When Amin Jaber and his wife, Zahraa Majed, left Lebanon to pursue doctoral studies in the United States, they believed they were building the future they had carefully planned. Newly married and in their twenties, both were working toward PhDs when an unexpected setback changed everything. During a visit to Lebanon in 2017, they were unable to return to the United States. Overnight, the life they had spent years building seemed to disappear. Amin was suddenly uncertain whether he would be able to complete his degree, while his wife was forced to abandon her PhD and search for a new path forward. "It felt like we lost everything," he recalls. The months that followed were among the most difficult of their lives. Amin continued his PhD remotely while both lived with uncertainty about what would come next. During that period, they discovered something unexpected: running. What began as a way to cope with stress gradually became a form of therapy. Through training, races, and a community of runners in Beirut, they found a way to move forward when life felt stuck. Running became a source of stability and connection. A new opportunity emerged when Zahraa was accepted into a PhD program at Queen's University. In October 2018, they arrived in Kingston with only ten days booked in an Airbnb and no permanent place to live. Finding housing proved difficult, and they secured an apartment on the final day of their temporary stay. Running continued to shape Amin's life in Canada. Through local running groups, triathlons, swimming, and Kingston's sports community, he built friendships and found a sense of belonging. Just days after arriving in Canada, he and his wife even ran a marathon in Toronto. Today, Amin works in artificial intelligence and machine learning. He enjoys the stability, diversity, and opportunities he has found in Canada, while Lebanon remains deeply connected to who he is. He misses his family, his childhood memories, and the land where he grew up. For Amin, immigration means living between what has been gained and what has been left behind. As he puts it, "You're torn between two things." Yet running has taught him to keep moving forward, one step at a time.