It takes A lot of Discipline

This from my supervisor, asking about my running....
I never realize, until I hear myself talk about it, how much discipline I really have. And why the surprise? Can you imagine what it took to make wood carvings so large it took half a year or more to complete? To enter college after 17 years and complete not just a bachelor's but a master's degree in 4 years? I am the poster child of getting it done, no matter how 'right brain' I seem. And this has always been a contradiction in how people perceive me; they assume, from the side of the artist, that I am "free-spirited" (which I am), and easily distracted (can be), consumed by impulse and whim the way artists are traditionally viewed. What escapes them is the ENORMOUS discipline of the arts. And how organized our thinking needs to be to accomplish anything. Creative people are amazingly prolific. Whether they're work is any good is another issue. But to PRODUCE, you must know how to muster the forces within your mind. Running is just another extension of what I do naturally.

So, yesterday. My intent was long runs this weekend. I woke Saturday to rainy rain rain.....and decided to put the run after the folks' visit, which I did at Hugh Birch. I really needed to clear my head and get out of my usual 'hood, and this ended up being an excellent thing. I did 3 great loops of the park, using my training flats I keep in the car, and without the ipod (rain, rainy rain), focused on form, pace and pick-up. It was glorious. Since it kept raining on and off, almost no one was there. The surreal silence of nature, all few acres of it, tucked away in the middle of Ft. Lauderdale is surely one of the best gems we have. I felt magically transformed from the mind set of unending obligations and humanity to the peace and rhythms of the winds, water and birds invisible in the brush. I had amazing moments of ease despite soreness, and just really enjoyed the hell out of myself.

Today, I finally took that long stretch between here and where N. Park ends....then connecting left, and right to hook onto Griffin, down to Stirling, 64th, and home across the unending stretch of Thomas. Not sure of the mileage, but I would estimate 10+ easily. This was not such a great run, dragging ass mostly, but towards the end, again despite the agony of getting there, a lovely transcendence and steady gait home.

It takes a whole lotta discipline to pull off positive change, no matter how big, no matter how small...and I realize, from working in the field, that many folks have to learn this skill. When I watch my Dad, I realize sometimes where it comes from; his unbelievable capacity to manage even when he, himself, is down for the count, or beyond resources- he somehow manages to find enough resiliency to get there....is it really any wonder I am the same way???

Go long, and have trust in your inner resources. We never know what we have until pressed; the pressures of the times will surely bring out many incredible things as people find themselves enduring long past their comfort zone, and ultimately, past mere survival, living creative and well.