Day 4,401—How What and Why—

 

      Run Start time: 4:36 a.m. 

  Weather: Mid-High 40s, 5mph wind

How did I get here? I barely remember waking up this morning, and my run today seems more like a dream than a memory. Maybe this is why I shouldn’t take the same route each day: it becomes harder to tell them apart. This route was slightly different because I ran partly through the university by the library, but it was mostly the same. What have I done so far today? I took a shower, read some, drank coffee, did 100 push-ups, and went for a run. It looks like a lot when I list it, but those things can be a real struggle for me to complete early when I don’t have work to go to. Work was crazy this week! I shouldn’t be surprised, but I am. It was like this in high school. All the kids who didn’t want to do anything or listen to me throughout the school year suddenly were blowing up my e-mail, demanding all this extra work. The kids were used to teachers giving them a bunch of the work from throughout the school year that everyone else had already done, so they could copy and turn it in as their own. I didn’t do that. They always got work no one else was doing, then wouldn’t turn it in and would blame me.

    Why do I do anything? Most of the time, when I am talking to kids about why they should believe in a better future and talking about why they should look for the best in people. I am also talking to myself. I need the encouragement. The world is a lonely and scary place when every person you meet is perceived as an enemy, and the only good future you can consider is one where you can be left alone to watch too much TV and play video games.

    Happy Friday, everyone! Next weekend is the Berryman! And I am really looking forward to it this year. It seems like forever since my last race, and I am excited about both my 100-mile races coming up too. I am already thinking about how I can squeeze in one more race before or after the one I have planned for October.