Maren's Musings

There is a poem by Mark Nepo entitled “Adrift.” (Google search it and you can read the whole thing!) One line in particular stuck out for me: “This is how the heart makes a duet of wonder and grief.” These times certainly feel like a duet of wonder and grief. It’s as if these times are a round, wonder and grief singing over one another. Which one will complete the song? With these two emotions singing through our lives, singing through these days… we kinda just want to know how it will end. Will wonder or grief win the day? The grief… How much we took for granted. The ability to go out and linger at a restaurant, celebrating a birthday, gathered around a table with those you love. The ability to go to a concert, or a live performance, or cheer on your favorite team at the ballpark. The ability to visit with relatives worry-free. Who knows when we’ll be able to do that again. Thanksgiving, then Christmas will pass - without all the usual festivities and gatherings. ...

  How did we get here ? Where the president of the United States is calling Dr. Fauci an “idiot,” and an entire news organization “bastards?” It’s not really surprising coming from DT, but damn… the rhetoric seems to get worse and worse by the day. Insults like this are never o.k. It’s unacceptable talk coming from a “leader,” but perhaps worse yet, he is giving his followers the green light to also talk and act in such despicable ways. This isn’t just election cycle nastiness; it’s a pattern that mustn’t be normalized or accepted. (Side note: if you haven’t already voted… make your plan!) Thank God it is Fall, because at least here in the Midwest, we can look out our windows and marvel at scenes of beauty. The trees in all their autumnal glory, the way the leaves crunch under your feet as you walk down the street. (Minnesotans - that early snowfall, not so nice, but it can be beautiful too, can it not?!!) The cinnamon-laced sweet smell of an apple pie baking in the oven. These...

It was a recent morning, and I was nearing the end of walk on a glorious Fall day. As I walked alone in silence, I took in all the leaves as they turned their brilliant shades of red, orange and yellow. Fall - my favorite time of year. Yet as I walked my mind inevitably turned to current events. The muck of this world we have been slogging through lately. As I walked past political sign after political sign, it felt hard to get away from the tensions that are so thick in the air. On a few streets, there were back-to-back neighbors with opposing yard signs, and not just one! I wondered how these neighbors get along (or not) with each other. Maybe they get along perfectly fine. After all, even Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Antonin Scalia could vigorously disagree and still be friends outside the court. Yet I think all too often our relationships are NOT like that. People these days seem more likely to demean, discount, talk over and past those who hold differing views. Rather than “working acr...

This is a piece I wrote and submitted to  Another Mother Runner  in response to their call for essays entitled "Seven Months In: Life and Running Amidst the Pandemic."  So of course it's a bit more autobiographical and about running... but also about the ups and downs of life during the pandemic. Enjoy!  In these strange times, my emotions have run the gamut from grief to gratefulness and everything in-between. March 13 th . Friday the 13 t h . When hand sanitizer and Clorox wipes became our new best friends. The weekend when most everything changed, running remained a constant. I could still lace up and head outside for some mind-clearing and stress-busting miles.   I was slated to run a half-marathon in June. I imagined it as my “comeback” after a few years off from that distance. But late spring when my depression worsened and my energy dipped, I questioned whether I still had it in me to run that far. Yet I managed to follow a training plan. I ran th...