Sara & Ryan Hall:
Our Fall Adventures - Part 3
(Elite Athlete Blog Entry 20)
Posted December 29th, 2008 at 9:35 AM by Sara Hall
Section: News & Results, Marathons, SPOTLIGHT, Elite Athlete Blogs, Ryan Hall, Sara Hall
Welcome to the official blog of U.S. middle-distance runner Sara Hall. Sara’s list of running accolades include being a former NCAA All- American at Stanford, the 2006 USA 5K road champion, and the 2006 champion at the Continental Fifth Avenue Mile. Check back every other Friday for her latest entry at http://sarahall.thefinalsprint.com/
The first few miles of the course (of the Run for Clean Water) followed the rutty red dirt “road” through the forest and out onto the main road. I though that surely by the time we hit the road, most of the under-trained and eager young runners would have come back to me. But I once again underestimated the talent of these young Zambians, and though I passed some in the first few miles, I turned onto the road and saw some young men charging down the road in the distance about 400 meters away. The black “tarmac” as they called it was scorching in the heat as we ran straight up a relentless hill. I settled in running next to a guy wearing a sweatshirt and sandals three sizes too big for him. They flapped loudly with each step, and I told myself, Sara, you are a professional athlete, you will not get beat by a guy wearing sandals. We kept a good pace together as we continued to climb, the sun beating stronger with each mile, and I wondered how some of the runners around me were able to run barefoot on the scorching pavement!
Coming off of a two-week break from running before this trip, I knew I was out of shape but had underestimated how difficult this run would be. The road seemed endless, and I would think, “Surely we’ve run nine miles by now!” I started to think about how hot it was, and how I wasn’t used to being at altitude, and how nice it would be to back off this pace. But then I thought of those women on my first run in Solwezi, chiding me for running. I thought about how girls had been excluded from the football games taking place in the villages that I had hopped in, trying to encourage some of the girls to join in. I’ll show them! I thought. This was my chance to show that girls can run and compete in sports just like boys! I passed some huts along the way, and fed off of the audible surprise of the villagers’ cheers as they saw a girl keeping up with the boys. The little girls especially seemed delighted to see me run by near the front of the pack. You can do it too! I thought as I smiled back.
One of the support trucks pulled up next to me and a guy who had dropped out of the race was sitting in the back with an embarrassed smile. “Are you going to finish?” he asked, and I couldn’t help but feel he was hoping I’d say no. Instead, I emphatically said, “Yes!” correcting my form to look less tired. Finally I could spot the lead guys up ahead turning off the road to head to the community where the race would finish. As I approached the turn, I was passed by one of the guys who had predicted he’d “leave me.” As he passed me, he looked over his shoulder and taunted, “See, I told you!” As we ran down the dirt road to the finish, a large crowd of the villagers had assembled and was cheering each guy in. But when they spotted me, their cheers rose to another octave. Their surprise to see a female be successful was obvious. I smiled and waved as I finished, trying to look as fresh as possible.
When we finished, we were supposed to walk over to a guy at a table to give our name for the results sheet. I missed the table, but it didn’t matter. The statement was made; I had broken the mold of the traditional female and shown them what was possible. Many people from the village, male and female, came up to me in the coming days to tell me how my run had inspired them. I hope that in some way the boundaries will widen for some of the girls looking on, and it will spark something in them. But even if it doesn’t, it was a memory I will never forget!
Though I disagree with the unequal treatment of females when I have visited some developing countries, I am normally leery to impose my Western ideals on their society. If anything, I came away from my visit to Zambia feeling like we in the US have a lot to learn from their culture. I was blown away by the sense of community that I found everywhere. There were no orphanages because people took children orphaned by HIV/AIDS into their homes, even though they were of no relation and hardly had enough to feed their own children (I was glad to hear that World Vision identified these homes and helped make it a smooth transition for the child financially and socially). People in the community volunteered to be AIDS caregivers (given “tool kits” by World Vision) and visit sick people in their homes out of a sense of community obligation, even though they were extremely poor and busy taking care of their own families. This selflessness is a rare find in the States, and it makes me wonder what it is about wealth that alienates us from one another. These people have learned the secret of true community, and it could be as simple as their physical dependency on one another to survive.
I came to Zambia expecting to be gripped by the devastation of HIV/AIDS and poverty around me, but instead, I was overwhelmed by the joy I found. The happiness of the people I met in Musele was palpable! Everyone was smiling, laughing, singing, dancing and enjoying life with one another. Granted, these are communities where World Vision is working to tackle some of the root causes of disease, which has given them an increased quality of life, but these people are still the poorest of the poor financially. Most of them are subsistence farmers and live in mud huts with few possessions to speak of. A few children owned balls they had made out of plastic bags balled together and wrapped in twine, and others had bent wire into the shape of a car, which they rolled around with them at all times. My first thought when I saw this was I wish I had brought real soccer balls for them! But as I spent more time in the community, I realized the error in my Western materialistic thinking. These kids liked their plastic bag balls, and they worked for them just fine. In fact, if I had given a real ball to one child, all the other children would see it and it would change their perspective of their soccer balls. They were content, and it showed me that joy and contentment has nothing to do with material possessions. In fact, I think that often these things get in the way.
