In the Flow

by Abram Dickerson

Reflections on the Privilege of Running

Time is life; it is breath; it is each moment and the collection of every moment that makes up each hour of every day, week, and year of our lives. These moments are precious. The mere existence of their existence is unique in all the known universe. Time is the universal gift, the space between our first breath and our last.

While each human being is graced, or merely improbably and accidentally born into this world, the context of life on this planet is increasingly defined by inequity. Historical traumas and disparities, whose origins are rooted in slavery, colonialism, patriarchy, and systems of resource control and distribution that are reaching incomprehensible levels of inequality, are passed on generationally. The cultural stories, language, traditions, and translations of reality that define our human experience increasingly emphasize our differences. The social, commercial, and political media machines are reducing our communication to culture wars that are an extension of actual wars in which thousands of people are dying.

This reality exists inside of each moment of each day. Our privilege keeps the suffering of this reality muffled or muted in the background of our day-to-day transactions of simply living. However, running is different. Running is when we choose to step away from the grind. It’s how and where we return to the moment of our breath and the earth. This is freedom. This is privilege. Running exists at the intersections of choice and action. Together with the breath, running is a practice of centering and connecting. It is a sacred space where humans can share the lived experience of breathing and moving individually and collectively. Running creates space for ALL humans to connect and be reminded of the gift of life that we all share.

Let’s make every run an act of inclusion. Let’s run with people who look different from us, think differently, and have different religions, politics, economics, and stories. Let’s move, breathe, talk, walk, cry, laugh, suffer, mourn, and move together. Let’s run together. ANW