A Friend of a Friend at the Super Runners Shop

A few months ago, I stopped at the Super Runners Shop on my way home from work to buy some running fuel. I’d just signed up for my third marathon and I’ve been a long time fan of the community one finds at the Super Runners Shop since I moved to New York City in 2016.

As I was checking out, the cashier inevitably asked if I had any upcoming races. Despite having told nobody in my personal life I’d signed up—I was on the tail end of concussion recovery and a little nervous about whether I’d be able to get my legs back in time—I told him about my fall marathon.

Chicago? He asked. Philadelphia? Marine Corps? By this point, many of the big U.S.-based fall races had sold out. I told him about the one I’d signed up for and how, while it was smaller, it seemed like a really beautiful and exciting one.

The cashier told me that his friend was looking for a fall marathon but was finding everything sold out. He said he was going to tell him about the race and I was thrilled to maybe be able to help another runner. 

A couple months later, I was on Instagram when I saw that my race had also sold out and it took my brain only a millisecond to think of the cashier’s friend. Ah, I hope he got in! 

How funny, how sweet, to see something 50+ days later and think of someone you’ve never met and find yourself genuinely wishing them well. An offhand comment at the checkout line had me fully thinking positive, kind energy about someone who doesn’t know me as anything other than, at most, “someone who told their buddy about a race with available bibs.” 

But if I’m thinking about this runner… maybe it’s not so far-fetched to think that someone has tangentially heard something about me. Maybe someone, somewhere knows something about me and is thinking positive, kind energy for me. And maybe this is happening 100 times over, every day in every corner of the world. 

We are far more connected than we think. Perhaps, there are endless strangers wanting good things for you because of something that’s happened only in passing. Perhaps, then, the kindness we wish for others is our greatest legacy.