Eating the Elephant

To many people who have never run more than a mile or so, running 5 or 10 miles seems like a ridiculous amount of running.  When they hear you have run a marathon, they are baffled at why you would ever want to run that far.  That is, if they even know a marathon is 26.2 miles. After telling some people I just ran a marathon, they reply, "You have! How far was that one?" thinking any foot race is a marathon! I suppose it is true to some extent.....Any amount of mileage one sets out to conquer that seems a huge undertaking, is a marathon.  Because, according to the legend of the marathon, the Greek runner, Phillippides, ran 75 miles of rough terrain from the city of Marathon to Sparta to seek help from the the Spartans only to run the 75 miles back to report they could not come to help. The Greeks miraculously won the battle losing only 192 warriors to the Persian's 6,400. Phillipides, after running the 150 miles, fought in the battle, and then, was chosen to take the news of the victory to Athens! So he raced 25 miles to Athens and after shouting "Rejoice, we conquer!" he collapsed and died. A marathon represents commitment to a purpose and finishing what you set out to do with all your focus on the goal. Now I have never done what Phillpides did...I am not sure I could.  I have run four marathons in four consecutive days, three around Lake Tahoe followed by 107 mile drive and no sleep to run a trail marathon in Susanville, CA. I also have run two marathons on two consecutive days around Lake Tahoe to be followed by a 72.2 miler all the way around  the lake a few hours later, totaling 154.6 miles in about 28 hours. Even these are not to be compared to the feats of people who have run the extreme weather conditions of the Badwater Ultra, a 135-mile race from Badwater in Death Valley (elev. 282 feet below sea level) to Whitney Portals on Mt. Whitney (elev. 8360 feet) or Pam Reed, who in 2005, was the first person to complete a 300-mile run without sleep. Then there is Marshall Ulrich, at the age of 57,broke two transcontinental speed records when he ran 3,063.2 miles in 52.5 days from San Francisco to New York. Every person has a different reason for choosing to embark on these types of adventures.  Often it is to test ones limits, or support causes for diseases that have taken loved ones or even threatens the life of the person running. Many times it is to overcome weaknesses of character.  Every race is conquered the same way, one foot in front of the other, quitting never an option. " How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time."  What elephant are you facing today that seems so enormous you think you can never get it all down? God wants to do for us  what we can  never do in our own strength. He wants to make us better people than we can ever try to be and do things we never dreamed.We only have to take one bite at a time and one step at a time to "press toward the mark for the prize of the calling of God in Christ Jesus." Phil.3:14 "Rejoice, we conquer!"

New Every Morning

This is the view that welcomes me as I step out my back door for my morning runs.  The sky is vast with nothing between me and the Sierra but foothills that transition the valley to majestic mountains.  One lone palm tree stands like a sentinal at the end of the fields overseeing the little rolling hills which were at one time relatively untouched by man. This month we have lived on this ranch 26 years with those hills only changing from brown to green  with the passing seasons and the rotation of the cattle to different grazing pastures. In the spring migrating geese and other waterfowl would land in the lowland ponds formed by the winter rains to rest and feed on the empty silage fields. Coyotes, foxes, bobcats and even a mountain lion have wandered and hunted those hills.  I  have often ran along coyotes out scouting  for their breakfast. But times are changing...the agricultural machines have been eating up the land for big-money-producing crops of walnuts, almonds and grapes.With the new drip line systems they can now use the hills they could not irrigate in the past. According to  http://www.bluediamond.com, 40 acres can produce up 80 thousand pounds of nuts! Day after day big heavy equipment with huge forks have dug deeply into the ground ripping the fallow ground up. After months of ground preparation there are now thousands of acres with rows of newly planted trees. It makes me sad to see this change. The longer I lived here the less I wanted it to change. But change, both good and bad, is a necessary part of life that makes us grow.  There are some things that are beautiful because they do change like sunrises and sunsets.  In fact, no two are alike. Every breath we take, every day of life needs to be different or we die.  And with each, God supplies enough strength, love and mercy.  I have a hard time changing...I struggle with bad habits and poor choices, sometimes I wonder if I will ever change in to the likeness of God. But each sunrise brings the hope of change. Solomon said, " This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. It is of the Lords's mercies that we are not consummed, because his compasions fail not.  They are new every morning:  great is thy faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, saith my soul;  therefore will I hope in Him." Lamentations 3:21-24

Sunrise

Sunrise over the nearby reservoir is always beautiful and breathtaking, yet peaceful. It is one of the main reasons I started this blog.  It represents a new day with new opportunities and blessing to look forward to.  Yesterday's stuff is just that and I have a brand new start with every sunrise. When I pause to appreciate this gift of God I feel close to Him and can hear Him speak.

