Day 17: Pay It Forward

Today is 1/2 way through my streak and I planned a 7 miler. The weather was right and I was feeling good. I ran my normal route from one park, through a nature trail, through another park and back. Even with all this goodness, apparently there was just more good cheer to go around.

Running is a solitary sport. Runners don't talk, usually wear earbuds and concentrate on their performance. Even when I run with people, I still rarely talk; the most I can do is sputter out a sentence or two. But this run was anything but solitary. 

During my first mile, I had two different sets of bikers either wave or say good morning. This is unusual because usually bikers just yell at runners. Not this morning, this morning, they were there to cheer me on. It motivated me so much that when the next set of bikers was coming up behind me I put my hand out and waved hello to them first. I was rewarded with a hello in return which led to a smile on my face. 

(My favorite pit stop) 

The next part of my run WAS solitary, through the parks, filled with sunshine and trees. Even my brain left me alone. It was like running in a trance. I'd only come back to reality when my mileage check went off in my ear. And it felt like those miles just flew by. 

The last 2.5 miles of this particular run are so boring: straight river bed run with no scenery. It doesn't make for an easy finish. It requires mental fortitude to push through to the end. At mile 5.5 a fellow runner gave me a thumbs-up. That was a great push. I yelled  "hi" and  "Keep it up," and I paid it forward to the next runner I saw. I told a lady to keep going and that we could do it. She rewarded me with a smile so bright. It was a fun feeling and helped give me another little running push. 

Finally in my last tunnel to home one last bike yelled "keep it up!"  That was it. My spirits were soaring. I passed that cheer on too. I saw a man walking and gave him a wave and a "good job." He just looked at me strange. Oh well, can't win them all. Put at least I passed it on. 

While this wasn't my fastest run, this was my most cheerful. Never have I gotten so many motivational "hi"s before. They all helped to push me. But I had more fun stepping out of my running comfort zone and passing on all that good cheer. 

I had so much fun I'll pass on more good cheer to you, whatever you are doing, "keep it up!"