I run because life changes....

Change is good. It's important to remind yourself of this because change is a constant companion in life. It's not going anywhere.

This knowledge doesn't necessarily make change any easier.  Change often arrives without an invitation. Change is usually an unwelcome guest.

Its arrival usually means discomfort. Sometimes it entails pain. Change can even bring heartbreak.

Survive the discomfort and pain associated with said change and you'll be stronger. You'll be more resilient. You'll be tougher.

But, discomfort and pain generally isn't fun, even if there is presumably something positive on the other side. Change can sting. Change can suck.

When change does suck, I seek a salve. Sometimes, it's a drink. Other times, it might be a massage.

However, the salve I find most effective for dealing with change is running. Running shares some common ground with change. There are more than a few parallels.

Running is often uncomfortable and painful at first. Only by enduring and adapting does this discomfort and pain wane. You have to change to get get better at running.

Running never gets easy, but it does get easier to manage. Each mile is a catalyst for change. The next run is almost inevitably easier to manage than the previous one.

Your heart gets stronger. Bones get tougher. Muscles become more resilient.

You are not the same runner you were yesterday. While the change from yesterday to today might be imperceptible, you are changed nevertheless.

It is only through embracing these changes and the work involved with them that you can move forward. Change enables you to run faster. Change enables you to run farther.

As the miles roll by, the scenery changes. My breathing changes. My heart rate changes. My sweat rate changes.

Running is an exercise in the constancy of change. I will never master it, but I can always get better at it.

I run because life changes....