Happy Birthday to Me

The South fork of Eagle River valley was beckoning me as I considered my options on another dreary summer day. When its crappy out I'm glad I can get my outdoor fix in a couple hours with a good run.

Its so funny that as a teenager I always wanted to look older, now as nearly a middle aged adult, I of course want the opposite. More than looks though is the decline of body parts and length of recovery after doing something hard. Getting old sucks, I don't see myself handling my 60's gracefully.

 

It was nice to go for a run in a beautiful place and be thankful for the life I have. I wish I didn't always want to be faster and stronger, why can't I ever recognize when I'm actually fit? In retrospect to where I am now, every summer before this one I've been fit and skinny. The lesson: I can always get fatter and slower than I am now, and should be more happy with less.

 

I always feel a bit recalcitrant about celebrating my birthday because its the same day that my brother died fifteen years ago. We were close and its hard to celebrate and mourn at the same time.