No-forget about beer. And forget about the sun. Forget about the wind. Forget about the article I have to write. Just focus on moving my feet forward, one afterthe other. That‘s the only thing that matters. - P64
This was my first-ever experience running (nearly) twenty-six miles. And, happily, it was the last time I everhad to run twenty-six miles in such grueling conditions. In December of the same year I ran the HonoluluMarathon in a fairly decent time. Hawaii was hot, butnothing compared to Athens. So Honolulu was my firstofficial full marathon. Ever since then it‘s been my prac-tice to run one full marathon a year.
Rereading the article I wrote at the time of this run inGreece, I‘ve discovered that after twenty-some years, and as many marathons later, the feelings I have when Irun twenty-six miles are the same as back then. Evennow, whenever I run a marathon my mind goes throughthe same exact process. Up to nineteen miles I‘m sure Ican run a good time, but past twenty-two miles I run outof fuel and start to get upset at everything. And at the - P67
end I feel like a car that‘s run out of gas. But after I finishand some time has passed, I forget all the pain and mis-ery and am already planning how I can run an even bet-ter time in the next race. The funny thing is, no matterhow much experience I have under my belt, no matterhow old I get, it‘s all just a repeat of what came before.
I think certain types of processes don‘t allow for anyvariation. If you have to be part of that process, all youcan do is transform-or perhaps distort-yourselfthrough that persistent repetition, and make that pro-cess a part of your own personality.
Whew! - P68
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