Changing Tracks

At six o'clock, I woke up and decided it was too early to make any decisions regarding my day. I let the sun decide for me at nine. It told me to run. I've been getting most of my exercise by way of Nintendo Wii for the last eight days. I take walks when I can break away from my office or the operating room, but they hardly count as prolonged cardio exertion. They're more for mental fitness.

Today, the sun is making up for a storm-filled Saturday. It truly is a Sun-day. I parked near the bayou, stretched a teensy-tiny bit (I'm the world's worse fitness instructor) and started jogging toward the park. I decided to run on Hermann, taking the long way around the golf course, to avoid the area that is usually flooded after heavy rains. This would add an extra mile to my morning, but that's a good thing. Carlos Santana moved me on my way with "Yalleo".

Twelve minutes in, Carlos was still hitting those impressive notes. I was on repeat. Or he was. The sun was so bright I couldn't see to hit the controls on my MP3 player until I found some shade. Finally, finally, we moved on to something different. On shuffle now...more Santana. I have a lot of him loaded on that thing. My MP3 player is in a rut.

It was a sunny straightaway so I continued on, through the song and hit an oasis of cool as I rounded the far edge of the golf course and kd lang sang to me of "Jericho". Suddenly I was back in my run, calm and remembering why I do it - run. It lets me find a place where I can allow my own walls to fall, where I can be myself with myself. I can be in my own head, recognizing the emotions that I am experiencing at the time, or - if need be, I can check out and simple listen to my own footfalls. Today I needed to hone in on the music to see what is lying under the surface, what takes only a slight squeeze of the trigger to be released.

The last mile brought Los Lonely Boys singing "Tell Me Why". Interesting that one. It's about a relationship that's going flat after years of togetherness. I've always thought of it from the standpoint of romantic relationships. I've certainly heard the song dozens of times. In these difficult economic times (as we keep hearing from our fearless leaders), I suppose there are many who are wondering "why?". That's all I've got to say about that. Oh, it made me run faster - fast enough to get in four miles in thirty-five. I'll take it. Any sunny Sunday.