Create

I went on a run yesterday. A tough run. My thighs reminded me at each step of how hard I had worked at my spinning class the day before and they begged for rest. Yet, the sun was giving a late winter salute and as the mild air rushed through me, I couldn't relinquish. Snow-capped mountains pushed me, blue sky and stretched out clouds made me endure. Mid-run I thought about turning around, there is always a next week. There is plenty of time for exhausting runs. Yet,I told myself, this is not because I have to but because I want to. My air, my pace, my frozen surroundings, my exhaustion were for today. As I rounded the bend to the pond where I had started it mirrored the great sky that had been my umbrella. My breathing slowed, my pace faltered. Not out of tiredness but because this is what I was given. This is what God has given me. Tears slowed me even further as I let my gratitude fill my lungs and compensate for my lagging pace.

Just now, my sister e-mailed this to me because she was touched and then I was touched because of her effort. I think of this talk often when I write, when I look in a set of azure blue and a set of chocolate brown eyes, and when I am amongst His creations soaking in their strength and gratitude overcomes me.

***The pic is of one of the last wintry sunsets we spent in Idaho. There was nothing to end the sun's great descent.