The last few days, I have been attending the Visual Communication Conference at a resort in Steamboat Springs, Colo. This is my first scholarly conference, one of many actually as I begin to prepare myself for the tenure track at Murray State University.
Because the days are filled with paper presentations, I have had to run early in the mornings. Before I even arrived in Colorado, I had been following the weather to check on temperatures. I really thought I would welcome the 40-degree overnight lows. Perfect running weather!
Or so I thought.
The first morning I ran, I had to stop a few times to catch my breathing. The elevation change and altitude were overwhelming. Plus, I started on a hill, which didn't help. I could taste blood in my mouth, so I knew the cold temps were affecting my lungs. During my lunchtime runs, temperatures were in the 70s and 80s, so apparently I had become heat acclimated. I never imagined that would happen!
The second morning, I started on a downhill route and paid close attention to my breathing -- and ran extremely slow. It helped considerably. On the third day, I had another good morning run. We had the afternoon off from the conference to enjoy Steamboat Springs, so I planned a second run, despite the daytime hours becoming scorching hot. But I did well with it.
I will run for the final time in Steamboat Springs on Saturday morning. Then I will present my paper that afternoon. I come home Sunday evening. My runs have been colorful with the new gorgeous scenery. In each of my runs, I have stopped to see what God has made. I am in complete awe and wonder with this beauty that He has provided. Don't get me wrong -- middle Tennessee and west Kentucky are beautiful, too, but running in new places simply rejuvenates a runner. We fall in love with running all over again.
Thank you, God, for my morning runs in Colorado.
