As I wrote last week in my confessional, I haven’t been feeling my mojo. And I haven’t been able to figure out why. All I know is that my heart is unexplainably heavy sometimes and that my mind is distracted. 

But it does nobody any good to brood on something that doesn’t seem to figure itself out. And after a vacation where I wasn’t in the least inclined to run along the water coast line, I knew that my  mojo wouldn’t magically reappear. I would have to shake myself out of it. 

To that effect, I decided very simply that I would run. I am going to run for whatever time I can afford for the next 3 weeks – 20 min, 1 hour, 3 hours (not that I can run for 3 straight hours at this point!), whatever I have. Wherever I can – treadmill, trails, river, outside my neighborhood. 

And today I stuck to the run-whatever-whenever-you-can plan. I had a bit of extra time but didn’t want to spend it on the treadmill and headed to the river at lunchtime (a short 10 min drive). I didn’t care if I only walked; I just wanted to feel the air in my face (and the heat and humidity too). I wanted to FEEL. 

And feel I did!!

I started to the smell of Petrichor. Petrichor is one of my absolute favorite words – it sounds so … so exotic and perfect. I learnt it from Doctor Who (The Doctor’s Wife – Crimson, Eleven, Delight, Petrichor)

And within 4 minutes, the heavens opened up for a thunderstorm. After running back to keep my phone dry in the car safely, I went back to run. 

I ran with the raindrops on my face and put out my tongue to catch them. 

I ran with the rain running down along with sweat and tears on my face. 

I ran jumping into puddles and totally messing up my shoes. 

I ran with my arms outstretched like I was trying to run into something or run to someone. 

It was a short run but it was more about me being in harmony with the cleansing rain than the run itself. For today, I just ran having unexpected fun. No time, no pace, no goals. 

Just a girl and her running shoes and the rain. 

And it’s given me hope that I can find my joy and mojo in this running that I love so much.