10k

recently, some friends and i ran a nighttime 10k in puyricard.

we thought that a nocturnal run would be casual and laid-back. 

we were wrong. we arrived and everyone was wearing running club jerseys and taking long warm-up runs.

this inspired quite a case of nerves, but we were given a bit of courage after making it successfully through registration with 3 people and 1 forged medical certificate. 

while leaving the gym, we were handed a bottle of wine. i'm american through and through but god bless france for handing out wine at their sporting events. nothing inspires vitesse like knowing there's some wine waiting for you at the end. 

it was one of those races where i quickly hit my stride and received the divine gift of running through vineyards and the provençale countryside with cheers of "allez, les filles!" encouraging me all the way. in the south of france "nocturnal" means sunset, so i ran with a soft warmth around me, the sun glinting in my eyes, and little bugs in my mouth. 

and, with the promise of a glass on wine in my future, i exactly hit my goal time.  

allez, la france! 

we lose weeks like buttons, like pencils.

there was a whole pile of weeks laying before me.

i couldn't quite see around it. i missed my family and the people who have known me so long and so well. i felt drawn to virginia.

then the pile began to dwindle and the fewer weeks laying before me, the more i couldn't imagine leaving life here.

now, somehow, there's only one left.

where did that pile go?

on the road again

"a pain stabbed in my heart, as it did every time i saw a girl i loved who was going the opposite direction in this too-big world of ours."