Running Is Honest

I've tried for many years to be an honest person. The reason I want to be honest is not to ensure my spot in heaven or avoid hell but for a purely selfish reason. I want to sleep at night and be able to look everyone straight in the eye.

I'm sitting here on a late Friday afternoon just hanging out after a busy week at work. My thoughts continue to veer to a 12 mile run I'm set to do in the morning, starting at 6:30 a.m. on the Lakefront. If I'm allowed to live through the night and the alarm goes off as expected, I will probably go through my early morning ritual of 1. Questioning my sanity as to why I'm getting up early on a Saturday morning, drinking water and gatorade endurance formula instead of coffee or a bloody mary. 2. Deciding whether to wear my new silver-framed Nike shades, my pricey Rudy Project racing glasses or my cool Bolle shades with the matador red frames. At this point I'm thinking Bolle. As you can tell...I have plenty of time to think and I also have a wonderful cushy life.

I've just finished reading RunnerGirls blog and see where a former running coach/friend of hers has just died from cancer. I don't think I have cancer but I don't know that for sure. I've lived long enough to realize more and more that this is the only day and the only moment I really have to enjoy, so I'm enjoying myself by writing my thoughts.

And if the running gods smile on me in the morning, I will meet my rag tag running group and hopefully finish a 12 mile training run, ride my little trek bike back home, shower off and head for a yoga class.

Reasons to run are many and personal to each runner. I have a number of reasons that I run but I've come to the conclusion that it is possibly the most honest thing that I do. I start at point A and finish at point B. When I'm through I can look anyone in the eye who's interested, and most people aren't interested but I don't blame them, and I can tell them "I ran from A to B, it was 12 miles. No roller skates, no bike, no one carried me, many supported me but I had to do the work and it was hard work. I didn't take a short cut and there were a few times I questioned my sanity but I didn't quit, and that's the truth."

I also will admit that there were a lot of runners who got from point A to point B a lot sooner than I, but no one did it like me. No one on the face of this earth had my experience, it was all mine but I will share it with anyone who wants to listen. It's one of my responsibilities and I'm trying to be a responsible person.

Occasionally I will hear a fellow runner say something like "I'm not a very good runner" or "I'm not very fast."

Well, all I'm going to say is "you're a great runner and so am I" and that's the truth...the honest truth.