Santa Run (in a small town)

I grew up in a small town in northern New Hampshire where not much happens, but we had fun.  Recently my mother wanted to know if I would come home to do a 5k run/walk for Toys for Tots where the entrance fee was an unwrapped toy and a Santa costume.  After convincing a few friends to join me, I agreed to run on a day where the little weather tracker on my phone was reading 1 degree Fahrenheit.   

While I grew up in this small town and know the 5K loop well, I have been away for a while and most of the runs I have done are extremely well organized.  In our rag tag group of 50-75 runners/walkers dressed up like elves and Santas the girl stood in the back of her truck, thanked us for coming and told us to have fun.  After a few minutes of staring at each other, I started to run with a few friends and started my watch, so I would have a time(there was no official timer).  Others eventually followed and everyone was off.  After about a mile my feet began to thaw, my lungs began to adjust to the cold; I was able to enjoy running through the neighborhoods that I had grown up in, some of which I have not been in for 15 years.  It was fun and the lady standing by the cone at the end handed me a candy cane.  A good day was had by all.