Back from Boston

Boston is a wonderful place! The people talk with a funny accent, but are very friendly and helpful. The folks get around on an underground transit system called "the T". The Boston Marathon race day was not the best weather wise. The whole north eastern side of the U.S. was experiencing a "nor-easter" storm. Lots of wind, rain, and cold weather. On race day, we walked our friend and racer, Gina, to the long row of buses at Boston Commons. The runners are bused to the starting point of the race. I had my parka, rain-proof poncho, 2 layers of clothes and gloves on so that I wouldn't freeze to death. The racers contended with rain for the first 30 minutes or so of the race, then it tapered off and just had to deal with the cold. When you go to "cheer a friend on", you have to select a spot somewhere along the 26.2 mile course. One of the easiest places to get to, is mile 17 of the race. We took the "T" to our destination. With the Texas flag in tow, we calculated the timing of her arrival at the spot and waited. We ducked inside a nearby hospital to warm up and have a little lunch. We almost had cut it too close, but were able to get outside, unfurl the Texas flag, and look intently at the sea of bodies going by (over 30,000 people race!). Gina spotted the flag, then Linda, then Jack (her fiance'), then me. She gave Jack a big kiss and Linda and I a big hug, then she was off. We tried very hard to get back to the Finish Line from mile marker 17, but there were too many people and the streets were roped off in such a way, that it would have been almost impossible to make our way around in time. Gina finished the race in a little over 4 hours--quite a feat in that wind and weather!

God's fingerprints were all over this deal. To start off, we almost didn't make it on the plane to Boston. It was an early flight, so we knew we wouldn't get breakfast, so we sought out coffee and hot chocolate, then realized that the eating place only had muffins and doughnuts. I wanted a bagel instead. We walked around and found a Bagel place. There was a line and they were very slow, but I didn't realize how close to departure it was getting to be. To make a long story short, they were ready to close the doors, but I was able to get the bagels, find Linda, and make it back to the plane in time. Because of a mix-up, we were even up-graded to first class! I love the way God treats his kids! The ironic thing was, because of the bagel incident and the upgrade, we were served breakfast and didn't need the bagels at all.

To be able to find Gina in the sea of people was really a big deal! For the past 3 Boston marathons, Linda had looked for Gina, but had never found her, until this year. The hotel that we stayed in was very nice--when we arrived, they had upgraded us to a bigger, roomier room with no additional charge.

All in all, we had a wonderful time and I would definitely like to go back next year. God is good and takes care of his Kids wherever they may go!