What's One More Mile

Last week I was in the beautiful countryside of Costa Rica.  Soaking up the sun along pristine beaches with 10 other UVa students on a service trip is how I spent my spring break.  However, I did a fair share of running.  From the beach to the local roads to the airstrip(?!!) that our community partner would call their driveway. 

Last Thursday, I did a grueling workout on the 1/4-mile long airstrip.  Before my last set of four 1/4 mile sprints, I thought to myself "What's one more mile?"  At this point, I had already completed over 750 miles in less than three months.  I have biked and run over picturesque landscapes.  I am in the best shape I may have ever been.  And at this point, I questioned going the next mile.  But over the course of running those four 1/4s on the 1:12, I thought of what it meant to go one more mile.  Below you will find the poem I wrote entitle "What's One More Mile."

What's one more mile?
Another 5,280 feet. Another 4 laps on the track. 
It's the distance between my house and the stadium.
It's a small portion of a marathon. 
To be simple it's one more mile.

But it's more than that.
It's one more sprint that you thought didn't have.
It's another few minutes of realizing your best.
It's going down the street to see an old friend.
It's helping out in a kitchen to inspire the rest.

It's beating out your rival on the field of dreams.
It's another opportunity to make the crowd scream.
It's jumping over the boundaries of old.
It's walking 3 miles to get milk in the cold.

It's one more stride back home.
It's one less pace around the world.
It's running down the Lawn at 2am.
It's one more chance to dream on.

It's another chance to change the world.
It's another chance to write the future.
It's a moment to be thankful for.
It's the moment when opportunity opens the door.
It's one more mile to be thankful.

It's so much more than one mile. 

Written by Chris Zapple