Running Thoughts

I have noticed something strange, to me, over the past few weeks.  While I resisted getting up early to run with all my might when Adolfo and I first started running a few months ago, I have come to realize that it is the way I most enjoy it.  I feel less lethargic, and it takes less mental energy for me to get through the whole of my plan for the run. 

This morning, I got out of bed at 5AM.  I know myself well enough to know that if I don't get at least one full cup of coffee in me before, I will never survive a run of more than a mile, no matter what time of day I go, so I knew I would need some time to get myself up and moving.  But the early morning was like magic to me in a way that it never had been before.  It was still dark, that inky black that seems relegated to the minutes before the first vague pink waves of morning come.  Coffee in hand a few minutes later, I headed out to the balcony to check out the weather.  It was so quiet, I could hear the train to Philly stopping at the station a few blocks away from us.  I had NEVER been able to hear that before.  I settled into a chair, and drank the warm coffee, savoring the light breeze, and the blessed coolness that has been so elusive since May.  Slowly the sky started to lighten, and, after my second cup of coffee, I laced up my shoes and headed down the stairs.

Running before the sun comes over the small rise behind our apartment building means that it is still comfortable, even if the day will eventually become unbearable, and it is fascinating to see the world come to life around me.  I saw one other person when I arrived in the park, and a few more as it got lighter, but it was much quieter and more solitary than the afternoons are.  I felt free to play the air drums in time to my music as I went, or break into merengue steps in the middle of the path when the moment struck me.  The light fragrance of the night blooming morning flowers still hung in the air, and the birds were awakening all around the park.  They flew around above me looking for all the world like the fighter jets I had grown so accustomed to in Maryland.  The ducks floated serenely around the pond, enjoying the time before the tyrannical geese arrived.

I ran a faster mile than I have since I started this experience, and I ran further than I usually do.  I walked less, and felt better the whole way.  I felt jubilant when I reached landmark that I knew the distance of.  It was, without question, the best run I have EVER had.