The miracle of legs.

This is the oldest marathon runner in the world, Fauja Singh. He began his running career at age 81. His first marathon, he was under the impression that he'd be running 26 kilometers, not miles. Needless to say, he was caught off guard when the finish line didn't come into view until at least 42 kilometers had come. But that experience sparked his life-long dream: to run. If he can start running 26-mile races at 81, then so can I. 

"As one engineer has put it, "the upright two-footed locomotion of the human being seems almost a recipe for disaster in itself, and demands a remarkable control to make it practicable." When we walk, we repeatedly tip over and break our fall in the nick of time. When we run, we take off in bursts of flight. These aerobatics allow us to plant our feet on widely or erratically spaced footholds that would not prop us up at rest, and to squeeze along narrow paths and jump over obstacles. But no one has yet figured out how we do it." --Steven Pinker, How the Mind Works. p. 11.

I am so thankful for my legs! I know that may sound weird, but seriously! My South African neighbor, Taelin, has been waking up at the crack of dawn with me, and last week I stuck to my training plan every day but Saturday (I was so sore by Saturday, that fifteen minutes of "yoga" was enough for me). We ran round and round the indoor track, and my foot didn't even hurt. I went four miles on Monday, Wednesday and again on Friday. Woohoo! Tuesday and Thursday was eliptical, abs, and sprints. And we started all over again this following Monday! Four miles again, then it'll be five the following week, and so on.

I've finally decided: I am going to run a half-marathon. I decided against the full, because I feel like it may wreck my body, and that is no bueno. But one day! I will run a full-on marathon, just like Fauja.

I'm thankful, as always, for Jacob. He was my running buddy on Friday, and he brightened my day with the time he took to spend with me. Sometimes, it's hard to find time for each other between school and work, but It. Is. Worth. It. Metaphorically speaking, I know Jacob will always be in the race with me, keeping pace or pushing me along.

Running in circles at the track gets pretty nostalgic for me, as I go round and round, seeing the same things over and over again. I am reminded that I have a past, but it is in the past. I have a future, and it will come to pass. But presently, I am here. I take a breath, my foot touches ground. I tip, I fall. Then I push off and fly and defy gravity for one small second as my center gets that much closer to God. I am a child of God, created by Deity, offspring of Deity, and able to become like Deity. One step, one breath, one flight at a time.
Just like the rest of you. (:

Keep running. Don't run faster than you have strength, but
Keep running anyway.