Nature

Greetings!
I recently returned from a job training excursion to Laguna Beach, California. Road Runners Sports, my employer, put me in a hotel on the Pacific Coast Highway, which is a mere quarter mile away from the ocean.

Upon arrival, I felt somewhat delusional. Yet, after I got situated and ate some dinner, I felt much better. Throughout the week, my fellow teammates and I trained for 8 hours a day. The rest was free time.

Set aside from the intensive training, there are two memories that will forever remain in my mind. One starry, warm evening--after a long day and delicious meal--I felt an intense urge to go to the beach. I raced out of my hotel.
As I reached the soft sand at the bottom of the staircase, I sprinted to the ocean. Without any inhibitions, I jumped into the arms of a long, lost friend. The fresh waters reciprocated with a genuine embrace. I layed in the wet sand with joyous force in my throat ready to burst with laughter and a free-spirited "ahhhh!" I later fell asleep in the sand to the melodic tune of rising and falling tides.

Another evening, a few of my wonderful teammates and I journeyed to a mountain trail for a long run. After my legs burned up the first incline, I felt free and unstoppable. I soared up and down the beautiful dirt hills in the midst of lush greenery and sherbert skies. At the 4 mile mark, I reached a zenith that overlooked the silky ocean shore. A similar joy overflowed from my entire being. What a sight. What a miracle.

Over the past few years, an epiphany has reappeared in the stream of my flowing thoughts. At first it seemed absurd, but I've come to realize that it's perhaps the clearest, most genuine, heartfelt realization that shows up in my life.

The Earth is my best friend. She never asks, nor takes. She openly reveals her true colors without shame, nor pride. Despite the turbulence our minds create, she always awaits with a powerful counsel. She never judges, diagnoses, or psychoanalyzes. She simply allows her soft winds, bright stars, trickles of rain, and wholesome manifestations to cleanse and re-center our spiritual, physical, and mental imbalances.

Many people wonder why I love to run so much. Hell, I wonder why I love to run so much. But I know this passion ties in with the sense of "home" I feel while immersed in nature. I cannot describe the peace of seeing, feeling, smelling, and hearing all of the wonderful elements throughout a long run, walk, bike, or sit. I could approach mother nature feeling anxious, distraught, or downtrodden and leave feeling completely content and thankful-two of life's key ingredients for happiness.

She's seen us in pain; she's seen us radiate. Through it all, she continues beaming with love and painting picturesque works of art for our pleasure.

A love, a beauty that quenches the parched spirits of this world.