Running With Paradox

We don't arrive at distance. Every step becomes

our home. And still there's always

more.

~

In the acceptance of paradox we are free to move continuously - while stopping on the way. It's all just travel. Motion. Stillness. We are runners, walkers, meditators and nothing. At once. Take every step lightly.

Peace,

Eric 

Revelations

this very step could

be our last

and the runner revealed to be the path

~

Revelations - each step a shift of light and earth and the same story told a thousand times told once more yet heard as new. It's about possibilities. One more step and we could be...revealed to who we truly are.

Peace,

Eric



A Taste Of Something More

a moment - given to

motion

within the infinite path of mind

~

Endlessness - a taste with every step. Perhaps that's why we run? To feel at one with the smallest particles that swirl as the form of our existence - as well as the reach of light from sun and stars pressed against us. The infinite is all directions. Sometimes we feel as if we could run forever. It's only a moment. Yet it's a taste of something more.

Peace,

Eric

The Final Gift

And after all, perhaps the final
gift is tenderness.
The faith to love on the
edge of broken parts.
Faith...when all we have is
no clear end,
only the ache of uncertainty.
And still we
reach
towards the jagged edge that's
sure to cut and we bleed
our touch in a tender
offering of
hope,
despair, and maybe something
more we can't name,
but know in silent
moments.
Perhaps the final gift is not
blood...but our
ability to
bleed and bleed
some
more when all we wish for is
dried away and still we
bleed more.
Perhaps the final gift is
this- these blood soaked
tears...when it's all we have to

offer.

~

Letting go - and through this we find the infinite space from which we learn to give. I first and most deeply learned this lesson from my mother in her last years with Alzheimer's. Her final gift was this lesson - there is always more to give. It's our nature. I relearn this lesson every race and through the distance of my very long runs. It's not a lesson of will power and how much my mind and body is able to give. No, the lesson is always on the subject of love. Here it is: can we love ourselves through broken parts? Are we able to love our very brokenness? And more - are we able to find the wholeness of our being through the cracks that ache from this expansion? The lesson is always on the subject of love. The answer is always yes.

~

Perhaps on a race or long run we could ask ourselves this - can I love myself through the very next step?

Peace,

Eric



Running Out Of Power

We are powerless - even as we believe strength of

will and body will carry us through

distance.

In truth - only distance holds power. The infinite inviting steps for

further exploration.

All we do is surrender.

And accept the

invitation.

~

There is power. But it's not ours. Yet we can surrender to it and in process reveal ourselves as one with it. Power is in the whole. The infinite. It's who we are in our deepest surrender. Running is a great revelation for this. It never ends. Only arbitrary numbers loom in the illusion of a finish. Still distance stretches ahead. In our surrender we will see that there is no finish - and more we too stretch ahead in the infinite view of who we are. We're endless.

That's power.

Peace,

Eric

Running As Stillness

In reality there is no quiet mind. Our stillness is a further depth existing on its own accord. Thoughts happen. They appear and pass and again become in their own fleeting wave. It's the nature of the mind. Yet our truth is much different. Our nature is stillness itself and the impartial witness to all that passes. We are the presence that observes the mind. At one time I believed that running led to stillness. I glimpsed the quite mind and thought my steps would take me there again. There is no need to be taken to reality. It was running, distance, far distance, that revealed an intrinsic stillness that never waivered. I am stillness and all things pass through this. You are stillness and all things pass through you. We are stillness.

So there is no need to resist the mind. No reason to believe that thoughts carry any weight through our existence. The mind thinks. We exist.

Peace,

Eric

Stories

No story told - and the path leads

only to a quiet

mind

~

Allow things to simply be. A hill is not measured by effort to reach its summit but by the length of beauty that's extended. Beauty is not a story. It simply is. It's the mind that searches for a contrast. Distance is a story. Our steps know motion. They know rest. How far is just a belief offered to the body. We are free to accept and free to deny. Certainly we grow tired. The body is finite in its resources. Rest as needed. Eat. Drink. Care for both mind and body. Here's the thing about stories: they are neither false nor true. They are simply a narrative - commentary told by mind. Who are they told too? Who is listening? That's the secret.

Peace,

Eric

Within

within awareness - all things

simply are

and it's enough to let them go

knowing they

belong

~

Distance running brings this clear - all things really simply are. A hill is no different than a valley save for effort given and preference of our run. Both simply exist. And we are free to except. Or not. Either way we run the hill.

