Marathon

I have been a runner in my lifetime.  Some days I still feel like one, but most of the time I am happy to have the memorable experience of sustained motion.  In 1999 a friend talked me into doing a "fun run" with her.  She had just had her third child and wanted to get back in shape.  She had been very involved in track during her college days and was really quite good, and fast.

I said yes, and over the next five years I ran in several events including four marathons and three triathlons.  In 2004 I had a training accident which inadvertently led to an MRI revealing evidence of demyelinating disease.  My next marathon had begun.  It took another six years of head scratching before the diagnosis came.  Oddly welcome.  Nice to know the reason why, right?

Some questions though, do not have answers that feel satisfactory.  And then there is the whole thing about not knowing what the future holds.  All there really is to plant my feet on is what is in front of me right now.  I am more than ok with that.  Distance running is kind of the same.  Being in the moment, being with myself is a big part of what I would try to do during a long run.  

Now the distances involve navigating the space between my CNS and my body, the emotions that surface with the myriad neurological sensations and the time it takes me to employ good old-fashioned self care.  Running shoes are optional.