I really hate hills. And no I'm not specifically talking about my upcoming role as Charlie Cowell in Theatre Bristol's production of The Music Man. As Charlie Cowell, I really do hate hills, Harold Hill, but I guess that is a post for another day. Getting back to the topic at hand, I really really really really really hate the hills. Did I type enough “reallys”? I really
do. When I used my treadmill more
frequently, I could map out my route or use a route that iFit had already
suggested. If the route had a steep
incline or a lot of inclines, I could easily skip it and run one of my “go to”
routes that was flat and fast. I sold my
treadmill a couple weeks ago, so now I have to force myself to get out of the
house to go run. The closest, safest
place to run right now is two miles from my house at Warriors Path State
Park. The only issue with that is that
the official 5k course at Warriors has……dom dom dom…you guessed it a hill. And not just a hill, a HUGE hill.
When I started running back in 2010, I would go there frequently due to
ease of access. I hated the hill then, I
still hate it. Well, maybe I don’t hate
it entirely. I guess we can say I have a
love/hate relationship with it. I hate
the hill before and during the climb. I
hate it cause it slows me down, especially after not running it for a
while. I hate it because it takes my
breath, every ounce of my strength, and makes my legs sore. I hate it for sooooo many reasons.
But in the
end, I really love it. I love it after I
run because I know it has really made me stronger. The energy I expend getting up the hill makes
me better, makes me faster, and gives me the overall feeling that I can tackle
any hill that comes my way. I love it
because it makes me sweat. I love it
because it forces me to work beyond my limits, and that is good for me.
When I think
about life, I always tell people that life is like a marathon, not a
sprint. We encounter valleys, flat
terrain, and, yes, hills. I preached for
20 years that we do not grow on the flat terrain, or on the mountaintop. We grow when we’ve been knocked down and
climb our way back up. Don’t be discouraged when you do not get what you
want. Don’t be discouraged when you get
knocked down. Don’t be discouraged when
you are facing something you don’t know how to handle. You have the ability to scale the hill again
and again and again.
So, yeah, I
have a love hate relationship with hills.
We all do. Don’t avoid them. Charge them head on. Run them with purpose and find yourself at
the top.