'You Are Already Free...'
I walked out of the front door this morning to another glistening bright morning, and was greeted by the white 'cat of love' who I first met last September when she used to follow me around, and lie by my feet when I was writing - I called her the 'cat of love' because she didn't ever want food, she just wanted love...
When we came back here in May, I was looking forward to seeing her again, but the white cat wasn't here... I discovered that this was because Magda wasn't here...
Magda is the sister of Nikos, Spiros and Giorgos... She and her husband Giannis live at Stefanos Place... In May she was in Athens to rest as she was pregnant with twins due in June.
When she went, so did the white cat of love...
She and Giannis are now back with their baby twins...
And so is the white 'cat of love...'
She has a friend too... A little white and ginger cat...
They both came up the steps to greet me as I appeared for my run...
We stroked and purred and mewed together for awhile on the steps... It was a perfect greeting, on a perfect morning... A perfect send off for my run.
I loved the cats so much, so 'catlike' and beautiful...
And I loved my run... I felt strong and my pace seems to be returning, I stretched out now and again and my body felt more willing since it's rather strange dip when we were in San Pedro a few weeks ago... Towards the end of the route I reflected on how truly wonderful it feels to be running free of pain...
For the last twenty eight years I have generally had something hurting... Some sort of chronic injury has lurked...
It's been a long journey which I charted some of in my last book 'Running to Learn...'
A left side imbalance appeared when I was twenty eight and I have been unravelling it ever since...
This doesn't mean I haven't run, and I have had patches of more flowing running...
But injury has always returned...
I have continued to seek within my psyche, my held emotions and my body ways to release myself from my own chains...
During this journey I read 'The Way of the Peaceful Warrior' by Dan Millman... Dan was a top level gymnast and so his writing always spoke to me, as it seemed much of his learning and teaching reflected my own experiences...
These words from the book spoke to me, I felt them to be true, but I also knew I hadn't fully discovered how to live them when I first read them over twenty years ago...
This is what Socrates, Dan's mentor in the book said...
'There is no need to search; achievement leads to nowhere. It makes no difference at all, so just be happy now! Love is the only reality of the world, because it is all One, you see. And the only laws are paradox, humour and change. There is no problem, never was, and never will be. Release your struggle, let go of your mind, throw away your concerns, and relax into the world. No need to resist life, just do your best. Open your eyes and see that you are far more than you imagine. You are the world, you are the universe; you are yourself and everyone else, too! It's all the marvellous Play of God. Wake up, regain your humour. Don't worry, just be happy. You are already free!”
I read those words and knew them to be true... I even had the wonderful experience of travelling to California and being a participant on one of Dan's courses where he suggested to me I write a book and have 26.2 chapters....
The seed for 'Running to Learn' was born then, even though it was many years before I actually wrote it...!
Fifteen years ago I met my friend Rob, who is a senior sports science lecturer at Brighton University... He was a huge support and inspiration on my road to injury free running and introduced me to Professor Nick Webborn who encouraged me to keep running, and unravelled much of my back pain and trouble in my sacroiliac...
We are all one, as the passage says, and if we open our eyes we will see we have many friends along the way....
One day I was running on the downs and met a young man. He was going one way through a gate and I was going the other...
His light was bright.
We recognised one another and as the weeks and months unfolded our paths kept crossing...
His name is Greg Funnell, and he became an integral support on my journey...
He sent me this photo today.
He said that he had been thinking about me, and about his own journey to running free....And so he took a photo of the gate where we met over five years ago in honour of freedom in the running step...
