miami fav #95 / the place where i run

i am a true yogi. give me my mat, a few asanas, and breathing exercises any day. and i am happy. zen. sane. i practice every morning and every night. recently however, my family has taken up running. i was sportastic in high school. i played something every season. soccer, lacrosse, volleyball. i even did a year of track. so, i feel like i did my duty. i ran. all the time. and was competitive. all the time. so, now that i’m a bit older, i appreciate being zen. meditating. loving things. instead of wanting to punch them for getting in my way (which i did. hello red card!). but when the family wants to do something together, who am i to be the odd-one out? so, we’re running a 5K for thanksgiving. not a big deal. but, it still involves running. and so the training has begun. as zen-like as possible. i figure, i love sunrise yoga so much (well, not the waking up part. but certainly the scenery.), why not sunrise running? so, i ran. and i have to say: south beach, my front yard, i love you. you have so much beauty and save it for a time when it is rarely seen by anyone. there is nothing better than running down a quiet ocean drive. everything is still. no club music. no people. the sidewalk is wet from the restaurants hosing the umbrellas down as they finally close. only to open again a few short hours later. and then hitting the sand. so soft. and seeing the ocean come into view. like i’m watching it from a 3-D movie screen. until i can hear the waves. the real sound of beautiful crashing. in and out. in and out. the relaxing colors. blue, green, lavender. and i run. with the ocean breeze surrounding me, almost picking me up. and then i turn. and the sight makes me stop. so breathtaking. the sun is on the rise. pink is exploding everywhere. and i think. wait. this is yoga.