English Breakfast

This morning I had a full English Breakfast. Before anyone gets worried about my health this was only after a ten mile run and I had vegetarian sausage(which might actually disqualify my breakfast from being an English Breakfast). Nevertheless the toast, egg, potatoes, mushrooms, beans,roasted tomato and sausage(I mean tofu) were great and I washed it down with a strong cup of black coffee! Then I was ready for a good day at work or maybe a nap.

Bath

The Roman Baths with the Abby in the background


Bath is one of the most beautiful places in England. It's charm is well in tact since it was the summer home of the Hanoverians and has been well preserved since the 18th century. It is also well known as a residence of Jane Austen and the scene for a few of her novels including Northanger Abbey. The Circus in bath is magnificent as the building for a large circle around a grassy, tree shaded park.

Stonehenge

My theory is that this was some sort of ancient Druid temple. These massive rocks were here before England was even on the map as far as civilization goes. The Romans were not here yet and there were no horses. Whoever these early Angles were they could move some big rocks and impressively stacked them on top of each other so that they would stay there for over 5,000 years! This was also the scene for the ending of Thomas Hardy's Tess of the D'urbervilles. Poor Tess

Birmingham Half Marathon

This was my second race in England and my second PR. No I don't think that it is the Fish & Chips or all of the ales. In all honesty it might be a combination of the cooler temperatures, with all of the walking and the fact that my body has finally recovered from and absorbed all of those hard 70 mile weeks before Boston.

I apologize if this post is too much about running or too much about my faith in God. Both things are very dear to me and so this post may be a bit more personal than the rest.

I will start by saying that today I ran a New York Marathon qualifying time. Still this post is not to aggrandize myself and my meager running ability. I was never a good athlete in school and will never get payed to run. For so many years I have run to deal with my insecurity, life's disappointments, failed relationships and on and on. The only reason I can run is that God has blessed me with my health and strength but that fades and will fade. I learned that lesson all too harshly this fall. A very dear friend, a British man whom I thought I would have a pint with this fall in London died of Cancer. This friend and former pastor made a huge impact on my life and I think he finished his race strong. Today I knew that I had put myself in good position to run a New York qualifier but about mile 11 or 12 was beginning to get tired. I was running behind a man whose singlet read, canceresearch.co.uk, I immediately thought of Nick. Nick finished his race strong because he never lost his faith. Even though he was in so much pain at the end of his life he still praised God. As a result I am not angry at God or disenchanted by Nick's death but encouraged by his faith and his perseverance. In my little way I knew that I had to push through the pain strong to the end today so that I could say that, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race". I want to be careful with this analogy because I know that this was hard for everyone and nothing like an unimportant road race. What I want to say is that God used Nick in so many powerful ways and I admire him for being strong until the end.

Birmingham put on a beautiful race. The fans were out, the elite runners were there and I had a blast. Around mile 7 or 8 when I was really just hitting my stride I thought about Chariots of Fire and the quote, "when I run I feel his pleasure". I am thankful to God for the gift of running. In Boston I saw the crowds as hostile aggressors closing in around me. I built a wall against them so as to not let them in but I took a completely different approach with the fans in England. I high fived the kids and the old ladies as I ran by. I embraced the English city of Birmingham and had fun with them. It seems that they had fun with me as well.

La dame et la Licorne

So far one of the coolest things that I have been able to do here in London is see the Austin, Texas based band Shearwater live in a little pub. On one of their albums the opening track is entitle la dame et la licorne and I didn't realize the significance of this until I visited Musee de Cluny or the national Middle Ages Museum in Paris. There they have many medieval tapestries but the most famous and striking are La Dame a la Licorne. The exhibit is set up in an almost glow in the dark way. The room is dark and the tapestries are lit up so that they almost glow. On one wall the five tapestries that display the five senses are arranged starting with taste and ending in touch. On the wall behind is the grand tapestry that has a vague meaning. I was inspired by the meanings and the beauty of these tapestries. I kept thinking about the Boston Marathon logo being the unicorn. The unicorn represents allusiveness or something that cant quite be caught. I think this appropriate in so many ways for art, running and Paris.

There is never any ending to Paris

"There is never any ending to Paris and the memory of each person who who has lived in it differs from any other. We always returned to it no matter who we were or how it was changed or with what difficulties, or ease it could be reached. Paris was always worth it and you received return for whatever you brought to it." Hemingway in the closing paragraph of A Moveable Feast.

For me this trip to Paris was very much about going back after nine years. I went back to the old neighborhood where I lived and went for a run in the Bois de Boulogne, where I would run in the mornings before class. I walked down Avenue de General Sarrail and past the building where I lived. I went back to Reid Hall and walked through the gardens and the glass corridor. I spent an afternoon having dinner with an old friend in The St. Michelle and walked along the Seine. The metro still smelled the same and I thought back on my time in Paris as a university student.

But Paris wasn't just about going back but also about new experiences. L'orangerie museum with all of the Monet along the walls, it was the first time that I have ever shopped at Gallerie de Layfayette, visited Pere LaChaise cemetery and climbed to the top of La Tour Eiffel. I went to the the Institut Catholique de Paris and said hello to a professional contact. I was surprised to find this school crawling with students of all ages. The art in Paris was unsurpassed and I saw many things that I had not seen before. La Dame a la Licorne was impressive in Cluny, and the Monets in L'oragnerie as were many of the works in the D'orsay.

Paris was not as busy as London. I found life there to be a bit slower and less chaotic. Still I am glad to be back in London and don't when I will be back in Paris. Even so I will always have fond memories of Paris.