“And
what do you expect to get from this...” asked my Grandma as we sat around the
dinner table...confusion and disbelief over my upcoming 72 hour adventure....
“Sore
Feet” Chimed my grandpa.. with sparkle and laughter in his eyes....
“Yes,
Sore feet!!.” I chimed back....
Sore...
sore... feet.....
What
do you expect to get from this??? Why do you do that?? Your crazy....!! Why do
you punish yourself???
The
age old question.... Why???
Why
do we do what we do?
Why
do we look at the simple marathon and scream to ourselves...
IT’S
NOT ENOUGH!!
What
is it we are lacking in our lives that compels us to push our body’s harder...
further... up steeper and steeper inclines....
Past
the point of fatigue and pain...
Beyond
the boundaries of what the mind and the world say is our limits????
Yes....
what is it we are lacking???
Enlighten
me...
Or
perhaps for a moment indulge me...
For
what you see as lacking...
I
see as full....
The
famous quote says....
“Run
the first third with your legs...
The
second third with your mind....
And
the Last third....
That
you run with your heart....”
As
I was laying on the famous Dr. Dan's table... having him work on my Sore.. Sore
feet, he commented... “those work injuries seem like nothing”.... meaning in
comparison the things us crazy runners bring him.....
Recently
I’ve been referring him my "WCB" employee’s...
With
their tweaks, and pinches....
What
the normal person sees as a major issue... a light sprain...
A
pulled muscles.... we runners tend to ignore....
Bringing
ourselves in only when we need it most....
Because
we understand our bodies...
We
know what they are capable of...
How
they heal themselves...
We are at one with ourselves....
As
we discussed the minor pains Dan said something that struck me...
Work
injuries are major... only because they are far away from the heart....
We
chatted about that statement a few moments...
As
I pointed to the painful top of my foot...
And
for the first time in 7 years Dan asked me the age old question....
Why,
do you do this? What do you get from it....
“I
suppose the endorphin rush is crazy”...
Again
I was left with a lackluster response....
The
“I cannot describe it... it’s the oneness with yourself...”
That
is why I do it....
I
pondered the question on my drive home....
Mulling
over my recent run...
The
accomplishments of defeat...
The
moments I faced my demons head on....
And
laid them to rest....
The
bonds formed over 30minute miles...
The
laughter....
The
tears...
And
then the more tears....
The
ability to see someone you admire... who is so strong.... and amazing... and to
look them in the eye when they are struggling.... put a hand on their shoulder
and urge them forward....
To
have them urge you forward in your dark moments..
For
the sunrise and sunsets.... the star filled nights...
The
wild lightening storms...
The
mountain trails.... and the insane views....
To
see the world in a way so many will never encounter...
Because
when I run my senses are sharper....
Life
tastes better.....
Because
it makes me whole....
It
completes me in a way I cannot describe to you....
Because
it is “close to my heart....”
Hell...
It
is my heart.....
That
is why I do it.....
Because
to me...
It’s
as natural as breathing...
And
more fulfilling than anything this world can offer....
That...
And
as my grandpa said...
It gives me Sore... Sore.... Feet!
