Hello Road, I missed you!

               I'm a runner. We are a special breed. We only compete against ourselves. We run in weird weather conditions, we pee in the woods.Yeah, I know, we are so cool! I haven't run most of the summer since the kids were home.  With school back in I knew my time had come but the past two weeks I just couldn't get out there.  Today I woke up with a strong desire to run.  I put on my running clothes, saw the kids off on their buses and headed for the door. My plan? Run to the gym and back. The gym is about four miles away. I honestly didn't know if I would be able to do this as my fist run.But, I figured the gym gave me a half way water break and worst case I could beg a ride home from one of my gym friends. I acually made it there feeling pretty good. I went in, got a drink, and decided, yup; I'm gonna run back. I told a friend who has to drive past my place to get home to watch for me and make sure I hadn't died trying to do this.  I set out for home and after about 100 yards I thought I had made a big mistake.  Now here is why I love running. Running is not a skill. I don't need to know the rules, I don't need to know how to throw or catch or hit.  There are no special moves to practice. You don't have to go to a special field or court. You can start anywhere and end anywhere.You get out there, you take a deep breath and you just go.  You trust your own strength to move you, to carry you over hills and around curves. You can think while you run and let the scents of the life around you fill you up.  The empowering feeling that my strength can carry me over this distance is awesome. When I started to think I couldn't do this I thought about why I love to run, I put my head down and said OK I am doing this! I made it home. Actually I made it home pretty fast. I'm really suprised I was able to run 8 miles at a 7minute mile pace.  I feel great right now. The road is my friend and I can't wait to get out there again.