Peace,

Eric

Simple

Moved to letting go - and distance

unfolds to the grace of

every moment.

~

Just this - the moment and all that it holds. Perfection even as we let it go. Our steps know. Motion is their wish and to this end there is nothing but a letting go. And so our stride is born. Listen - everything will be revealed. When thirsty we are invited to drink, when hungry, eat. Run - until it's time to walk. Walk until there is a wish to run. It's that simple. Easy? Maybe. Sometimes. But not always. That's okay too.

Accept.

Let go.

Smile.

Peace,

Eric

As Light

as light - we reach and reach and lend

ourselves to grace as shadows

play across the

path

all things rise in our existence

~

We are light as well as shadows and all that plays between the two. The path itself is our creation. In this we bring our steps against the earth in union.

Peace,

Eric

In Our Absence

No thing.

No one.

And still there is

awareness...

~

There is power in absence. In the absence of a viewer - there is only the view. And we are equal in its beauty. Without a runner we too are stretched as distance with nothing found beyond our reach. There is no self found separate from the source.

In the absence of beliefs - we are.

Peace,

Eric

Running Transparently

In this great transparency - the path becomes

beneath our steps.

And every thought revealed as

its creator.

~

Relax - and the path unfolds without effort. There are hills to climb and streams to cross. There always are. It's perfect. Even if we think otherwise. Yet beneath the wave of thought is a clear and steady pool of being. Run from here. Create from here. We become transparent - and the path reflects perfection.

Peace,

Eric

On Being Trackless

trackless -and the path holds no memory

beyond the step now

taken

~

Running is the expression of the present moment as told by steps. We are free to allow the experience to be the simplicity earth and step meeting new or to carry the reminder of steps taken once before. Either way the reality remains awareness of the present moment.

It's our choice on where we focus.

Peace,

Eric

Only Here

It's all right here - the step is taken

only in the mind.

And thoughts unfold as

distance.

~

If running is viewed only as a point of achievement, as a means of arrival to somewhere other than where we are - we will find ourselves less than who we are. Or better put - we won't find ourselves at all. Running is the great unveiling. Distance strips us to the essential moment of awareness - one step making contact to the earth holds the world. The infinite begins, holds and ends here. The rest is just joyful travel. Enjoy.

Peace,

Eric

The No Attainment Of Running

There is no attainment.

We dream of absence in a sleep of
shared delusions.

Waking to a false dawn that
holds all distance.

And yet...no day begins with
settled borders.

This is our time to
awaken.

A true dawn of no attainment.

Only moments yielding to the constant
flow...of what is always
present.

~

It certainly seems as if we attain something - miles, a sense of accomplishment, or even the allusive sense of peace. Yet they fade. Even medals eventually rust. It comes back to the simplicity of running - we give all kinds of easy answers to the question of why we devote ourselves to distance - and the answer always remains the easiest one and yet the one that we're unable to articulate in any reasonable way. We run - to give ourselves away.

Not to get a single thing.

But for a certain length of time and distance - we run to know the emptiness of only motion. In this we find there is truly no attainment.

Nothing can be absent from

our touch.

Peace,

Eric

Seamless

Running is an invitation to a world that knows both ground and sky. Each step is a bridge of intimate connections - earth touched and at once gifted back to air. Seamless.

Peace,

Eric

To Find Our Own Perfection

we find our own perfection in broken

parts along the way.

trusting in the space that

binds them

~

If we run far enough - something within us will break. Ego, will and even faith will flee. We are left with nothing. And there we find our own perfection. Everything of the world will break. It's the first truth of Buddha and the law of impermanence. It's a known fact for runners. We break. Yet still we carry on. Here's what we find: there is something more, ineffable and light bearing behind the solidness of mind and will. To break is to allow. It's to reveal. We are that which waits behind the wall of self. If we run far enough, long enough, if we break and continue past the hold of mind and body - we find nothing. Just the space that holds are own perfection.

Peace,

Eric

Awareness Of The Runner

it's every step - and awareness is the

constant of all the paths

we travel

~

Think of awareness as the backdrop that all things emerge, pass through, and fade from. It's the presence of reality. It's who we are. Our personal identity is a temporary illusion held in place by beliefs. When attention is withdrawn - we return to the fluidity of pure awareness. Is this important to a runner? No. Because there is no runner - only awareness in a play of path and motion.


