Running

"Every morning in Africa a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must move faster than the lion or it will not survive. Every morning a lion wakes up and it knows it must move faster than the slowest gazelle or it will starve. It doesn't matter if you are the lion or the gazelle, when the sun comes up, you better be moving." - Maurice Greene

Little did I know that running would be such a significant part of this trip. After only a few nights in Djibouti, while still not fully being over jet-lag, I went running with Rachel and it was... amazing, refreshing, just what my mind and body needed. Physical exertion to loosen up my tense body, a sense of accomplishment and success in a place where such things are difficult to measure, an understanding that only endurance and a disciplined mind can keep one running in this ridiculously hot place. It is challenging in Djibouti, but it has become one of my favorite parts of my experience here. I love running with Rachel because she is a good runner and great accountability in pushing myself to run longer than my body wants to. And while on our runs we've been talking about everything, so its been a time of mental refreshment for me, too. I'm also experiencing Djibouti in a way that I wouldn't be able to otherwise. Running through the streets allows me to interact with the place in a different way than merely driving through it would- it engages all my senses. I can feel the divots in the road under my feet, I can smell the ocean and other smells unique to this place, I can taste the moisture in the air, I can hear the people talking and laughing and bartering and yelling, "Good luck!" as we run by, and I can see the faces of the people we pass. Rachel says running in a new place is the best way to become acquainted with it. I believe it.

And as if all of that wasn't motivation enough, running has given me a way to get to know some English speaking Djiboutians better. Emily and I had a bunch of University students over who are studying English for an afternoon of discussion in English. It's good for them to keep using their English while school is out in the summer, and even better to do so with us native English speakers. So we all talked about customs/ways of life here in Djibouti, the relations between the Somali and Afar people who make up this country, the unique aspects of our families, the countries we'd most like to travel to, and other such topics. Somehow we got onto the topic of running and a few girls said that they were going running that night. I told them that I've been running, too, so they invited me to meet up and run with them. After our run, one of the girls said that she's only been running once a week, but now that she has someone to run with (me) then she'll Insha'Allah (Lord willing) run more frequently this summer. I reminded her of that thought before we split that night.

I have an "in" here that I wouldn't have if it weren't for my recent interest in running. It's seemingly my avenue for building relationships and its thankfully a really healthy one. And I imagine that if I can learn to run consistently here, in 100 degree weather, then I can continue to run just about anywhere.