Keeping up with the childhood time train

Unexpectedly, the reunion after 17 years was actually on the Taipei track and field.

On the hot Taipei night, I was on the huge playground, closely following her running back, and imagined what we had each experienced over the years.

"I was thinking...I never would have imagined in elementary school that I would be here with your car right now," I gasped. Can't hear her breathing.

"..." I couldn't remember what she responded, but I clearly remembered that when she spoke, she felt at ease.

At that time, I was following closely, and she ran the 1-kilometer train in 5.5 minutes. Runners need to keep up with each other, and they are always used to saying "follow the car", and a few minutes mean that it took a few minutes to run a kilometer. A skilled runner like her paces freely, and it's easy to keep a steady pace. I just tried my best to catch up, and I didn't even notice her in the first place, even when she was quietly accelerating.

"Usually you run a 6-minute pace, and you can still keep up, which means you're usually too good to yourself," she said.

In her words, running is just my hobby. Apart from participating in marathons, I usually don't run with self-abuse, but I want to run for fun. He is also often running, entering the spiritual temple, and thinking about creation in the temple.

But right now, if I don't focus on every footstep and breath, I know I'll be left behind in no time at all. I took a deep breath and maintained a fast pace of one inhalation and two outs, imagining that I was in second gear just to keep up with this petite but incomparably strong runner. Even the reason why I am running here at this moment is focused on my consciousness, and it becomes no longer important.

We met at the end of the last century, a time when running was too far away for us.

In September 1997, the beginning of the new semester of Primary Five, we were assigned to the same class as two fat guys. From the same gluttonous personality and bloated figure, it was impossible to see that these two would be two marathons in the future. Athletes, one of whom has become a professional coach, has the amazing ability and will to run 180 kilometers for 24 hours in a row.

Unexpectedly, we are still in the same high school, and occasionally meet on campus, say hello, catch up, and talk about each other's lives. But youth is a passing meteor, we just chase our own night sky. At that time, I was probably influenced by Haruki Murakami. Sometimes I would run alone in the stadium near the school at night after school.

Perhaps it is the physical memory left at that time, so when I was no longer young, the first thought that came to my mind to return to a healthy life was to run. Since returning to her running habit 6 years ago, she has been able to see from time to time on Facebook her heroic appearance in major marathons. In those few years, she also occasionally participated in two events with her, but in the end they did not Can be met on the field. The most fundamental reason is that I can't keep up with her speed at all.

This year, she opened a running group and invited me to participate, and I was fortunate to keep up with this time train. I don't know where these feet will take me.

But I always hope that when I can run, I just go straight ahead.