I Run

"I run into being and becoming and having been into feeling and seeing and hearing.  Into all those senses by which I know the world that God made, and me in it. Into understanding why a Being whose reason to exist is 'to be' should have made me to His image." - George Sheehan, Running and Being

The Quotable Marathoner as edited by Charles Lyons is my go-to resource for quotations related to, "duh", the marathon! My go-to author for running is George Sheehan, runner "duh", philosopher, medical doctor.  His last book Going the Distance was written while battling and finally succumbing to terminal cancer.  Running had such a profound effect on his life.  I've run the George Sheehan classic 5 miler in Red Bank, NJ multiple times.  I wonder, though, how many people running that race truly know who he was and his impact.  How many runners in general really know the history of the sport? I am sure that I don't know half of it but I certainly take an interest in it and learn what I can. Interestingly enough, running is a human endeavor, even before it was a sport. It is built into our DNA, particularly long distance running.  Nearly every other main stream sport involves running of some kind and if it isn't running while doing the sport, it is running to be in shape for the sport. My morning runs are generally preparation for the day.  I run for a clear, concise mind.  I run to tax my lungs and heart and allow blood to flow to the outermost extremities and certainly the brain.  I run to solve problems, to feel good and to see the world in a different light.  I run to experience God and the world He has given me.  I run to feel and I run marathons to experience the mental and physical pain it brings, to put me at the edge of breaking, to make that transition from comfortable to uncomfortable where I need to reach deeper just to make one more stride.  I run into being.

Days 277-286: 38 miles, 2014: 1,359 miles