One thousand...

One thousand miles. My feet have taken me that far this year. When I realized I was less than five miles from my goal, I just had to go out and get it. After my work was done, I came home, changed my clothes and went after it. I found a loop that done twice would give me exactly the mileage I needed. I stepped out into the cool air and I ran. It felt good to run in the sunshine.

On my first loop, I was chased by a little dog that had gotten out of its fence. I told it to go home and kept going. When I finished that lap, my pace was 8:47.

I continued on. I ran my second lap faster than the first. A boxer chased me and sniffed at my legs as I neared main street. A police officer saw it and stopped me to see if I'd been bitten. I told him know and ran on. I passed the spot were the dog had met me the first time around. He was back in his yard, tied up. I sped up and finished my second lap and the 4.83 miles I needed to reach 1,000 for this year.

I walked around the block, enjoying the feeling of accomplishment that comes with a thing done. Another little dog came out and said hello. He followed me for a little way and then ran off to investigate something more interesting than a smelly man who'd just finished his 1,000th mile.

I am pleased and I thank God that he gave me legs to run every one of those miles. (garmin data)