Mike and I first started running together when we were dating while in college at the University of Vermont. Instead of going on a date, we'd meet to run for a study break, typically late at night. We'd run through the streets of Burlington, head down to Lake Champlain, and wind our way back up the hill toward campus.
Mike really doesn't enjoy running, and once we left college he pursued other athletic interests while I continued to run. While our kids were young he'd run with them in the kids' races while I ran the 5K. As the boys got older, they all would run/walk the Running of the Turkeys 5K together. Mike's volunteered at countless local races but his day-in-day-out exercise turned to the gym.
Today we ran the local 5K route from the Rec center, a fairly flat loop through Manchester. It was Mike's idea, since the gym is closed for Labor Day and he wanted to get some exercise. He doesn't love running the way I do, doesn't get into the flow of feeling the sun and wind on his face or into the pattern of footsteps rhythmically pattering out a beat on the sidewalk. He listens to music to take his focus off his breath and his body, which makes the run bearable but hinders conversation. We don't need to talk to enjoy running together, falling easily into a companionable pace.
As we finished the 5K loop, Mike talked about possibly running a local 5K race this Fall. Maybe he'll even run periodically instead of always using the stationary bike at the gym. We've known each other for 34 years, and have learned that adapting to change and finding a common thread in our lives is part of the crucial glue that binds us together. We don't need to run together regularly, or even more than a few times each year, to reactivate the running component of that glue.
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