Yesterday I ran the Hackney Half-Marathon.

It was a great day.  And one of the things that struck me was this:

Every kilometre of the race was completely unique.

Here’s what I mean…

At some points in the race I was besieged by other runners.  Like riding the tube during rush hour.  But at other points I was all alone on deserted, empty streets.

For some of the race I felt like a gazelle, springing along majestically without a care in the world.  Other times, my legs felt like concrete blocks.  I was less gazelle, more tortoise.

Some kilometres flashed by in an instant.  Other kilometres felt like they'd never end.

And at times, the sun was scorching.  The sweat from my eyebrows dripped into my eyes and blocked my view.  But at other times, a windy chill brushed over my skin as the clouds drifted across the sky.

So every kilometre felt very different.

But even though my experience was constantly changing, it never meant I was heading in the wrong direction.

And I think there’s an interesting lesson here which goes much further than just running a race.

See, sometimes we interpret day-to-day differences to mean something significant about our lives.

Differences like feeling productive and energised one day and feeling lazy the next...

Or feeling happy and certain some days but sad and doubtful on others...

Or disagreements and challenges one day, and more ease and flow the next.

And sometimes these daily changes have the potential to get us worried.  We could see them as a sign that something is going wrong.

But these day-to-day differences don’t need to have a bigger meaning.  They don’t need to signify a problem, a failure, or that life is heading in the wrong direction.

Instead, variation like this is normal.  Just like the half-marathon, it’s part of the journey.

And it’s good to keep this in mind. 

Even lean in to it, if we can.

This way we can accept the ups and downs for what they are…

Embrace whatever experiences the day is offering…

And bask in the ebb and flow of life, rather than feel unsettled by it.

That’s all for today.

 - Tom