Follow Cape Elizabeth senior Mitch Morris as he embarks on his final xc season. Morris a newcomer to xc last fall is the top returning runner in Class B from the state meet a year ago. Mitch will be looking to chase the individual title, as well as try to lead his team to a third straight Class B title. On the track Morris showed his skills this winter running a 9:36.51 for 2 miles.
So far, this blog has been dedicated to telling the story of how my running career got started. This is the third part of the story. If you want to read it from the beginning, part one can be found here: http://me.milesplit.com/articles/133589-road-to-running-a-blog-by-mitch-morris#.VBb5bkuLQTs
I never once thought that I was sick. Yes, there were lots of days at school where I shrugged off a headache, cough, and general feeling of weakness as symptoms of a common cold; and yes, I noticed my greatest asset in soccer, my ability to run incessantly up and down the field in pursuit of my opponents, had vanished, as I soon found myself unable to sustain a steady jog for more than a few seconds before doubling over in a fit of coughing.
Yes, all of that was true, but I never once thought that I was sick. I didn’t get sick. I ate vegetables and washed my hands. I had maintained near perfect attendance in school all of my life. I didn’t get sick. But after weeks of feeling this way, and after logging weeks worth of poor performances in soccer games and in practice, I was removed from the varsity team. Suddenly, all that I had worked for and all that I had achieved meant nothing. A midfielder who couldn’t run was useless to them.
This was probably the lowest point of my life. I was terribly sick, though I, nor anybody else, knew it, and I was going through all of this feeling confused and very alone. Without my team, everything lost its purpose. I was cut off from the sport that I loved and from the close friendships I had formed.
However, it is only now, when I look back, that I call this my life’s lowest point. In the moment, I never saw it that way. Don’t get me wrong, things were bad, but I never lost hope. I saw my situation as nothing more than a temporary setback in my soccer career. I had no doubt in my mind that I belonged in this sport and on the varsity team, I just needed to get back to playing like it.
I was used to setbacks, I was never the person that everything came easy to. In fact, it wasn’t until my eighth grade year that I developed any noteable soccer ability at all, and even that came only after countless hours of practicing on my own. I had always been the person who fought and clawed and reached for everything that they achieved. I hope I still am. So, having been removed from the varsity team, I had only one goal in mind: get back on it.
I’ll continue the story in my next post, but before I go I want to thank all of you who’ve actually been reading this thing. Since this whole experience is still pretty recent, you’re among the few people who I’ve shared this story with. I’m so happy to be sharing this with my peers in the running community so that hopefully one day you can come to see me as more than just a solid two mile time.
Good luck at FOC to all of the Maine runners this weekend, I look forward to seeing you all there.
- Mitch Morris
