It's okay...I ran today.

Ah, the little motivational quotes we share with each other in the hopes of sparking a fire or encouraging our tribe.  I had/have so many little diddies like this that moved me, physically and/or emotionally, through life's moments.  I loved seeing this quote in the foreground of a breathtaking view; most of the time, on those days I smiled, because I HAD actually run that day.  

Those days of being 'okay' and 'running today' are few and far between.  Occasionally, there's a relationship between being okay and running; more often than not, I'm not okay and I'm not running.  I am, however, almost completely okay with NOT running, or my drastic decline in mileage.  And for the most part, I am NOT okay running.  July just kicked my ass on so many levels and I honestly didn't care to continue marathon training or even running.  I wasn't getting any faster; in fact, I was getting progressively slower.  My body wasn't recovering well, no matter how much yoga, sleep, massage I gave myself.  I started expending more energy worrying about what was happening than just allowing the process to unfold.  I always owned the run, yet I went broke.  I didn't even have that.  

For the month of July, I ran a total of 90 miles; for the month of August I ran 40 miles.  I ran 3 miles LAST WEEK.  I have since stopped analyzing all the whys because this is part of the process.  I did, though, have another momentous week that absolutely contributed to today's success.

Some of the Crazies gathered this morning for a birthday celebration run.  I had not put on my beloved shoes for 7 days, but my feet responded well to the fit.  We kept a steady pace to support much needed conversations.  It also helped keep our core temps in check, considering it was already in the mid-80's with the humidity hanging in the already heavy air.  A short loop through the Parkway (normally a trail I absolutely late) ended with a brief walk/run combo until we made it to the car.  Our gathering concluded with a hum of chatter at Dunkin Donuts.

I left there, and have since continued my day, with a smile on my face realizing more than one could in 30 minutes worth of running.