When my NBHIS colleague asked me to join the Huamao 45th anniversary race I thought, “Why not?” But when she said she hoped I could run the 18km race, I hesitated. Only two months to train the goal could only be completing the race – I certainly couldn’t compete with the more prepared participants who were likely to join.  But when I thought about the benefits – a charitable donation from Huamao, a chance to inspire my students, and a lot of much-needed exercise – I realized I had more reasons to say “yes” than “no.” 

On the day of the event the weather was ideal for racing, and the course along Dongqian Lake promised beautiful views throughout the event to lift tired spirits.  After Mr. Xu addressed the assembled runners, the race commenced with the athletes leaping across the starting line.  Policemen, medical staff, race organizers and local residents all lined the course and offered encouragement throughout the race, which was ever more welcome as the distance increased.  Many participants finished at 4.5km while others continued on until the 9km mark.  But in my event reaching 9km simply meant it was time to turn around and head back to the start.  From that time on my mind was focused on nothing but finishing, even as the pain in my feet, knees, and chest demanded that I stop. 

As we neared the finish line we could hear the crowd cheering for each runner as he finished, and their enthusiasm gave us the energy to finish strong, heads held high, arms and legs pumping, our feet barely touching the ground.  The feeling was wonderful: a mix of relief that the race was finished, and happiness that our efforts would help others. 

NBHIS  Joshua Beard

（當(dāng)國際學(xué)校的同事提議參加錢湖益跑的時(shí)候，我心里想：“為什么不呢？”然而，在我知道有18公里的參賽項(xiàng)目時(shí)，我有些猶豫。僅僅兩個(gè)月的準(zhǔn)備時(shí)間，去和更多的選手比拼，但是當(dāng)我想到這是項(xiàng)有意義的活動(dòng)時(shí)，我意識(shí)到必須說“Yes”。

活動(dòng)當(dāng)天的天氣很理想，益跑路線東錢湖十分美麗，當(dāng)徐總法令開跑后，所有跑者從起跑線出發(fā)。益跑中，所有的志愿者們、醫(yī)療隊(duì)伍、交警等都機(jī)遇了很大的支持，我的同伴有的跑了4.5公里，有的跑了9公里處，而我的目標(biāo)是18公里。

當(dāng)我快到達(dá)終點(diǎn)時(shí)，我聽到歡呼聲，這些熱情給我們沖向終點(diǎn)的能量。這種感覺太棒了，既成功沖線，又能夠幫助他人。）