Faith Laces

‘Tis the season for celebrating — for parties, decorations, and for rejoicing. In all the holiday hub-bub, it may be hard to make time to run, but running can be a festive activity too! Here are some tips for making your next run a merry ole’ time: Run  wearing a Santa hat – Bring a smile to the faces of your neighbors and drivers alike! Run  with bells on – String a few little bells on your shoelaces or add some sleigh bells to the jogging stroller (just a little warning – this could be a tad overwhelming on long runs)! Run  with Christmas tunes – Rock out to some upbeat carols and spread some joy by bursting into song every mile or so! Run  at night to see the lights – Sometimes it’s a bit intimidating to run at night. But there’s no better time to give it a go than at Christmas when white and colorful lights adorn the neighborhood. Just don’t forget to don your own reflective gear! Run  and rejoice in the reason for the season – Read the Christmas s...

Nestled in the hills of West Virginia is a little town called Rachel, home to a post office, Downs United Methodist Church and my parents. During a visit in early December, I had a choice between running along the winding back roads or along the rocky defunct train tracks. I usually avoid the roads because of the narrowness and frequent blind bends. My main concern about the trail following the old train tracks was hunters; it was the height of hunting season after-all. When I expressed my concern about running along the old train rails, my mother said, “Oh they aren’t hunting along the trail.” Great! I made my decision. As I reached the start of the trail, heading towards me in a bright, neon orange vest carrying a rifle in one hand was a bearded man. Ha! I was right and Mom was wrong! But my inner gloating was interrupted by a gunshot echoing in the air. Well, while my original worry had just been confirmed, nothing short of a giant black bear standing on the path was going to st...