Roots Run

Run 1: 10.1 miles in 1:18:33 min. @ 7:30 a.m.
Pace: 7:47 min./per mile avg.
Weather: Mostly Cloudy, 65°F

root (noun): 1) a part of the body of a plant that develops, typically, from the radicle and grows downward into the soil, anchoring the plant and absorbing nutriment and moisture

roots (noun): 2) the personal relationships, affinity for a locale, habits, and the like, that make a country, region, city, or town one's true home (Dictionary.com)

This weather this morning was remarkably cool and humidity free, especially as compared to the last few days, so despite an initial lack of motivation, I woke up early to hit the roads. The route I had planned was something of a "roots run," something that I had not fully realized when I laid it out last evening on the USATF Map It program.

The multiple definitions for the word "root(s)" has often intrigued me, and even more so this morning as I run though my old and new neighborhoods and consider the very organic relationship I have with these sidewalks and streets... a connection not unlike a radishes to the soil...

The supermarket where I got my first job (working in the fish market) after turning sixteen...
The library where I signed up for my library card, and my mother would occasionally borrow reproductions of classic art for hanging in the dining of our first "real" house...
The park where my friends and I used to play "guns," chasing each other through people's yards, jumping fences and sneaking behind garages...
The street on which my grandparents (and my mother, brother and I for a short time, too) lived until they followed my parents to the suburbs where our second house was...
The streets my brother and I delivered newspapers before (and for a short time, after) school when we were ten...

While its hard not to resist the urge to pull oneself from the soil of their growth, there is a wonderful feeling in revisiting the familiar ground...

Breathe in, breathe out... YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!