You Always Learn When You Run

I bought Haruki Murakami's What I Talk About When I Talk About Running last Sunday. I didn't hesitate to buy it even if I'm not very familiar with his works. Somehow, I was drawn to both the title and the image of the author running printed on the book's cover.

I was curious to know what this writer/runner would say about running. I've been toying about the idea of putting into words my own experience with it but I still haven't reached that point where I'm confident enough to do it. There's just so many intense emotions and thoughts involved.

Haruki Murakami captured the essence and poignantly translated into words something that a lot of people can either understand or imagine. It was like being there myself. It was like a shared reality. The actors, scenes, and conditions are different but there was one common ground. A passion and commitment to something that no amount of pain or suffering can stop.

There was something that he said that made me think about a lot of things. He said, "It's not much fun to be misunderstood or criticized. But rather a painful experience that hurts people deeply." It is a reality that no amount of idealism or hope can erase. I think there's always a purpose to that. In running, people don't do it because it's all fun. The longer the distance, the more painful it gets.And yet, despite all that, more and more people are drawn to it. I think it's because once you get to experience being truly alone in that moment where you vividly see and feel everything, you begin to understand more of yourself.