Still a Runner
A Blog by Mary Lou HarrisArchive for Susquehanna River
Congratulations Mother Earth on a Resilient 2016
In spite of everything we throw at her, Mother Earth finds a way to cope and thrive. Regardless of how disappointing we humans can be in our actions, getting outdoors never fails to regenerate hope. Here are a few examples that popped up before my eyes during 2016.
January hikers on the Appalachian Trail (AT) enthralled with the view of morning mist over the farm fields below.
A clear February sky over the iced Susquehanna River.
A March day along the Capital Area Greenbelt with fresh buds on cherry trees.
April brings the strains of jazz murmuring through the trees as the ensemble waits the arrival of the Capital 10-Miler runners along this wooded stretch of Greenbelt.
In June, the Rhinebeck Marathon included some miles on a heritage trail. On a smaller scale, the baby turtles began making their treks out of hiding along Wildwood Lake.
A July run down a country road brings into view a fisherman knee deep in waders. The stone building abutting the bubbling creek demonstrates its own resilience having stood strong for over a couple of centuries.
In August, nature brings us a spider web glistening in the morning sun. While the web may not be resilient, its creator is. A run brought me to an ambling creek flowing by temporarily abandoned lawn chairs.
A September view of the River Thames. Over the thousands of years it has flowed, the course has been altered by time and by humans.
Not as old as the Thames, this grape vine growing at Hampton Court is more than 230 years old. Alas, I arrived too late in September to purchase jelly from its abundant crop.
October took me to the banks of the Chicago River where it flows into Lake Michigan, a lake that was formed billions of years ago. It will outlast the concrete buildings and bridges surrounding it.
A November breakfast at a café in the 540 million year old Laurentian Mountains was enjoyed on the warm side of this window.
What have I found to be resilient in December? That we have made it through a trying year with one day to go may be the best description of resilient. Mother Earth is still holding her own and so should we.
If you would like to see the perspective of other writers and photographers, take a look at these ideas on the meaning of resilient.
Riverfront Path = My Cheers
Sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name. And, sometimes it occurs to you out of the blue, this is it – your own
A strip of running path bordered by grass mediums, trees, picnic tables and sculptures,
photo credit: flikrhivemind.net
the river and a lower running path to my right, and wide one-way Front Street on my left, this is my Cheers.
photo credit: peace.maripo.com, this is my Cheers.
I hear someone call “Hey, Mar…” and see a waving arm out the window, recognizing the vehicle with marathon placards on the tailgate. Several minutes later a light tap on a horn and a wave, my husband on his way to a meeting or, depending on the day, off to pick up the Sunday NY Times.
Approaching from a block away, another runner is calling out “Mary Lou.” I recognize him by his gait. Moving in opposite directions, briefly we share a few words and we’re off again.
Everybody knows their names: Becky and Carol on a marathon training run.
A trio of young women emerge up a ramp from the lower path. I’m acquainted with two of them and we exchange information on surface conditions on the path.
The cast of characters on that much loved sitcom covered a wide demographic. Runners at my Cheers include surgeons and mailmen, bureaucrats and politicians, fitness instructors and educators. Although many that I recognize along the path and who recognize me are in their 30’s and 40’s, there are plenty of us much younger and much older.
Not everybody knows my name. Like Cheers, there are the background characters. During a mid-day run, I make my way through a tag game among children and teacher out for recess. On a Sunday morning, a few couples walking arm-in-arm to one of the nearby churches. Almost anytime during the day, I will pass the occasional homeless folk.
They along with a few downtown workforce taking a bag lunch and a break in the park, are not the main characters but are a backdrop to my Cheers. I know their faces, they know mine. Add to that tourists who flag me to take their photo with the Susquehanna in the background and the stage set to my Cheers is complete.
I didn’t expect a slice of riverside land would weasel itself into the fabric of my life, but there it is. A place where almost everybody knows my name, and I know their name, their gait, their pace and their friendship. 
Sometimes it takes a frigid winter morning to know you are at your Cheers.
And you, where have you found your
The Figure 5 & a Capital 10-miler 5th Anniversary
When the calendar says January and the thermometer says 10℉ what is a runner to do? Well, most of us sign up for an early spring race, which then motivates us to get out in the cold (or in the worst of circumstances grab a treadmill).
