I turned the corner

Because I have a new song in my head. I'm usually humming Sympathy For the Devil which is nothing but a soundtrack for a murder. Sometimes, the Johnny Thunders version of Pipeline. That's the background music to a brawl that I actually attended (Click on the link, you can see my hands at1:10). Other times; Paint it Black, 19th Nervous Breakdown, yea some dark Rolling Stone songs. In my head I also hear a lot of Baba O'Riley (I don't need to fight: To prove I'm right: I don't need to be forgiven). of course, the Ramon's are always looping through my head. (I can't control my fingers...). When I'm in a better mood, I've been humming the Grateful Dead version of Not Fade Away.

But today, a new tune snuck in. Not really that new, more like an old friend that I haven't seen in a while. Ode to Joy is the tune that goes through my head when I can see the finish line. Today after my workout I went on the 200 m track. For the first 150 meters I jogged that clunky jog that I've been doing with the orthotics in my shoes. But with 50 meters to go, I pushed the envelope a little.   I pushed myself to within about 75% of falling down. I ran, Heal, toe, heal, toe, heal, toe... And I was airborne. I ran.

When I got home I went to the Internet to find the song that came back to my head. At first I was looking for punk rock and heavy metal versions of Ode to Joy. But it was this version that I heard. The video that goes with it is so appropriate. So much motion.  Crank it up and then read the rest of my blog.


Ode to Joy - Rock version by Ana Rucner from Ana Rucner on Vimeo.

When I finished this epic 200 meter loop one of my son's friends was waiting for me. When Owen was about eight years old, I happened to be sitting next to his mother the time he ran with the Prospect Park Youth Track Team. His warm-up was two loops of the track, and when he started his second loop I saw him look at his mother. The look on his face was pure joy. It was"look mom, this is where I belong." Now he's a teenager. He just came over to shake my hand, and tell me it was good to see me run. I told him I was glad to repay him, that it was good to see him run a long time ago.

Then I told him to go tell everybody what I did.