philippians 3:13-14. run, forest, run!

as many of you know... i am a runner. there are very few other activities in life that i enjoy more. the more challenging i can make a run, the better. being outside sprinting through the raw elements of nature just makes my stomach flip with a rush of excitement. it's not exercise to me...it's the highlight of my day. (other than spending time with ben and craig, of course) :)

i can never really pinpoint what it is exactly that i love so much about this endurance based sport. is it....
-the smell of being outdoors? (especially in the summer when passing freshly cut grass, that i am undoubtedly sooooo allergic to...but, nonetheless, the smell makes me smile...even as i sneeze..!)
-the feeling of complete helplessness of not being able to control the path ahead and enduring whatever it brings my way with courage and decided victory?
-adversely, the ability to control my steps by way of incline and speed via hamster-style (aka treadmill)?
-the quality of time spent with me, myself and i?
-having a great excuse to put my hair in a pony tail?
-the thankfulness i have for being able to perform such a task, as i realize that many cannot?
-the amount of endorphins i receive that ultimately make me high on life? (& to quote reese witherspoon in legally blonde: "exercise gives you endorphins. endorphins make you happy. happy people just don't shoot their husbands, they just don't.")
-that deep down, the shopper in me really just loves buying running shoes and running clothes?
-that i am vain and i like keeping my legs as shapely as such bowlegged chicken-like legs can be?
-the feeling of accomplishment after miles are behind me?
-the competitiveness against myself to exceed my previous running endeavor? (and if you know me, you know i am so non-cut-throat, so feeling such a sensation, can be a total out of body experience for me)

well, whatever the reason(s), running has never been a phase for me. it's always been something i've done. i have threatened for years that i will run a marathon one day. and for those of you unaware, that is 26.2 long miles. i know one day i WILL cross that finish line. but for now, i am back to training for a half (which would be 26.2 divided by 2... equalling 13.1 miles. i know, i know. i'm a math WHIZ!)

so, stay posted. a couple pair of saucony's, many pots of coffee, and a few hundred songs on my ipod later... i will consider myself a half marathon success and will be moving on to doubling that accomplishment.

Philippians 3:13-14
"Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."