Warmth and Sun and Runs

"Is that it?"



The un-trusting runner looks around himself, expecting a snowflake, a blustery wind, a patch of ice in his path... but there is nothing. Could the onslaught be over?

"Flashing for the warriors whose strength is not to fight
Flashing for the refugees on the unarmed road of flight"

Utopia temporalis
Twice a year we runners enjoy Utopia... The mild seasons of the spring and fall ease the cold and heat of their predecessor's oppression. We run with relaxed strides, with little thought of gear to wear and with renewed vigor. With an eternal youth to our step adding up year after year.

This week has brought that promise and hope of Utopia. Though we who run our winter miles on the tundra-like roads and trails know that this battle is not through. It IS ONLY February... and in my experience we have about 60 days left of at least sporadic winter-like weather, cold rain and snow...

A Warm Silver Lining... like a space blanket
During this transition we can take solace in the ever-lengthening days. We can delight in finishing nearly every evening run with at least dwindling sunlight with the pale blue whiteness of dusk when everything seems stiller and united.

The runner-incarnate
The miles are less lonely this time of year too. We see hoards of returning runners rejoining the paths we have tended in the off-season. More dogs, more strollers...

Perseverance not permanence

While we welcome them back, we also hold something inside of us. A badge of self-knowledge in our continued endurance in the face of all things. We have tempered the storm. While that other runner suffers through the adjustment to fitness, to leaving the belt-of-doom behind glass doors until the next in-climate day, we (winter) runners are able to fully appreciate the glow of soft sunshine, the cleared paths and the muddy trails... our Utopia is found in the dance with hardship.

...and, as this mud grows sloppier and the run gets warmer... we might even find ourselves once again wishing for the crystal crunch of day old snow under our feet, for the clarity of a deep, crisp winter breathe and its white billow of release... and for the solitude of our very own pure-white personal running route.  Happy running!