Seasons, Leaves, and Running: Metaphors for Life

After seven months of nursing an injured ankle and five months of nursing a broken heart, I have rediscovered the joy of running!?

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Okay, to be honest, it’s not really the actual act of running that brings me joy.? When I got out of bed today, I didn’t think, “I want to run!”? But I did remember the tremendous high I felt after getting back out there a week or so ago when I was in sunny Palm Springs.? Experts say that endorphins last just 30 minutes to an hour after exercise, but I’m confident I felt a physical and mental high throughout that entire day! ?

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And when I got out of bed today, I wanted to experience that feeling again.? Not necessarily the running part, but the endorphin part!

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Maybe last week’s 24-hour runner’s high really was more than endorphins. ?I had convinced myself that no, it didn’t matter if I couldn’t really run again.? I experienced a severe ankle sprain in March and the healing was so painfully slow that I told myself that maybe running wasn’t really in the cards for me anymore.? It would be easy to wonder why it even mattered. ?I mean, I’m so slow that passersby in cars probably think I’m walking (not exaggerating here)!? ?I’m definitely not going to win any races!

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But then again, most runners don’t win their races.? However they do show up, and that cannot be overstated. ?Whether it’s an early morning run through the neighborhood, or a half marathon in the beauty of Mammoth Mountain (my personal favorite), or the Boston Marathon (where, yes, most participants have likely won or placed in some event in their running career).

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In my case, I didn’t even start running until I was 40 years old.? It was – and continues to be – a sort of metaphor for life.? Until then, I had often “wanted to want to run.”? I know that sounds strange, but after being somewhat athletic all my life, I had never been one to enjoy running, and I sure wasn’t good at it.? When I’d been forced to run in PE or for sports conditioning, I wasn’t fast, I didn’t have much endurance, and I certainly didn’t enjoy it!?

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In fact, I remember high school cross country running assignments in PE.? I also remember that it was wintertime and my friends and I took turns bringing Christmas candy to enjoy while we walked the route.? Looking back, maybe I didn’t really try hard enough after all!

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As I approached the age of 40, a milestone in life, I got serious about getting out there and doing something I’d always accepted as being outside of my ability.? I was going to run!? It started with a “couch to 5k” running plan I found online (there are several out there), and with encouragement from my son, Jake.? He was 13 years old at the time and he loved running. ?So, he ran alongside me, encouraging me, through our neighborhood in those early days. ?Actually, I should say in those early “nights,” because I didn’t even have the nerve to run outside in the daylight where others would see me struggle! ?

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Ultimately, I partnered up with friends and neighbors who were also starting up their running routines.? Running is a surprisingly social activity, and I have to say my friend and neighbor Sylvia and I have probably logged more laughs and more tears than miles in our 17 years of running together.? As the saying goes, “Running:? it’s cheaper than therapy.”? Truth!

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During today’s run, I stepped over a lone yellow leaf which brought to mind a single yellow leaf that floated onto my city map when Darren and took an open-top bus tour in Munich last fall.? We thought it was a sweet moment and I took a picture so we’d always remember it.? I’m glad I did, and I’m also glad I didn’t know then that that would be the last entrée to fall that I would experience with my husband.? But we didn’t have to know; we appreciated it anyway.?

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Back to running…and all the other things that we think are too hard for us to do.? With more than 25 half marathons under my belt, I’ve proven to myself many times that I’m capable and have what it takes.? Yet this morning, I needed to prove it to myself again. ?And it felt great!? This time I was out alone and I was reminded that as social as running can be, putting one foot in front of the other can only be done by me, myself, and I.? Sometimes doing the really hard things means digging deep to see what we’re made of.?

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Staying in bed will always be easier, but taking those steps forward (whatever that means for you) will bring unimaginable benefits.?

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Again—just like life.?