Coffee: Nectar of the Gods and Suffering

I just had a short exchanged with Judy (Guinness's Grandma/Breeder) about coffee. Man, I love the stuff. It got me thinking that I do not really write much about the stuff that I think about on my runs. I do think that one of my favorite things about running is the time you get to go out there and just contemplate. I could go 20miles and never run out of things to think about. Coffee is always a topic to ponder (especially on those days that my mouth is completely dry and gummy beacause I downed a pot or more of coffee prior to the run). The benefits, the drawbacks... I focus mostly on the benefits because it makes for a faster run:)

I guess I think more about philosophy, religion, politics, music, math (mostly calculus and lately accounting), and the vises of man. By the vises of man, I guess I mean the things that get in the way of living life to the fullest. Some would find that to be money, technology, work, etc., but I do not find that those things get in my way as much. I like to work, live comfortably, and follow the new innovations. To me, I think it is more of a mindset - the way I approach the world. I don't have to like everyone, agree with them, or fake that I do. I think that it is okay to disagree, not want to be around, or flat-out dislike some people and things. I think that the stress comes in when we try to fight this and think that the problem is within us. With all that said, I still believe that I would rather suffer than a person I dislike suffer. So, if I were on a run with a person that I dislike and a bear came to attack us, I would rather be the one getting swatted by his enormous paws than to see the person I dislike have to endure that pain and suffering. Likewise with situations more realistic (emotional suffering, physical suffering, etc.) The only suffering I would rather a person go through more than me is the kind you have to deal with in a race. Now, that is the beauty of running. Most runners like to suffer, but more than the love to suffer is the desire to make others feel that same pain in a greater amount. This is the refining pain. The kind we have all dealt with in a race that makes you realize what you are made of and what you can handle. The kind that makes the lesser things in life all but disappear. The kind that somehow finds the essense of who we are and refines it, race by race. Now, that's the kind of suffering I love. And, I would say, that is probably what I think about most often on long runs. It makes me smile:)

I will try and post my favorite topic of the week that ran through my head while running. Now that I am thinking about it, I think less when I am running uphill. It just hurts too much. Probably just thinking about suffering...