Sunday morning runs

Every Sunday morning I run with my 81 (almost 82) year old friend. He is waiting for me and Jack the dog every Sunday - rain, wind, or snow. About a block away from his house, Jack runs to his door and waits for the inevitable treat. I am greeted with a big hug. My friend and I have become necessary to each other on these Sunday mornings. I know I would stay in bed if I knew he was not waiting for me. My friend is an inspiration to me and it is sad that his grandchildren do not see how cool he is and what depth he has. I wish they would take advantage of his good health and his good stories and spend more time with him. His new year's resolution is to not feel sorry for himself so much - although I never see evidence of self pity during our runs. I feel lucky to hear his stories every Sunday about his childhood in Montana, and his life before he gave up drinking and became a runner in his 50's. His wife said to him one day "When are you going to grow up and be a man". I guess that was all he needed to quit drinking. He has done over 50 marathons and the latest was just two years ago when he was 79. He is constantly trying to improve his running and like most runners, he wishes he was faster. He is an inspirational speaker and is active in toastmasters and also in weight watchers. He won the ab crunch contest at his health club. He has a pacemaker and survived a bout of cancer. He is just one of the many good friends I run with.and am inspired by. I have learned that inside, we are all younger than our chronological years. He is the same age as my dad who died a few months ago and I imagine what it would have been like to run with my dad who was a tough lumberjack but did not choose to do much in his later years to keep active. In some ways, running with my Sunday friend honors my father since my father was the one who taught me and my sister to respect the elderly. So if you have a grandfather, father, uncle, aunt, or any other relative who you could get to know better, or should spend more time with, do it. My New Year's resolution is to keep up the Sunday runs....and continue to be inspired by all my running buddies.