Every fall I fall in love again

Fall is my favorite season, and not just for running. Everything about it, the crispness in the air, the changing of the leaves, the crunch of the leaves beneath my feet, the cool temperatures, all gives me a rush. Fall marathons give me a rush, too.

But every fall, I fall in love with running all over again. Maybe because that was when I had my first experience on a cross-country team in 1998. Fall 2008 was when I came back to running and decided to do a marathon. Fall 2009 was when I was going for my first Boston qualifier. And here we are in 2010 and I am in love once again.

I ran 10.6 miles today. I even got to wear long sleeves. It was 46 when I left this morning, and while it did warm up, it was glorious. The sun was shining, but did not have too heat accompanying it, so it was just a pleasant morning. Lots and lots of hills, in preparation for Marine Corps. I was able to do some good brainstorming as well. For my Historical Teaching class, I have to design a syllabus for my "dream class." My class is going to be called "Saints and Sinners in the Later Middle Ages." So I spent the time on the road thinking about topics that would be worth incorporating into this class for undergraduate students. Got a lot of good thinking done - there is still a lot of work to be done. Still, it was a good time to reflect and think about various themes to incorporate for this class (including Franciscans, Joan of Arc, witches, and much much more!). Anyways, it felt good to get out there and do a long run of double digits. It was a perfect day to be out and running. I guess things felt really good too: averaged 8:12 pace. Came back to have coffee and pancakes - delicious all around.

I've included two pictures of my alma mater - Holy Cross in the fall. This weekend is Homecoming Weekend, and while I won't be there, I certainly have the school on my mind. It is absolutely beautiful there this time of year.

I've fallen in love with running all over again. Happy Fall!