Dedicated to Coach Petrie.

I'm sharing the impact you've had on my life with the world. You've influenced me well beyond the words in this article. Here are ten pieces of life advice from Coach Petrie. Others can learn from these, too.

1. If you want to make a memorable speech, begin with, "According to the dictionary," and go on to define a word.
You did this my freshman year of high school at the End Of The Year Banquet, and I'll never forget it.

2. It's always a good time to read a Stephen King novel.
Thanks for sharing in my obsession.

3. Before going on a long run, always check to make sure you don't have any scotch tape in your pants.

4. If you care about someone, don't ever judge them. Thanks to your unending support, I can share anything with you, and you believe in and support me fully. For this I will never be able to properly thank you.

5. Don't ever let anyone make you feel like an ugly person.
You once told me that someone made you feel ugly. From that moment, I hoped you, and anyone in the world, would never have to feel that way. Not everyone is going to like you, but the right people will.

6. Left, right, repeat.
Even if it feels like the world is falling apart, everything can be made right again by following those simple steps. Just keep running.

7. It's never too late to become someone you've always wanted to be.
This one is important to me. You have been there for me through every little,"I don't know what I'm meant to do with my life" meltdown, and every deep conversation about the future. You know I have dreams that I'm not pursuing, but you have full faith that I'll achieve them when the time is right. You once told me, "I believe you will become a marine biologist. Not in another life, in this one. Who knows what the future holds." I'll never forget those words.

8. Do everything with purpose.
Even if you think it won't count for anything, it counts for yourself, and that's important in self development.

9. Never lose your sense of wonder; it doesn't make you foolish, it makes you brave. All my life, I've looked up at the stars and wondered what was out there. I've always been inspired by science and the universe. When I was in high school, one of my teachers asked the class to write down a goal we had on a sticky note, and hang it on the wall. When I went to hang mine up, I noticed most students had written things like, "improve GPA," or "graduate high school." I wrote, "discover something for NASA." You taught me to be proud of my dreams and to hold on to them.

10. "Find the blue in the sky, then help someone else find the blue in the sky."
You told me that when I was 16 and trying to find my place on the team. It stuck with me and helped me not just in running, but in life. As soon as you start focusing on helping others, things will fall into place for you too.

I wish everyone in the world could know you. Thank you for being in my life.