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Monday, December 16, 2013

The Finish Line

There's a sense of tranquility that occurs during a run. A therapeutic state of mind, almost impossible to replicate.

earlier during my run.
For the past few weeks, I've been contemplating about my purpose in life. There are days I feel trapped. Other days I feel like I've lost all sense of direction. And as each day passes me by, I feel even further behind with my goals. What am I doing? Where am I going? Is this where I should be? Is this good enough? Question after question and yet no where near an answer. 

You see this is all new to me. When I was in a committed relationship, I was quick to share these concerns with my partner. He had a way with words, always there to rescue my thoughts. Well it's different now. He's gone and here I am, lost. All left to answer them on my own.

So while out on my run today, I began to explore the thought of running as a metaphor for life. Just like there are good days and bad days, today I had a good run. The weather was impeccable, better than the last time I paid a visit.

very icy ground during my last run.

Around mile 3, I started to get sharps pain in my legs, there was no choice but to walk it off. But soon, I went back to running. Thankfully there were no hills today, a runners nightmare. Hills are the devil working against you ha ha ha! No seriously, out of your comfort zone and their sole purpose it to make you crawl your way to the top. Let's not even mention injuries, talk about setbacks. Sometimes it can take days, months, years to recover and getting back in the game is just as tough. But isn't this how life works? With bumps and bruises along the road, one must keep moving forward.

The thought of running as a metaphor for life was reinforced for a race. Some runners show up with months of training invested. While others arrive less prepared, regretting their lack of discipline. Reasons for participation may vary. Checking off a bucket list, reaching a fitness goal, running for a cause. Then there are the experienced runners in pursuit of a personal record, maybe even aiming for a spot at the Boston Marathon. As for me, I do it for pure pleasure. 

Although I still don't know my purpose in life, I'm okay with that. We're in different stages in our lives. Running at different paces. Some will be guided through out their journey, while others will find themselves running in the dark or maybe even in circles. Some will find themselves unable to keep up and walk instead. The truth is we're all part of the biggest race: life. With the ultimate quest of reaching our personal "finish line."


I can go on and on but it's getting late. I hope I did a good job putting my thoughts together. Lord know's I'm no writer. Thanks for visiting!

Carla

Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Work Run and Read

WORK. Lately I've been swamped by work. About a month ago, I took on a new position with more responsibilities. BIG RESPONSIBILITIES. My team has shown a great amount of patience and willingness to help that it's made this transition easy.


RUN. There are only four days left until the Dallas Marathon. This will be my second half-marathon in over two years. I want to beat my previous (and first) time of 2:30 hours. But looking at the weather, just showing up and finishing might have to suffice.


READ. I read The Alchemist over the weekend. This story of a young shepherd boy in search of a treasure is a quick read and powerful metaphor of life. Great message about listening to your heart and never giving up on your dreams.
“When you really want something to happen, the whole world conspires to help you achieve it.” Paulo Cohelo, The Alchemist. 
I have about four books lined up for December: Mockingjay (third and finally book of The Hunger Games series), Gone Girl, The Shack, and Wicked.  I'll be taking a break from running so I'll have enough time to go through them all.