Every morning in Africa

There is a folk tale among runners that goes something like this.  

Every morning in Africa, a lion awakes.  It knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve.  

Every morning in Africa, a gazelle awakes.  It knows it must outrun the fastest lion, or it will die.  

It doesn't matter whether you are the lion or the gazelle, but when the sun comes up, you had better be up and running.  

It is a lovely story, and very inspiring. Some days, you feel like a lion: strong, in control, awe-inspiring, driven. Some days you feel like the gazelle:  sleek, fast, beautiful.   But it ignores the third possibility, which I considered yesterday.   Some days, you are neither the fast lion or the speedy gazelle.  Some days, you are the limping gazelle, the second slowest in the pack, barely moving fast enough to stay alive. Or maybe the overweight gazelle just trying to keep up.  Or maybe the second fastest lion, who only gets leftovers. You don't feel good, you don't look good, and you definitely don't want to be running around the savannah. There is nothing graceful or powerful about your movements.  On these days, you are just lucky to be moving, because it means you are still alive.

 If we are honest, we all have days like this. We feel tired, sore, overwhelmed, out of shape, stressed out, inadequate, intimidated, weak, or just plain wimpy. Fortunately, not every day is like this.  And if you have the strength to get out the door and go for a run even on the worst of days, it means you are already winning that one battle and are probably stronger than you think. 

So be grateful, second slowest gazelle, that you are running at all.  You may not win any races, but you will get better and you will stay a step ahead of the lion.  Hang in there.  Happy running.