Ever been lost. . .
Ever feel like the FINISH LINE is never in view
. . .that it doesn’t exist
. . .that it’s a myth
. . .that it’s an illusion
. . .that it’s really just an never-ending STARTING LINE
It was an absolute risk
for sure to be a new minister
and go out and run a race before
Sunday Morning services
but I lied to myself
in a most horrible way
and was convinced I could be back easily before
the first hymn. . .
I felt that all the way up until
a group of 40-50 of us
followed the wrong leader
and ended up at a secluded dead end path
a good two miles off the path of a 10K (6.2 mile) race
and then all of a sudden my heart began beating a different pace. . .
forget about winning the race
forget about placing first in my age group
forget about finishing ahead of the fastest group of women
forget about finishing
I just wanted to get back to my car
go back the 45 minutes to church
throw on a shirt, tie, a pair of dress slacks,
DRESS SHOES
and my robe
without as much as a sponge bath
. . .this was way before cell phones
and there was no place to put up a smoke signal
or a viable S. O. S.
I never made it to the FINISH LINE that day
and barely to Church Services
. . .it was not the FINISH LINE I envisioned
but one I continue to F E A R
I have found myself
on the same kind of path
many different times without ever lacking up a pair of running shoes. . .
I really think I’ve cured the curse of
B U R N O U T
(for me)
it just means NOT taking the logs off the fire
. . .but they have to be the RIGHT logs
. . .I know I can burn the Candle at both ends and in the middle
because (for me) I know where to get
the wax and the wick
E V E R Y T I M E :
it’s the endless RACE
the one that has no FINISH LINE
the one that when you get to where
the one that when you get to what
you think the FINISH LINE is
IT I S N ‘ T
and you just keep going
and going
and going and
g o i n g
You know what I’m talking about:
The day’s over and so are you
but just as you reach the FINISH LINE
and you’re pulling into home
you get a text
pick up this
or get that
and OFF you go
PAST WHAT YOU THOUGHT WAS A
O U C H
and your run exhaustingly continues
and you don’t dare stop
because you’re out in the middle of nowhere
and there’s only one way out of
N O W H E R E :
through it
one foot in front of the other
just not so gingerly
or enthusiastically. . .
The Cure?
Don’t just run. . .
RUN SMARTER. . .
RUN WHILE CREATING YOUR OWN
It’s only then
that you not only OUT RUN
Burn Out
but obliterate it
By becoming
YOUR OWN
Race Director
it’s a cinch you’ll stack the odds in such a way
that you’ll not only set your own personal best record time
not only place or show
but actually win
and not just in your age group
or every once in a while
or by reaching T H E I R
but seeing in a good way
others will be joining in on your RACE
and winning in their own ways, too. . .
R E M E M B E R. . .
The B O T T O M L I N E
is not the FINISH LINE–
It’s more powerful. . .
And here it i s :
THE FINISH LINE IS WHERE YOU SAY IT IS. . .
the problem:
You’re usually the last one to KNOW IT
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