Monday blues

lookin in the mirror bein' like DANG it's monday morning // maybe that's not exactly what picasso meant..

Running is hard. In running we willingly bring about our own physical suffering. No matter how much we run and get into shape, it will always be difficult. Maybe it's not as difficult as when we first started, but every time we improve, we push ourselves just a little harder, make ourselves go a little faster. Therefore running will always challenge us. Each day is new. Today doesn't care what you did yesterday, or what you'll do tomorrow. It's simple but I forget it all the time: all you have is this day. 

You know what else is hard? Flossing. and making beds. and blogging. and cooking. and going to work each day. and doing all of the other daily tasks that come with living. I don't mind doing any of those pesky tasks once, but why must I continue to do them every day? I flossed yesterday, must I really do it again today? Now dear readers you're probably wondering where I'm going with all this complaining, but it's all connected. I'll let you in on the deep conversation I've been having with myself these days... it all comes down to one thought:

In this world we have to keep swimming because if you're just floating, you're sinking. 

I've found that this applies to almost everything. Once you till a garden, you have to plant the good seeds and then continue to weed so that your plants can grow. Speaking from experience, the weeds like the newly tilled dirt just as much as the plants that were intended for the garden. 

Yet... The laziness of summer permeates through every pore of my being, and it's easy to convince myself that I deserve to not do anything. As humans we long for comfort, and it's easy to confuse comfort with happiness. Happiness seldom comes from comfort, but more often sneaks up on us in our hard work. from doing the things we don't want to do like flossing or making our beds in the morning. from pushing out of our comfort zone (see study abroad post...). Imagine how much joy could be had if only we found joy in those miserable tasks that actually end up being not that big of a deal at all. If we see each moment of hard work, of doing those things we don't want to do, for what they were (as opportunities for genuine happiness) maybe people would be excited for cleaning toilets and jury duty. 

The good news is that the more good things we do, the easier it is to do more good things. The more I run, the more i keep up with my prayer life. The more I keep on top of my lesson plans, the more I keep my room clean. The more I floss, the more I read the bible. It's still not easy, but objects in motion stay in motion, right? And often I've found that the easy answer is almost always the wrong one. 

The opposite is also true: the more bad things we do, the easier it is to do more bad things. Laziness is like a leeway drug. You start with just one area of your life and then you turn around and that small piece of snow has turned into a full blown avalanche. 

in conclusion.. yes, running sucks, but endorphin's are great // finding joy in the everyday is hard, but it can be done // it's monday morning and I could make a terrible joke about needing to steal my sister's adderall (1. she's prescribed 2. I'm only joking, mom)

 Happy Monday, dear readers!