Here it is 2012 and with the New Year came new resolves that already seem to be hard to keep up with.  But as with running, the hardest thing seems to be just starting.  Getting up out of that warm bed, putting your clothes on and making it out the door on a dark chilly winter morning is sometimes  harder than starting a marathon! But each time I do, I  feel exhilarated by the fresh air hitting my face and the freedom I feel as I head away from my house and the responsibilities it represents to quiet time in nature, spent with my Creator. Everyday as I pursue, a closer walk with Him, trying to live healthier, kinder and less selfish I seem to be so far from the "finish line."  Some days I just cruise through the day knowing I am right where I am suppose to be fulfilling my purpose in life.  Other days I feel like I have hit the wall and I can hardly move forward. But as with running a race, the only way to get to the finish is to keep moving forward.  There is no turning around and going back and if you stop you go nowhere. There are many uncertainties in the year ahead of me, with my family, my home, our nation's future, there are many things I know I can't count on.  But, there are things that I can always count on...a new sunrise, a new day...hope and the unchanging love of my Heavenly Father...These are enough to pull me through anything this world can throw at me and that thought makes me smile! Press on people, today is a new day!

Don't Rain on Me!

So have you ever noticed that whenever you get really excited about something, that there is always someone to "rain on your party"? No, they aren't negative, they are realist! For instance, when I first actually told someone I was going to train for a marathon I heard, "Why on earth for? That much running isn't good for your body!" My mother also reminded me with five children I shouldn't have time to go run if I was doing everything "a good mother" should be doing.....hm... what was she insinuating? Well, wanting to lose excess fat is something someone with less than 10 pounds to lose "shouldn't be worried about!" People tell me I don't need to, or you will get vain if you get work out, or best yet...you will be too skinny!

This morning's run reminded not to pay any attention to the threat of rain. The forecast predicted rain, and when I woke up in the middle of the night to the sound of wind and rain....I thought, "Oh! Man! I don't want to get out in that!" But in the morning the sun was shining on the east side of my house. Clouds were on the west...If I got out there right away, maybe I could beat the rain. Well, by the time I hit the road it was a beautiful sunny morning and the clouds had blown away. Wow! I would have missed it if I had thought only about the clouds coming! Sometimes we need to forge ahead even though doom is foretasted by well meaning friends and family. Stick to your goals and don't get discouraged if you don't have the perfect day. Look for the sunshine and you will be sure to find some!

Dr. Oz and Just 10

Dr.Oz has been the hot TV health guru for the past few years. He has gained nationwide popularity and is now considered by many as "America's Doctor" as coined by Oprah Winfrey. While I have never personally watched either of them much, I could not avoid reading or hearing about either of them over the years. I admired Dr. Oz's great blend of natural, Eastern and Western approaches to health and medicine. So when I heard of his Just 10 campaign to lose weight, I looked it up on his website. It was great! I immediately asked my girlfriends to join me. I was so happy when they did. I didn't really need to loose too much and striving for 10lbs. would be just right to motivate me back in to a better quality of life and a better quality of body. I took the RealAge Test and found out it was 43.6 years old, making me 8.6 years younger than my chronological age. Not bad...but I would like to see if I can improve that score. Why wait until the until I am another year older? "There is never any better time than the present" and putting it off is what got me extra weight to carry with me running to begin with. So here we go again...a new day, a new beginning and I better get out and get running!

Rain

Rain can be fun to run in...Usually I don't like to get out in it but once I do,I love it...providing the wind isn't too bad. Once I ran the LA marathon in the pouring rain and the wind was blowing hard on top of it. You would think it would be a totally miserable marathon...and at times it was NOT FUN!...BUT there was something very inspiring about seeing all those people stay committed to their goals and refuse to quit because of the weather. I remember one guy yelling defiantly as we turned a corner into the pelting rain and wind...”Oh! Yeah! Bring it ON!” When he did that those of us running around him laughed, bent our heads into the rain and wind and determined to finish...you could almost feel the determination push you forward from everyone following responding the same way. It occurred to me that everyone deciding to finish together, made it easier for us as individuals to keep persevering. Likewise, we as Christians need to do that for each other...inspire and encourage each other to push forward, meet our trials head on and keep running towards our heavenly goal. For "Behold, we count them happy which endure." James 5:12

Getting "Back in the Saddle!"

After not running for two weeks due to a temperamental old gymnastic knee injury, the thought of "getting back in the saddle" to run was a bit intimidating. It is funny that after ten years I can still wonder if I can run! But was really amazing to me was how much my stress affected me when I couldn't run. My body ached more, I felt more sluggish and tired and my emotions were harder to manage. I guess I have been taking these benefits for granted as with most people who enjoy good health. It isn't until we stop doing what is healthy, stop taking our supplements, stop eating healthily we realize how much benefit we enjoy everyday by doing these things. And by the way, when I did finally get out and run...it felt great and my energy was good all day long...so glad to be "back in the saddle!"