Archives for January 5, 2007

I’d been itching to get outside all morning long. In spite of the blustery wind, the sun shone in the bright blue sky. Each time I walked past a window, I thought of how much I was looking forward to getting outside to run. I had ton of responsibilities to be accountable for.

By the time I set foot outside, I had successfully completed a heap of tasks. I felt success running through my veins. In my industry, the feeling of success that you will experience is self-initiated. It’s a far cry from the feelings I experienced in my nursing career. Today, I gave myself a pat on the back and thanked myself with a run.

I saw the directors returning from their lunch as I was heading out the driveway. It was a little late for a lunch, but I deserved it. I waved a happy wave to them as they passed. Minutes later, my feet hit the familiar dirt. The rhythmic crunch – crunch reminded me why I love running so much. I am so close to work, and yet so far away in just minutes. I am in a different world were the thoughts go in and out of my head with ease.

The crunch – crunch keeps pace with the music playing in my ear. My ponytail swings along too. It is finally getting long enough to contribute to run (as it did prior to my cutting it). The crunching sound of my footfalls, and the feeling of my ponytail swinging are just another way that I experience my run. I can use this feedback to gauge my run. It provides a motivation that I can hardly describe with words. It’s similar to music in that the beat is quick, but different because I am in control of how fast the beat goes. It’s a game.

The birds flying overhead, and the wind rippling the water make the day seem so peaceful. It seems calm, and yet l I am pushing to run against the wind. My heart is pounding, my breath is rapid, and I am battling the wind, as the rest of this world around me seems almost still. So wonderfully tranquil it is, that I almost don’t feel my blister filling back up with fluid.