‘I Saw the Figure 5 in Gold’ 1928 Precisionist poster portrait created by Charles Demuth. credit: williambeebe.com
Then, others of us decide to build and direct an early spring race. And while we’re at it, let’s use our passion for running to feed another passion – we make that race a benefit for some local arts organizations. Let’s call it the Capital 10-Miler – a run for the arts.
Perfecting a 10-mile course requires running it numerous times with other runners just to ensure we have it right. Through ice, snow and bone-chilling cold, that course becomes one of the distance training runs for you and many others. Running the 10-mile course through the winter with winds whipping down the Susquehanna River prepares us for our spring marathons. It becomes an annual ritual.
photo credit: Rachel Jones Wiliams
Then suddenly, it’s five years later and you’re still directing that 10-mile race and raising funds for nonprofit arts organizations. So, on this frigid morning, I’m thinking of our upcoming fifth race and the number 5 appears as an arts image, the Figure 5 in Gold. And why not? The artist Charles Demuth was a local guy from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania – just down the road. He made his mark and many friends in the exciting New York art world of the 1920’s.
But back to 2015 Harrisburg and back to that 5th Annual Race. The Capital 10-miler – a run for the arts – has some talented and tough runners from the Northeast and across Pennsylvania, most returning every spring. We run it as a tune-up for Boston, as a challenge for runners moving up from the 10K distance, and we run and walk it to raise funds to support the talented arts groups that bring refreshing productions to us during our gray winter days and all year long.
Photo Credit: Bill Bonney Photography
Capital 10-miler runners had to be tough to finish last year’s race when sheets of cold rain and high winds drove them to the finish line.
So this year, we’re hoping for a break on Sunday, March 29, with March going out like a lamb, mild temperatures and sunshine. It could happen. If not, we will be there for you at the finish with hot coffee, broth, lots of healthy goodies and good company. Get motivated. Come join us for a 10-mile early spring race with a mostly flat course free of traffic, interesting scenery, dedicated runners and service at our water stops by arts volunteers.
As a final note, since my inspiration today comes from the work of Demuth, I’ll share his inspiration for the work, the poetry of his friend, William Carlos Williams:
The Great Figure
BY WILLIAM CARLOS WILLIAMS
Among the rain
and lights
I saw the figure 5
in gold
on a red
firetruck
moving
tense
unheeded
to gong clangs
siren howls
and wheels rumbling
through the dark city.
Photo Credit: Bill Bonney Photography
With that vision, Williams could have been with me on one of my early morning training runs through Riverfront Park along the Susquehanna.
What inspires you? If it’s a spring 10-miler, you can find us on Active.com.
Travel Theme: Arches
Let’s do a Travel Tuesday and join the folks over at Where’s my Backpack? as they explore the shape of the arch in all the forms it appears to us.
Photo Credit: Scott D. Welch/Wikimedia Commons
On this Veterans Day in the U.S., I will begin with the Pacific Arch at the World War II Memorial.
From the East Coast of the U.S., we move in time to the Middle Ages and across the Atlantic to a Baltic port city and this arch in Old Town Riga, Latvia.
Then north on the Baltic and a bit inland to an arched walkway through a building near the Täby Kyrka in Svenskakyrkan, Sweden.
Off to Northern Ireland and Belfast’s City Hall. In addition to the beautifully arched stained glass window, at least three other arch shapes appear in the photo.
Continuing east across Asia and into the Pacific Ocean to one of our westernmost states, we found an arch of holiday lights surrounding one of many homes, vehicles and driveways located in this historic Oahu neighborhood at the foothills of the Waianae Mountains. Decorations are ready for the Makakilo Christmas Light Spectacular.
Back to the U.S. mainland and in Niobrara State Park stand a lovely couple centered in an flowered arch overlooking the Missouri River.
Across the Missouri on the Dakota side, the river forms its own gentle arch.
On to Cleveland Ohio during a downpour prior to the 2013 Senior Games 10K where a runner attempts to stay dry employing an arched plastic bag overhead.
Finally, we have circled the globe and made our way back home to one of the many bridges with arches spanning our beautiful Susquehanna River.
Thank you Where’s my Backpack for this great suggestion.
