Life's Tapestry

Ran a very comfortable 30 kilometres last Sunday.  

This week I couldn't find the chest strap for my heart rate monitor, so I went out for my runs sans strap and I even bagged my watch and just ran for the joy of running.  Training?  What training?  Sometimes you have enough on your plate dealing with all the vagaries of life.  Just running can be more than enough, and times and heart rates can often get in the way of enjoying the physical pleasures of turning over the miles.  A quickened heartbeat, the sound of your feet on gravel and the quick uptake of cool air in the early morning are satisfying enough in themselves.

My life is still entirely caught up in dealing with my Father's death in February, and doing just enough training to get ready for the Vancouver Marathon on May 4 has been a blessing for my peace of mind.  Thank God that my friend Paul is coming over from Paris to run Vancouver.  It has been good to have commitments to others to take my mind off of my own running.   That is one of the great reasons to be a Pace Group Leader on Sunday long runs.  When I don't want to get out of bed at the crack of dawn on a cold, wet and blustery morning it is good to remind myself that I have obligations to others.

The same week as my Father's Memorial Service in March - within days, actually - a former paramour told me that she was pregnant, and although the news was slightly bittersweet, it was a powerful reminder that life goes on.

And this week, two of my oldest and closest friends both had their Father's pass away on Monday.  Sobering news and if I wasn't already in an entirely introspective frame of mind, it would certainly have given me pause for thought.

Think it's time to go out for a run.   Just to run.