I started my running steak on December 29,2008 – a monumental Monday as it turns out. As a sign of the times, there was an article that I came about this morning regarding an enterprising young skateboarder that was commandeering swimming pools of foreclosed homes and turning them into skate parks. We were on the precipice of economic disaster ourselves after I just lost my TV management job in Decatur Illinois. My wife had just quit hers at the same station, so we moved to Austin, Texas that year for a job opportunity that she was offered. Little did we know that it would take over six years to sell our Decatur home, while I struggled financially. Running was probably my savior from depression!

This coming Monday will be my 653rd consecutive run to start another week – 4,572 days without a single interruption. Some people call me “Forrest Gump. Run, Forrest, Run,” they tease. I do like the word “Gumption,” meaning “initiative; aggressiveness; resourcefulness.” It has taken all of that to maintain “The Streak” of now over 12.5 years. It keeps me healthy and happy, despite the strain on my body. There are days that have generated blood, sweat, and tears to add some drama to this accomplishment. Today was an uneventful 79 degrees with 89 percent humidity and little shade. It feels good to sit down and write. 

There are many things I contemplate during my daily run. Yesterday would have been my birth father’s 90th birthday. I never met the man but keep the date on my calendar and sent a note to his daughter. We stay in touch after a DNA test put us together. She sent my a nice story about her dad, a man that I have learned a lot about in the past few years, but I’m sure my curiosity will never be satisfied. I resemble him physically but want to know more. The birth mother is still alive but there has been no contact. She’s the only one on earth that knows the whole story of my existence. I guess I just haven’t had enough gumption to get the truth. Maybe I should try harder?