Hugs: more than words

At Expedition Africa I gave - and received - so many hugs. I knew many people at the race from old friends, who I've met through AR - going back up to 14 years ago, more recent AR friends, as well as a number of ex-teammates (enough to almost make two teams!) were participating. And an ex-boyfriend.

I gave much thought to all of this hugging as non-verbal communication.

A hug can be a simple "Hello, nice to see you". Many of these before the race start, especially as there were so many people there that I hadn't seen for many years.

As the race lengthened the hugs I gave had much more meaning.

"I'm so glad you've made it to transition safely"

"I know you're tired, but you can do it"

"Here, I'm warm and strong and full of energy - have some of mine to keep you going"

"I feel for you that you're cold and tired and sore - but go out there again and keep going. I'll be waiting for you later"

"I wish I was out there to help you"

"I'm so proud of you"

And the hugs that I received in return were very much saying...

"I'm so glad to see you here waiting for me"

"Thank you"