Fabulous fall–XC & Friendship

I’ve always loved fall because it’s a beautiful season–the most beautiful in my opinion. It’s also cross country season and I’ve always loved cross country! All of my best and closest fiends are people I met running cross country or running in general. The 8-10 weeks that make up xc season are the definition of perfection if you ask me–you will always meet amazing people within those weeks that will positively impact your life. Not only is it a beautiful time of year, it’s a time where a group of runners become best friends–they form ever lasting friendships. Distance runners run a lot. Hundreds of miles on trails, on roads, through parks, over streams, up hills, down hills, sometimes even up mountains, but they run together. This togetherness forms a unit, a team, a friendship. Long runs=long friendships. There is something about venturing out in the world and having miles to go before you can rest that brings people together. Going out into the world with your new teammates and only your watches is risky. You have to trust these people to some extent if you willingly go on a run with them for several miles. It’s a risk–you don’t know them, they don’t know you, how do you know they won’t leave you behind or how do you know they will help you if you need it? Agreeing to run with a stranger is like saying “hey, we are going to be friends soon!” The trust is already there. Once you are out there running you have talk to them to pass the time. So you talk to each other–small talk…..Where you are from, what you do for a job, what you study in school, your hobbies, your interests, how many people are in your family, your favorite tv shoes, ect. After a few runs all of this is covered and things are less awkward so you move on to talking about day to day things–you are becoming friends. Knowing each other’s day to day business is a big deal because that means you are vested in their daily activity and they are vested in yours. You learn a lot about each other’s daily lives and you begin to build relationships. You start to care about how Cindy’s date went last night, you worry about how Jenny did on her test, you are concerned when Sally doesn’t show up to practice the day after she breaks up with her boyfriend, you notice if Molly seems run down and tired, ect. You become intertwined and you function as a unit. You even spend time together when you aren’t running because you find that you love your new teammates friends. The things that are shared amongst runners on a run are the building blocks to lifelong friendships. People who run together stay together and understand each other. Teammates become friends for life. Take a chance this season and go for a run with someone new, you might meet your best friend or your soulmate–I did. Running lays the groundwork for strong relationships.

Watching runners becomes best friends and more than just teammates is my favorite thing about fall.