Zen running

Last week there was a break in the weather, and we had five glorious days of morning temperatures in the 60s. By the second day, I was literally bounding out of bed in the morning.

I couldn't wait to lace up my shoes and get outside for a run!

While I was out enjoying the cool morning air, I remembered a quote from the Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hahn:

"If we are not aware that we are happy, we are not really happy. When we have a toothache, we know that not having a toothache is a wonderful thing. But when we do not have a toothache, we are still not happy. A non-toothache is very pleasant. There are so many things that are enjoyable, but when we don’t practice mindfulness, we don’t appreciate them."

For a few moments I was reminded of how wonderful it is to be able to just run. Sometimes in the need to stick with a training schedule, or squeeze a run into a busy schedule, running becomes something we "have" to do, rather than something we "get" to do.

And when the weather gets hot again, my runs will remind me of why a cool shower is an amazing, incredible experience, instead of just an everyday one.