When we got back from Zambia, we packed our car full to the brim with the clothes, massage table, Christmas presents, African trinkets, and everything else we’ll “need” for the next few months. But this time more than ever, we have a desire to downsize our lifestyle, to get rid of the material possessions that cause more stress than good. We are inspired to see how much more we can give to assure communities like Musele can have a joyful lifestyle and freedom from disease. We are challenged to reach out to our community in ways that go beyond what’s comfortable and discover the joy of being interconnected. And we are inspired to continue supporting Team World Vision’s efforts to change the lives of others like our friends in Musele!
- Sara
To comment on this entry and to send feedback & questions to Sara, please click here.
chicago marathon follow-up from World Vision on Vimeo.
Check out Ryan and Sara Hall’s NEW website: http://ryanandsarahall.com/
Learn more about and donate to Ryan & Sara Hall’s “Run For Something More Precious Than Gold” Campaign and Support the Humanitarian Efforts of World Vision:
Related Stories:
- Sara & Ryan Hall:
Our Fall Adventures - Part 2
(Elite Athlete Blog Entry 19) - Sara & Ryan Hall:
Our Fall Adventures - Part 1
(Elite Athlete Blog Entry 18) - Sara Hall: Success in London for Ryan, Now On To Mt. Sac (Elite Athlete Blog - Entry #7)
- Sara Hall: Patience
(Elite Athlete Blog - Entry #3) - Sara Hall: Hello from Philly!
(Elite Athlete Blog - Entry #1)
Tags: Columns, elite athlete, elite athlete blog, elite athlete blog series, elite athlete blogs, elite runner, faith, glorifying god, god, Mammoth Lakes, marathons, News & Results, Ryan Hall, sara bei, sara bei blog, sara hall, sara hall blog, spotlight, stanford, team running usa, team world vision, Terrence Mahon, tfs elite athlete blog series, the final sprint elite athlete blog series, thefinalsprint.com elite athlete blog series, Track & Field, world vision
Like what you see? Subscribe to our feed!
The Final Sprint
Beatiful.
Thank you Sara and Ryan!
December 30th, 2008 at 12:50 pmSara and Ryan — Thanks for sharing about your trip to Zambia. I love Africa, having lived 18.5 of the last 22 years in Kenya. You’re right that clean drinking water is one of the most pressing needs of most of Africa. I’m grateful that God has led you to focus on that.
I had to laugh at Sara’s description of the Zambian children running with her and then of the other Zambians running in sandals. When I ran in Kenya, it was always interesting when I was running while children were heading to school. They would run along with me, laughing all the way. They demonstrated shear joy in running.
There was a period of time when I would run pre-dawn. There was a young man, Phillip, who got off work about that time and was heading home. He wore “gum boots” and a heavy, waterproof, long rain coat. Still, he would run right with me (or even pass me) as if it were absolutely nothing.
Africans are amazing people!
January 3rd, 2009 at 3:39 pmI recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don’t know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.
Deborah
January 5th, 2009 at 12:18 amAmazing! This is so inspiring. Thanks so much for sharing this :)
January 7th, 2009 at 7:31 pmHi, my name is Chase Mussard and I am a freshman in High School and I live in Tennessee. I was recently assigned a project for English in which I am supposed to write a letter to a famous person, I choose Ryan. If posssible, I would love to be able to get an address or PO Box that I could mail to. My email is chase_mussard@yahoo.com, please send as soon as possible, thanks
January 11th, 2009 at 9:24 pmSara; I am a huge fan and just finished a tour in Iraq. I am stationed in Germany and I am hoping to come see Ryan run the 1/2 at the Hague…would it be possible to link up just to say hello. I would like to give you both some shirts from the running club we started in Iraq. Link on club below.
My email address is russell.stewart@us.army.mil
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121605268291551295.html?mod=hps_us_inside_today
I hope you both have a great running season.
February 5th, 2009 at 8:41 amJust reading this now. I think I read it way back, but I read it thoughtfully this time.
Actually, I am REALLY writing to say that I am praying for Ryan as he runs the Boston Marathon. I have it on my prayer calendar.
I am a slow runner, PLUS I am dealing with chronic ITBS in my right leg–bummer!! BUT I NEVER give up!! I feel like the Lord has made me a runner. It’s not about how fast I run, but the condition of my heart!
I watched the video that Josh Cox, a.k.a. Jay Carbon, did with Ryan and scenes of “Passion of the Christ” interspersed–it was EXCELLENT!! And very inspiring.
May the Lord bless both of you richly!!
And, Lord willing, may Ryan be the first American man to win Boston in a LONG TIME!!
GO RYAN!! YEA JESUS!!
Your sister in Christ,
Jody McRoberts :>}
April 3rd, 2009 at 7:35 pm