Gratitude

We are grateful for being able to stay here in Atlantic Beach during the coldest part of the winter, and it is entirely because of the generosity of Martha's aunt Lizette.  Were it not for her making this condo available to us, we would be in much the same situation as our friend Vicki, who e-mailed me today on conditions in Highlands  She said, in part:  "We had maybe an inch of snow here but all clear now, 26 outside and getting much colder.  Yuck. . . Been really hard to get much running in - either fog/rain or windy & cold.  At least January will be over soon."

The stark contrast between Highlands and Atlantic Beach was brought home this morning by her message, and also the text message on my phone from Macon County Emergency Management, a winter weather advisory for Sassafras Gap Road.  I checked the Highlands webcam and it showed rain mixed with snow on main street and a temperature of 31 degrees.

 I looked out the window here and the sun was shining, the temperature in the upper forties, approaching 50.  What a difference!

We both ran the five miles to Fort Macon and back in perfect weather conditions - no wind, sunshine peeking out from behind clouds from time to time.  It occurred to me while I was running on the bike lane along Fort Macon Road that it was the exact same width as a lane on a track.  Perfect.

We come out here to be able to run during January and February, to not lose ground.  But this year, it seems as if we are actually gaining ground, getting faster and stronger, looking ahead to the races to come.  So we are grateful for being able to keep moving forward, giving thanks every day for the sunshine and the fresh ocean air and our own good health.