I am slowly getting back to running longer and longer distances. Yes, my knee is still sore, but it doesn’t hurt like it did. And I have discovered the more I stretch it, the better it performs. So I will continue to ice it, take ibuprofen and elevate it when I can. And I will continue to stretch and build the muscles around it. This morning, I ran nine miles with only minimum pain. That’s a victory. A huge victory.
Why? Because I love my long runs. And I have missed them. I passed Sec. of State Delbert Hosemann this morning on the trail. He asked me what race I was training for — I answered as honestly as I could, “I’m not training for anything.” I haven’t got a race on my radar. I’m just running for the enjoyment of running. The endorphins. Feeling my heart race. And of course, seeing my friends out on the trail. I enjoy pushing myself hard. And I enjoy the results I get from a long, tiring run.
Along the Natchez Trace, right at the Ross Barnett Reservoir Overlook, is a lone oak. I’ve photographed it dozens of times. With leaves, in sun, in the dark, as the sun is rising and when it is foggy. It stands like a sentinel. Tall, proud and beautiful.
But the oak represents more to me than just a tree. To me, it is success.
Let me explain.
What you see is impressive. But what you don’t see — the rootball under the ground — is why the oak is truly mighty. It’s roots spread out underground in an area nearly as large as the tree itself. It’s how it gets food and water. And it keeps it from toppling when the strong gales blow.
What we do when others aren’t looking is what makes us mighty. They are our roots. When you work out hard before the sun rises. When you study into the late hours of night. When you do an act of kindness because it is right, not because someone is looking. Those are the things that ground us and make us able to grow like the mighty oak.
I ran past the oak this morning and thought about how I need to work harder at the things people don’t see. I smiled and thanked my oak for the insight this morning. It was so good to see it again. And then smiled and took my balky knee home.