Atlanta (brought to you by ASICS)

I took my first run in Atlanta today.  Holy hills.  Every time I rounded a corner, I was facing either a steep incline or some sort of rolling hill that shouldn't have been too intimidating... but after the first two miles or so, all hills look daunting.  Trust me.

But then there were the glorious downhill jaunts, where running is a bit like just skimming the surface of the path effortlessly.   And, suddenly, I would look up and there would be (you guessed it) another hill.

All of this hill business is a drastic change from Tampa, where everything is flat.  At home, I run at the same pace consistently.  But, here, I had to slow it down on the inclines, lest I run out of fuel mid-hill.  And on the downward slopes, I had to center my body so that inertia didn't completely take over and send me cascading head over heels down the hill.  I couldn't really look ahead, because what was ahead was inconsequential.  All that mattered was how I was going to navigate the terrain I was on right then.  And I didn't know how I would feel after the next hill or around the next corner, because it was all uncharted territory for me.

This run, this run mirrored my life right now... concentrating on the moment, uncertain what is ahead, but still pushing forward and finding that I am really digging the scenery.