Every Friday I speak to the same three people. It isn’t a long conversation. Instead, it is generally very brief. “Shabbat Shalom. Enjoy your weekend. Relax. Have fun.”
We have already established that I’m not a very religious person, even though I am proud of my Judaism. Truthfully, I can’t sleep right now and began to wonder why this same conversation happens every Friday --- even though none of us are particularly religious? And, how does any of this relate to running?
The four of us met several years ago when we were paired together as a part of a conference we attended as members of JFNA’s National Young Leadership Cabinet. We met in a Jewish setting; we spent that Shabbat together (with a lot of alcohol). The rest seemed to naturally follow. For several years now we have spoken every Friday, but I haven't ever really thought about the purpose of Shabbat in the process or why we speak every Friday and exchange those simple reminders to one another.
At its core, Shabbat (Sabbath) is a day of rest and spiritual enlightenment. Jews are forbidden from engaging in “work” on Shabbat that exercises control over your environment. That is a tough issue because in this day and age so many different things exercise control over your environment. Some may even argue that, at least right now, running is exercising control over my environment. I guess it all depends on how you look at it. Admittedly, there are some days when running seems like a job --- the days when I’m not having fun or when my Achilles is killing me. Those are the days when I just want to get through my mileage and be done. Then, there are other days when running seems like pure relaxation --- the days when I am in the zone, when I am able to push myself and fade into the background music on my iPod and escape from everything else. Those are the days when I want to feel that endorphin high forever. If I am having one of those days when running seems like a job, it is OK to run on Shabbat?
Even with my recent “issues,” I am still fortunate enough to have more of those days when running seems like pure relaxation instead of work. Coincidentally, most of my long training runs are scheduled for Saturdays --- on Shabbat. A few weeks ago I half jokingly told Liberdy that the gym was where I came to worship instead of temple; maybe it wasn’t such a joke looking back on it. For the next few months I will use Shabbat as a day of rest and spiritual enlightenment, exactly as I am commanded to use Shabbat. Instead of going to temple to find that spiritual enlightenment, I will find it in my running shoes (and my calf compression sleeves, Michigan hat, Michigan t-shirt, etc.). I’ll find it with increased mileage, with increased pace, and (God willing) with increased self-confidence.
Next Friday, when I speak to these three amazing women, I am going to remember this. You see, two of them are runners. One of them is even running this half marathon with me. In addition to saying, “Shabbat Shalom. Enjoy your weekend. Relax. Have fun,” I am going to say something else. “Have a good run tomorrow.” If we don't remind one another to do this, we could easily forget that running is a wonderful way to celebrate so many different things. We could also forget how lucky we are to be able to celebrate our Judaism in this way.
Shabbat Shalom.
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