Senior Stories: Amy, Crossing the Invisible Finish Line
Amy is a 6-time SRLA runner from Girls Leadership Academy. She is 1 of 5 SRLA students who earned the Honda Scholarship, highlighting her hard work throughout the entirety of her SRLA experience. She will use this to advance her studies at UC Santa Cruz as a Political Science major this fall.
The transition from being online to back in person my junior year was an extreme challenge I did not anticipate. I had come back to school after breaks many times before so I didn’t think returning would be much different from what I’d known. But for almost two years, I was in the comfort of my own home where I would join a Zoom call throughout the morning. I had almost all the time in the world to crochet my family bucket hats and make all kinds of beaded jewelry.
Amy proudly demonstrating her LA Marathon medals at her high school graduation.
Being in person, balancing all of my activities and school work became more and more difficult. I felt alienated as everyone else seemed just fine. It felt as if I couldn’t adapt to the sudden change in environment. I got lost trying to figure out what my priorities were. At the same time, my biggest struggle was living apart from my family. All my life, my mom, my older brother, and I have lived in a small apartment. Around this time, my mom found an opportunity to finally start the process of getting our very own house. In order to do this, my mom needed to save up a lot of money so she, my brother, and baby sister moved to my grandma’s house for some time. I ultimately decided to move in with my aunt because my grandma's house was a very small space but I also didn’t think it would be a huge difference since I wouldn’t be very far. Though it was only temporary, moving into my aunt's house and away from my mother and two siblings complicated things even more. There were many scheduling conflicts with my mom's late hours and my after-school activities that impacted communication between not only her but with others as well.
While living with my aunt, I found it interesting to learn about a family dynamic different from my own. In their home, it wasn’t normal for them to talk about their feelings as often as I do with my mom. I didn’t talk about my emotions and everything continued to bottle up inside. Once again, I felt alienated. As a result, my grades suffered because my mental health suffered. I was scattered. I was able to figure things out as I went along and learned that communication is especially important because it helps me with being better understood.
“The amount of adrenaline and excitement I had when I crossed the finish line was unmatched and I immediately knew I wanted to keep doing this.”
Running has always kept me sane, especially during this time. It forces me to not think about anything else but putting one leg in front of the other. I was also on the cross-country team but it’s way different from SRLA. The SRLA community was definitely able to help me that year with my struggles. This tight community allowed me to feel safe and made me feel like I was a part of something during a time when I felt so different and isolated from everyone else. I’ve learned so much about mental strength and have developed a very strong mindset since joining. Having a strong mindset and mentality has made me recognize that I can be resilient and get through tough situations life presents.
Growing up I always looked up to my grandfather. As my family and I came out to support him at the LA Marathon each year, I was always fascinated by the thousands of runners passing by because I knew they all shared a passion for running. When I was 9 years old, my grandpa signed me up for my first 5k. The amount of adrenaline and excitement I had when I crossed the finish line was unmatched and immediately knew I wanted to keep doing this. As time went on, my grandfather and I would take part in local 5ks, and 10ks and would even travel to San Francisco twice a year to complete the San Francisco Half Marathon and the Berkely Half Marathon. My passion for running grew very strong.
“I stopped for a second and got myself to acknowledge how far I had already made it and how the past six months were all for this very moment. ”
In sixth grade, my homeroom teacher started a running club. Five out of about 120 kids in the sports academy homeroom joined the running club. I was the only Latina and the only girl out of those five to join. I struggled with confidence however my passion for running never stopped. My seventh grade year was the first year that my homeroom teacher, Julian Tarula, brought the Students Run LA program to Emerson Middle School. When I heard about it, I immediately knew I wanted to join. My first year with SRLA was unforgettable. My cousin and friend also joined me which made the training process very enjoyable. On the day of the marathon, I couldn’t fathom how far I’d come. I remember hitting the wall at mile 21. That was when our SRLA leader caught up to me and talked me through the rest of the run. He gave me the confidence I thought I didn’t have at that moment to finish the 26.2 miles. In those last five miles, he made me recognize something new about myself. I CAN persevere. I learned that it’s a pure mindset. Crossing the finish line felt very surreal because for a moment I didn’t think I would finish.
In 2021, when everything was virtual, there were only a couple of people on the SRLA team. I had the most difficult season that year because my school did not allow us to meet in person. Every training run and long run I had to do by myself. The biggest challenge was having to complete the marathon. We completed the culmination run but I was determined to run a marathon that year. This marathon experience was very different than the others.
Amy posing with her finisher medal after completing the 2023 Rose Bowl Half Marathon.
A typical marathon day involves roads being shut down for runners to get by, volunteers passing out water and snacks to runners, but most important of all, people cheering on the sidelines. This, however, was nothing like that. I had no idea of the challenge that was to come. I created a course, which began in my neighborhood and ended at the beach. I started running through main roads, and then through a long bike path that led me to the beach. Mile 16 was my breaking point. It was much earlier than my anticipated 21-mile mark. It was a never-ending journey of each new step hurting more than the last. Holding onto motivation was getting extremely difficult because I knew that if I let it drop even in the slightest bit, it would be five times harder to gain it back. I was way over my expected time to finish, but to me, that didn’t matter. My mind was only set on finishing. I miscalculated the distance of the course and had about half a mile to go. I became so discouraged; there was not an ounce of motivation that would get me to finish the last half mile, and there was not one part of my body that was not in severe pain. I stopped for a second and got myself to acknowledge how far I had already made it and how the past six months were all for this very moment. I’d done this before so why give up when I’m almost there? I got myself together and sprinted as fast as I could. I crossed an invisible finish line as I watched my mile tracker change to 26.2 miles.
If there’s one thing that SRLA has taught me is that I CAN accomplish anything I set my mind to. Six seasons with SRLA later, I feel so confident with anything I do. If a challenge or obstacle presents itself, even if I don’t know how I’ll get through it at that moment, I know that no matter what, I will overcome it. SRLA has truly influenced my perspective on life. Everything I do has an invisible finish line that I can’t see but know it’s there. Participating in this marathon program has allowed me to have great self-motivation and mental strength. SRLA has given me a unique experience that has shaped me into the strong person I am today. This program has provided me with so much support throughout the years. I am always excited to see so many people like me who share the same passion at every SRLA race or even during training runs when I can recognize the logo on someone’s shirt. With each race, I know I’m in my element. I’m grateful to be a part of a very strong community. There’s always someone motivating me to keep on going even if I don’t know them.
“Everything I do has an invisible finish line that I can’t see but know it’s there.”