“Running Up That Hill”
I always loved running… it was something you could do by yourself, and under your own power. You could go in any direction, fast or slow as you wanted, fighting the wind if you felt like it, seeking out new sights just on the strength of your feet and the courage of your lungs. ~Jesse Owens
There is nothing like listening to your feet hitting the ground as you breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth. Trying to hear the footsteps over the heartbeat. At times, it’s nearly impossible. Running makes you feel things that you wouldn’t feel under normal circumstances. . . if you felt them, it would most likely signify that you are sick. But when you run, your heart catches fire and your lungs sting, but you push yourself further. Even if you get a stitch in your side, you can keep going. . . just to hear those footsteps hitting the ground.
It’s empowering to run through the forest on such an uneven terrain. Now, you have to throw balance and agility into the mix. Sometimes you have to propel yourself up and over tree roots and find the strength to climb the steepest of inclines. I feel like the strength it takes to run through the forest is a reflection of the strength I have to move through life. Especially this semester. It took a couple weeks of running for me to clear my head and see the picture that I was missing. Now it’s like I don’t want to miss a day because I am afraid of losing that clarity that I have suddenly gained.
Still, there is nothing like running and feeling like your heart is on fire. There is nothing like running and taking one more step when you think it is nearly impossible. The body is a beautiful machine, meant to withstand a lot of pain and turmoil. Your body will go on, it will take that next step. That’s what’s beautiful. To realize the strength of even the heart as a working muscle.
So I will keep running up that hill. Day after day. Just for a sense of clarity. Just to push my body when it feels like it can no longer move forward another step.
