to God for each step I am able to run.  I now realize that I can never know when tragedy might strike - when I might break a bone, pull a muscle, inflame a tendon or develop a stress fracture.  But I can be thankful that for now - in this very moment - I am running and it is good!

And I still haven't given up on my goal of 1,000 miles in 2013!

 What were your goals for this year? Well, 1,000 miles Are you meeting them? I should be at 265 miles and I'm at 137, so not really.  But If I run 23 miles per week from here on out, maybe.  Oh - no pressure there!