Worthy Suffering

I have recently discovered a running blog I hadn’t seen before: 52 Beginnings, the extraordinary race diary of a woman named Dana Casanave who is — incredibly — trying to run 52 marathons in 52 weeks. The purpose of this awesome feat? She’s raising money for an organization called 25:40, which is dedicated to caring for AIDS orphans in Africa. (The group's name comes from Matt. 25:40, “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.”)

I cannot even imagine the physical toll this tremendous act of love must be taking on Dana’s body. Most marathon runners take at least a month to let their bodies recover after a race, but she is taking, at most, a week between each one. She also is traveling all over the country to make these races and sleeping wherever she’s offered lodging.

Given what she must be going through, she is no doubt an expert on the subject of her latest post: suffering. And here she has some beautiful insights, gleaned from her most recent marathon last weekend:

I thought about Stephen. He's the 4 year-old little boy that I was running for. In 2008 his aunt brought him into the Umtha Welanga Health Care Center, as he had tuberculosis. He was also tested for HIV and the results were positive. Sadly, this was not his first tragedy. His mother committed suicide when she learned that she had AIDS. He continues to live with his aunt in a small village outside of Hamburg, South Africa….

Marathons are painful (or at least they are for me). Even on my best days, there are moments in the race where there is pain. Whether it's mental or physical, the distance carries it's own punishment. … Today my heart has been heavy for Stephen. … My suffering while running dosen't even begin to compare to his life. It makes any pain I experience like a care tossed to the wind when I think about the gravity of his situation. It brings home why I'm doing this, why I'm pushing my body. That thought played over and over in my mind today as I ran, like a song on repeat. It motivated me and pushed me, especially when my body began to feel the physical toll of the miles….

Suffering is part of running, just as it is part of life, but as Dana shows us, it can be used for the good. She has united her suffering with that of Stephen, much like the runners in the Passion Marathon unite their suffering with that of Christ. All these runners are wise not to let their suffering be wasted — an example I, for one, would do well to follow. (NB: If you’re looking for an opportunity for some Lenten almsgiving, this sure seems like a worthy cause.)

Please God bless Stephen and others in his situation. And please bless Dana and her good work!