Relationship Advice

This past Sunday, I went for a run in the canyon and discovered I didn’t really feel like running at all. I have hated running most of my life, but in the last few years have found it to be an enjoyable way to stay active and healthy. By combing that joy with running on the trails first at Cameron Park in Waco, and now in Palo Duro Canyon, I found trail-running to be doubly enjoyable. It was always so nice to be outside enjoying everything the outdoors has to offer. Lately, with training for the PDTR 50k, running has started to lose some of its original appeal. I have begun to lose that initial excitement I felt from getting out to the canyon in the coolness of the early morning and running over the trails while looking at animal tracks and rock formations. So on Sunday, I stopped running and just went exploring. I climbed up the side of the canyon to a mesa that provided a wonderful view of the canyon floor below. I felt that sense of excitement and wonderment return with slight fear of losing my footing and slipping down the steep gravel of a gully that let to the canyon rim. When I made it to the top, I heard the silence, if that is possible, took in the view, and enjoyed being in the canyon again. At one spot on the top of the mesa, the canyon dropped away very steeply on either side with the flat area on top being only 3 or 4 feet wide. It was exhilarating knowing that a small stumble or strong breeze could leave me sliding down a 60 degree slope. I doubt it would have been deadly, but it definitely would have hurt. After taking in the view and the silence from the top of the canyon, I made my way down another gully and reluctantly headed back to the car. What I discovered and contemplated on my short jog back to the car was that I had forgotten why I loved the canyon so much. I realized that with most things that we love in life, we can sometimes let the monotony of the day to day events that occur around our love can get in the way of what we fell in love with to begin with. I think this is true not only of places we visit or hobbies we enjoy, but also our family, spouses, and children. Sometimes life gets in the way of the enjoyment we get from the things we love and every once in a while it helps to do something to remind ourselves of the things that made us fall in love in the first place. Take a moment and remember the things you love…go for a hike at your favorite outdoor place, go on a date with your spouse or significant other, give your kids a hug and a kiss, and remember what it is about those things that made you fall in love. My Sunday run in the canyon helped me to remember to enjoy life and to not let the mundane details get in the way.