I had a hard time getting up at five today.  Everything in me wanted to crawl back into bed and pull the covers up over my head.  But I got ready and then remembered that my ipod went missing.  This meant another day of running without music.  Something I would not recommend…

I muttered under my breath, tied my tennies and headed out the door.  The temperature was wonderful, and it was still slightly dark outside.  Little did I realize that since I didn’t have music to run to, it freed my mind to think of other things.  And right around the half mile mark, an analogy began forming….a parallel to life…

Here is the scenario.  I wake up each morning  between four thirty and five.  Every single day there is a decision I have to make.  Will I run today or not?  The choice is always there.  Some days that choice is less painful to make than others.  There is always a huge part of me that would love to stay where I feel warm and comfortable.  My bed.  Therein lies the dilemma.  Comfort or pain? Ease or hard work? Snoring or sweating?

On the one hand, the choice seems easy.  Go for comfort.  Avoid the difficult.  Human nature.  But there is another part to the decision.  If I stay in bed I get instant gratification.  I feel happy lying there.  But later, I feel disappointed in myself that I didn’t get up and do what I was supposed to do. Lying there didn’t help me achieve my goal of getting in shape and feeling healthy. 

And then there is the other choice – to run.  When I run, I definitely do not get instant gratification.  There are little aches and pains that begin as I try to work out the cobwebs of sleep.  But the further I go, the better I feel.  And I come back feeling great about my choice because it got me one day closer to my goal.  Each day that I run, I get a little stronger and am able to endure the pain.

There are days when the running is difficult the entire time.  It just does not feel good that day. I feel like I am plodding along, legs of lead, every step a chore. There WILL be days like that. And that’s okay.  Because if I make the choice to run the next day, it might just be a little better.

The desire to stay in bed will always be at the forefront of my mind when I wake up.  Each day I will have to make the same choice. To run or not to run. And I can’t make tomorrow’s choice today.   One day at a time…

Today I chose to run, even without music.  And tomorrow is a new day with a fresh new choice…