Quietly and gently, we entered into the last day of the year. Our morning pace had a nice rhythm. We split up to do our run, but ended up crossing paths, so I got a kiss halfway through my 5K. Always a bonus!
I ran past a favourite farm and my little herd of cows were outside eating their breakfast. I shouted my hellos and carried on down the road into the village. I took a brief break outside the church yard before turning around and running back up the hill, I had just so gloriously and speedily run down. Going back up was hard work. But, I did it!
Then I met Mr. Michie at our favourite coffee shop for breakfast. As I was reflecting on my run with him, I caught myself and started to laugh-out-loud. Sitting across from him, I was niggling myself over my running time. I managed to shave a decent bit off my 5k, but it still wasn’t as good as it had been a few months ago, before a minor knee injury.
As I laughed, I reminded myself that I was out there. Running! That’s the point!
Before I started this journey almost three years ago, I wasn’t much of a runner and the last thing I would have wanted to do was run 5K, let alone worry about the time it takes me to do it.
So, as this year comes to a close and I reflect on where I am, I’m happy. There are things I wanted to happen this past year that haven’t yet come to fruition. We’ve hit a lot of unexpected bumps in the road, but that’s life; we roll with the punches and keep on going.
But through all of it, running has been a constant.
I never thought that I would be a girl who got such a thrill out of running. I’ve always been a walker, but running – no thank-you! However, I have come to love it. It’s not just the physical side of it either (although that has been very rewarding), it’s the spiritual side too. Running in the open and being able to see nature around me is meditative. It restores the soul.
So as we enter this new year, I’m going to keep on running. Running through the woods, running down the lanes and past the fields, running toward my goals and running toward our dreams.
