Aramco Houston Half Marathon, January 16, 2022

 Number 84

I ran my 84th half marathon today on a cold day in Houston, with 27,000 easily jaded running colleagues. Happily, the sun did not excrete its heat upon me, and the weather was perfect for running oodles of miles. I really pondered not running this race because I had not trained suitably for it (the holidays got in the way). Suffice to say….. I withstood the urge to bow out (in fact, I ran my fastest time since heart surgery)....... which leads me to share with you Reason #8 of “The 13.1 Reasons Why I Run Half Marathons.”

Reason #8: BECAUSE I CAN AND IT IS DOABLE.

It is the human way to exert oneself, every now and again, in eccentric enterprises (even with congestive heart failure). I have chosen running (and golf and drawing and woodcarving and etc., etc.). When running, I generally experience that blend of elation, excitement, and apprehension one feels when heading out onto the road for a long passage. We humans often think in minutes, even half minutes, and an hour at the most.  Yet, time loses its meaning when I am running. You just run, and run, and watch the sun or moon descend ever so slowly, and the stars in steady rotation, and the path rushing alongside, creating that comfortable, cozy companionship....... you and the road......traveling in the same direction. It is a pleasurable experience difficult to surpass, UNLESS you elect to reminisce about the day the gates opened and you left prison a free man.  So, I will continue jogging and running, because I can (and it is doable) until the day they lower me down or put me in the furnace.

PS: The pictures are of my last race in San Antonio in December.