trail running

My brother sent me this little meandering on long distance running, and it got me thinking (as well as laughing). I mean, what is the allure of this particular past-time? The uncomfortable, continuous, unending cycle of lacing up shoes and pounding pavement, fighting against your beating heart and pressing into wind, rain, snow, humidity, sun, when every other sane person is asleep and dreaming.

But I'll tell you, when you catch a sunrise running through quiet morning mist, or sail past nighttime fields lit with fireflies, or find a trail all to yourself on a lazy afternoon, when you're met with just the world and your own self-imposed limitations, you hit your stride and for a brief moment in time you feel that you could go on forever. 

Enough of that silliness. I'm going into my third week of training, and it actually feels pretty good. Which makes me afraid that I'm doing it wrong, or that it will suddenly get much harder and I'll hit a wall (figurative or otherwise) and never run again. And I'm reading horror stories about toenails falling off and people over-hydrating and under-hydrating and I just have to stop thinking about it. And do you know what helps putting worry out of your mind? 

Running.