Bev, invited me to the Long Table @ The Irish Heather. Not one to turn down a delicious meal with good company I said "yes". As luck would have it, John Hill was also invited. John espoused some of his nuggets of wisdom. "Running is different from most other sports. It takes no skill, it's just how much pain you can endure." Also, on a (partially) unrelated note, he said I should take some ibuprofen and then go for a long run on the weekend. Yikes!
So I did. It went well, well, maybe not well, but better than I thought. My innards bouncing hurt, but what really hurt was deep breathing, with the hills being the real test. I'm not a "hills" person at the best, but add the lung expansion and contraction, you get "owwie!!!"
I try to take this in stride. How lucky am I that I can run, with only a little discomfort. TLT told me about a funeral she was at last week, male, 43 years old, two kids. That's me.
TLT asked, "why do you want to live longer?" I said, "I don't want to live longer grasping on to life. I want to live life."
Sure I'm riding a wave of mid-life crisis fitness, but with a history of father, grandfather, and great-grandfather not making it beyond 70, I've got less days in front of the cart than behind.
I remember telling Fil, many times, I'd be happy, just so long as I have my memories. But when I see the ravages of Parkinson's on my friend's father, I'm no longer thinking that. Sure memories are important, but I don't want them of watching the latest sitcom, I want memories of people, places and experiences that make me richer, that fill me with the excitement and passion.
A lot has happened to me since I made the original statement to Fil. As Calvin said to Hobbes, "It's a magical world, let's go exploring."
No comments:
Post a Comment