I’m going to guess that we’ve set a new precedent in teamwork for this year’s Triple Crown Runners.  As I sit typing my Black Forest Fire (BFF) Refugee blog in my RV, parked in the backyard of my teammate, Jon “JT” Teisher, I can’t help but be grateful for all the crazy twists that brought me to this place.

It might be an oversimplification to say that running got me here, but not entirely untrue.  Without running, I likely would never have met my husband, Andy, our team sponsor, Tim Bergsten, and most likely not JT, either.  That’s not to say that I don’t have other non-running friends more than willing to help, as I hear that flames have already been spotted and fought less than a mile from my home.  It’s just that there is something about running that I believe makes you more mentally prepared for the challenge.

For example, I love running uphill.  I love it because it is typically the hardest part of the workout, as far as most folks are concerned. Because of this, your average runner will already begin to slow down at the mere sight of the hill. Their pace slows, their breath quickens, the head drops and before you know it, they’re no longer running, but walking the hill. This is not me. I charge the hills with hardened resolve and while I might not appear to be moving that quickly, I am quite frequently passing large numbers of runners on the uphill.

This practice is something I adopt in my day to day life, as well.  While I’m charging the hills in the Garden of the Gods, I am also charging the hills of life.  This morning, as I wait to hear news of whether my home is still standing, I am sprinting up the hill in my mind– no matter how far it may be to the top.  I will succeed.

Now for every person I’ve passed on the uphill, I’ve actually been passed by ten times more people on the way down. This is because I am cautious on the downhill.  My motto is typically Preserve and Protect.  Preserve energy and protect the impact to my cantankerous knees. Many runners will fly by on the way down and I always think of their victory as merely grabbing the low hanging fruit.  I am not interested in the low hanging fruit – I want the good stuff that you have to work for at the top.

I continue to mull in my mind the possibility that I may have already lost all of my worldly possessions in the BFF (which is ironically anything BUT a real "BFF"). While this does bring about a certain level of grief, I look at all of those things as the low hanging fruit. It is easy to collect items, display them, hang them on the wall or carefully stow them in boxes for future generations to admire. But if you think about what all of these represent, it is actually just a cue or reminder of something that makes your mind remember, or your heart sing.  It is the love and happy memory associated with the item that makes it worthwhile.  This memory or internal candy is the fruit at the top of the tree. It might be a bit harder to reach, but it is what gives anything real meaning.

No fire can erase the memories I store in my mind. It can’t take the love I have for my family and what I see in my children’s eyes.  Although I might no longer have that great picture Ali drew in the third grade or my favorite mother’s day sculpture, I do have my family and a full heart.  Carrying actual possessions is the low hanging fruit.  It is hanging onto and appreciating the way these things have shaped who you are that is the good stuff at the top.

So I think I might just go for a run today.  I’ll be thinking about my usual route from my house and wondering if I’ll ever enjoy that shaded road again. But really, what I’ll be doing is charging the hill and looking for the beauty I know I’m going to find at the top.  Go charge your own hill today!