on turning 40

It's a big number, forty.

Run 40 miles, and your legs are going to hurt.  Drink 40 ounces of beer, and your belly is going to hurt, though you may not be able to feel anything else.  Go into the desert for 40 days, and you come home a changed person.

Certainly there is some magic in the number.  You do become a "master" after all.  You have finally climbed up to the top of that hill, and if you take a moment to look, you just might be inspired by the view.

I am turning 40 today.

I am mostly excited to enter a new chapter in my life, but part of me is bittersweet about how fast the first 40 passed.  I have a habit when I'm climbing hills when I'm running.  I put my head down so that the bill of my hat covers up the climb ahead.  It makes it easier to stay focused, but I sometimes miss the view when I do that.  The same can be true in life, so I am making my birthday wish that I will be able to keep my head up during the next 40 so that I don't miss a thing.

Happy running!