One winter, Jennifer Garrison Brownell, a mid-life pastor, wife of a seriously disabled man, and dedicated non-athlete, decided almost on a whim to train for and run a sprint triathlon.

In the process, she was surprised to discover that her spirit was as transformed as her body. With humor and without sentimentality, Brownell keeps breathing as she reflects on marriage and swim goggles; motherhood and bicycle repair; disabilities and running shoes.