Last Wednesday, my grandmother, Edna Marriott, passed at the tender age of 105. Yes that's right, 105. And although she was in good health, especially for 105, death never seems to come at a time when the rest of us would consider it "opportune." No matter our preparations for the inevitable, the outcome always seems to come as a bit of a surprise.

My grandmother was the oldest of 9 children, but somehow found a way to outlive all but her youngest sister. For the better part of the past 30 years, she has lived a simple, yet contented life. Some might have called her daily routine boring, but Nana (as we called her) was perfectly satisfied sitting on her porch on 54th street in West Philadelphia, patiently observing the ever changing neighborhood.

I remember asking Nana what her secret to longevity was. She responded, "I don't know, lucky maybe." And maybe she was. I know she didn't smoke, probably never drank, she surrounded herself with loving family, and as far as I could tell, was successful at avoiding most of life's stressors and unpleasantries. We should all wish to be so lucky.

I wonder sometimes if I will live to be 105, in fact, I wonder if I even want to...heck back with me in 60 years or so. What I do know, and what comforts me during times of death, is the reminder that life is a blessing. I am also reminded that the greatest sin is not fulfilling one's life. Should it take the passing of a loved one for us to remember what is truly important? How important could that company deadline really be? Was the promotion really worth it?

As we come to the end of the summer, I am asking you to hug your family or even better, hug a friend.

Love, Live, Laugh and Learn!

Death is rarely a happy time, and to be certain, I feel tremendous sadness, but more importantly I am inspired by a woman who did what we should all hope to do, live a full life.

Get busy living or get busy dying!

As a runner, it would be great to have a crystal ball that foresees how training and race performances will unfold, what injuries might be encountered, and of course, how fate can be altered to stay healthy. We can all keep dreaming, right?

Overuse injuries are not uncommon in the running arena. The key is to determine what causes them and avoid it at all costs. Some variables are controllable such as mileage, intensity of training, and recovery, but one has to wonder if there are some forces of nature that are out of our control . . . such as gender?

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Capitol Rehab of Arlington physical therapists Barb Fallon Wallace, MSPT, DPT and Lyn Stewart, PT are clinically skilled in the Kinesio Taping methods and taping techniques. Both our residential physical therapists attended and completed Kinesio taping coursework and are actively applying their knowledge with a variety of patients in the clinic. Kinesio Tape can be used to treat a virtually limitless number of ailments and injuries.

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