Peace,
Eric

Faith Displayed

the innate wisdom found in every step - to

have faith in the fall of its

reception

~

Running is the simplicity of faith displayed - each step finds its way.

Peace,

Eric

Passing Through

allow the path to simply be - before conceptions arise there is

only distance and the awareness of our

travel

~

It's only distance - filled with mental constructs. Yet the weight of our beliefs fall heavy on the legs. In a slight shift to the knowing of awareness - we become weightless. Running simply is. Distance simply is. We are the awareness to all that passes through. Thoughts and concepts create the physical world. Smile at creation. Keep running. This world is only passing through.

Peace,

Eric

Don't Worry

always a fall - yet each step

perfects its own

landing

~

Don't worry - running is the agreed faith between steps and ground. It's the gravity of trust and the grace of earth's reception. We are left with only one thing to do -

take a step.

Peace,

Eric

The Revelation Of Steps

We are not the same as when we started - our steps are supple in the art of letting go. It's the mind that clings. Running brings a momentary contact - the earth kissed in brief and then again to air. In our return we find new ground. And yet even in this quick exchange the runner too is transformed. We have touched both earth and sky and in our letting go we carry still the reminder that nothing but the touch itself remains.

Everything is transient.

Except for love.

Peace,

Eric

Light

the discovery of light through shifting

shades of darkness -

we run through shadows of the

mind

~

It's a dark place - yet unafraid our steps carry heart and mind through a maze shot with fear. My dark place may be different than yours and the times of our suffering will vary. It's a personal place. And no mater the company - we must take those steps alone. If we keep moving - here's what we discover: There is no absence of light.

Only shadows cast by fear of our

own brightness.

Keep running.

Not through but within will light be revealed.

Peace,

Eric

Our Song

it's who we are - echoed against the

earth in steps of grace and

wonder

~

Running is a note in the song of our expression - played on trail and road without distinction. It's our personal song. Others may choose to harmonize or sing alone. Regardless - we sing, we run.

Peace,

Eric

Beyond Labels

Without labels - we are each a

brush of space against the

earth

traveling by means of our own

time and distance

~

There is really no need for validation - all sources of measurement and comparison and external have little meaning beyond the limits of our own imposed definition. We are larger than that. Greater. In our own immeasurable nature there is room for all to travel - and the realization that there is nowhere far to get to.

Peace,

Eric

Throw Away The Rule Book

The illusion is motion - as if there's somewhere existing beyond our presence and we must reach to get there. In truth there is no reach for we are constant in our presence. There is nowhere that we leave off and the world begins. It's all here. Now. And yet in form we play by the rule of the senses. We believe the illusion. Running is just a game. The object is to pretend to travel somewhere we are not. We can always cheat. Don't play by the rules. Simply remember that we are not limited by the senses - they exist as an experience within the unlimited truth of presence. We are formless awareness watching form appear as a runner in motion.

It's a rigged game.

Peace,

Eric

Everything I Know About Racing (and life)

Distance remains - borders of our start and finish exist only in the mind. The point is motion, stillness, and then motion once more.

There is no need for

complication.

~

When it's time to run - run. Listen to the body. Rest when needed. Walk. Relax the mind allowing thoughts to pass with little care. Be kind.

(eat, drink and tend to what's needed)

Peace,

Eric

Endlessness

Runners strive by nature - and yet aside from fixed objects -distance always remains immeasurable. It's our true nature that we really seek. And here it is found - not by any finish or the illusions end of a set time. It's the endlessness itself that holds our secrets.

Peace,

Eric

Aware

Aware - and nowhere else do

we reside.

~

This is all we need to know. Our presence is aware and all things and every thought simply pass through. Each step is an experience in awareness. Know this - and every step is our arrival.

Peace,

Eric

Imagine

Imagine - no difference between earth and step and the slow caress of one through the illusion of time and distance. And so it is. For in truth there is no singular existence - only awareness recognized or the moment left unnoticed. We decide our truth - and run from there.

Peace,

Eric

This Too

individual drops become the

rain of one existence

~

And so it is with no step being separate from another and greater still our stride connected to earth. In all things there is only - This. Running is the recognition that this too - this step and the ground that it's touching - are one in the endlessness of our existence.

Peace,

Eric