The Mailboxes

I am running more these days. Time does not allow me to exercise as frequently as I would like. I run enough to keep in shape. I've also taken up biking. My son & I share an old road bike - at different times of course. On some days I will bike for a few miles & then run for a couple of miles. It makes for a great workout, especially in temps of 90 or more.

One of the roads I run is straight & flat, common for south Georgia. When you turn the corner, you can see the house at the other end, almost a mile away. For several years I have run trying to focus on that house at the end of the street, trying to keep my eyes on the prize. Needless to say, I failed. I would always get distracted by a squirrel or a car passing me. But last week, I tried something different. I started looking at the mailboxes ahead of me and counting them. There are 16 on one side. When I did, the road seemed shorter. That's right. I was at the other end of the street more quickly than usual. My focus on smaller goals helped me finish the run. As soon as I passed one mailbox, I would look up & start pressing on toward that mailbox. These "successes" energized and kept me moving forward.

I think there's a spiritual lesson here. As we endure the "long runs" of daily life, we may need to focus on the small goals, rather than the larger one. As a Bereavement Coordinator, I tell people who are enduring the loss of a loved one that the path of grief is one step at a time and nothing more. Just make it through today or this hour. Do not try to think about next week. Or the upcoming holidays. Today is all we have.

Hey! Didn't I read Jesus saying something like that? "Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." (Matthew 6:34) As you run, count the mailboxes.