Look Up

I do most of my running in the early morning or later at night these days. I enjoy being out when it's dark and having a fairly quiet run from a traffic perspective. My route takes me through our down town area and around several parts of the local colleges. I run on the sidewalk quite a bit, but have to be diligently observant as they are very uneven. There aren't many completely flat stretches of concrete and when it's dark I have to be extra sure of my footing. Since I don't want to face plant on the road I keep my vision focused downward several feet in front of me for safety.

I came off the sidewalk the other morning and was on the road which is much smoother. Out of my regular habit, I glanced up was entranced by simple beauty of the sky. There was a partial moon shining down on me and without any cloud cover the stars were brilliantly clear. I had to take a longer look and smiled as I admired the picture overhead. If I hadn't bothered to glance up, I never would have noticed it even though it was there to be seen.

How often do we keep our eyes downward and miss out on things of beauty, relevance, and encouragement? Are we so intently focused on where our next step will be that we miss out on the parts of life happening around us? Do we fear taking a misstep so much we fixate on the safety of where we are going and forget that taking a risk now and then can actually enrich our lives? I don't advocate running full speed with your eyes only on the sky, but we need to change where we are looking now and then if we truly want to experience life.