Running the heartache away

Some days you have so much weighing on your mind and your heart you just don't feel like running. Why? Your body aches and your heart is heavy. That happened to me this week. 

My oldest son's transmission went out on his car, his grades in college were not good at mid semester, and he still owed us, his parents, a lot of money for basically throwing away his first semester by deciding to not take his finals at UT Arlington and transferring to UTSA.

His car is also an item he purchased without our consent. So why should we pay for the repair? It broke my heart. I wanted to help him with what he needed to get back on track, get to work, and get himself around. 

But I knew I needed to show some tough love. So I headed out on my run thinking about all of these things. My legs were heavy, and my breathing was off. I even cried during my run as I thought about my son telling me his life sucked. 

I think as parents we want to solve all of our kids problems, but we shouldn't. So I thought about that, and thought and thought. And by mile 3 I was feeling a little lighter in my step, my legs and my lungs were loosening up. I felt like I could be his super mom again, even though I wasn't going to dish out three thousand bucks right off the bat to rescue him. 

But I felt strong enough to be his cheerleader and loving supporter and get through my easy pace 6 mile run. 

Sometimes some runs are just intended to help get things off your chest, make you emotionally stronger, and able to deal with the curveballs life throws at you. 

Don't dodge those curve balls. Face 'em head on. Running helps you do that. 

---