PeaceHq

1000 Mile
Four Directional Run - 2004
Runner Revelations



Jon Blickenstaff:

   For me personally it was a good run. I got to connect with old friends from past runs and walks. I had several good conversations like those that often happen on runs: heart to heart. I spent some good quality time on the road. Kansas has some beautiful country. Most of all I got to share with the other runners, walkers, and support people in putting our prayers out to the world that all life is sacred.


Larry Crane:

One Thing I Learned on this run:

Comfort Zone Vigilance

   The Road is not for everyone; it is not an easy place to live. Basically, it is camping out with attitude. There is no television, newspapers, or fast foods. Sometimes there aren’t even any showers for days. The only heat in cool weather, except for a sleeping bag, is huddling around a campfire. It is the place where most of the significant conversation takes place.

   The days start at dawn and usually end, except for those exhausted, well into the night. The daytime hours are spent on the side of a road, usually in places so small that they don’t even have names. The major challenge is to complete the miles you have committed to walking or running and/or support the people who are walking or running. Get down the road! The subtle challenge is to maintain your focus and concentration as you repeat the prayers and affirmations in unison with the rhythm of your steps as you walk or run. The Road is a difficult place to live! It takes physical and mental toughness, discipline, and the expenditure of much energy. It takes co-operative effort, a willingness to work for the common good, and sharing resources. But what it takes most of all is a willingness to push outside your comfort zone. Lets face it we all like to lay on the couch sometimes with a cool beverage and a bag of our favorite snacks and click the remote. Oh man I can't run/walk 10 miles today, I’m to tired, my feet hurt, I have blisters, all my tee shirts are dirty, I’m to sore, the dog ate my running shoes, I can't run/walk that far, etc, etc-- It is far to easy to talk ourselves out of almost anything that we think is to hard.

   What the Road demands is that we learn we can do more than we think we can, and we must constantly strive to do more in order to grow as people. The Road shows us through mutual effort and example that we can go farther than we ever thought possible. And once we transcend, we must be vigilant to remember that we can and must push ourselves beyond our comfort zones.



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