JTB: Why run?

Today is Sunday and as my weeks grow crazier and more busy, my time to run is scarce.... and it forces the question, many times... how badly do I want this?  How much do i really want to race and to continue excelling at a sport I love, how much can I push my body through the weary and tired runs I am sure can not be done... how many evenings do I want to pick myself up off of the couch after a long day to get in the miles and how much do i want the burden and the responsibility of being accountable.... to my sport and to myself.

A lot pf people dislike running.... to that I will say... you have never really ran.... you have never experienced what we(runners) have felt on that life changing run.... the one that pulled us closer to our depths and our limits and showed us what we were really capable of... what we could overcome and what we could withstand..... when you run.... you rediscover your strength and in some ways.... you uncover the essence of your soul..... don't believe me..... train for a marathon... look past the no ways and the I can't run.... I hate running.... how awful..... and find your limits.... then.... exceed them. Then and only then... will you understand why some of us... love to run.....

Today.... with the long run hanging over me.... tired and a to do list more than 10 miles long... I ask myself... why do I run.......It's to be fast.... right.... no.... that feels so heavy.... and I run to lighten the weight and to feel the freedom of moving through life..... with strength and determination...

I run to let go of imperfection.... of the mirage of what my life should be and is not....
I run to remind myself of who I am and what I can do......
I run to redefine limits, to push boundaries, to test my heart and my mind....
I run to purify, to wash away all of the negative, the doubt, the I can't, the I won't make it.....
I run to find myself and to learn to love everything that I am....
I run to remind myself that today is a new day.... no matter what happened yesterday....
I run to believe in myself and to understand I always have more to give....
I run to discipline myself into doing what ever it takes to accomplish a goal....
I run to live a life I know I am capable of living.....
I run to be free from what is and what was and what should be.....
and at the end of it all.... it's simple. I just run.

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