From ages 0 – 21, it felt like life was a series of 3-4 year waves. School dictated my outlook and I went through cycle after cycle of being put in a new environment, starting at what felt like the bottom of a hierarchy, rising to the top, only to be moved back to the bottom again.

And then, all of a sudden, there were no more graduation-triggered cycles. The future felt like an unbroken morass, at once full of opportunity and absolutely terrifying. No plan, no set path. Just me and my wits and survival instinct.

Ten years into this post-formal school existence, I’ve come to think of life as running a marathon on sand. It’s hard, sometimes you just want to walk or sit down and watch the waves crash onto the beach, but it’s also glorious. A spectacle of traveling over time-worn wisdom manifest as fine grains of soft sand. And never are you running alone. There’s always a pack of friends, family, community cheering you on, helping you set pace, guiding you when you’ve made a turn into rockier terrain.

Life is a marathon of running on sand. It’s hard work but worth it, pounding one foot in front of the other on a glorious day towards a gorgeous sunset.

Published May 11, 2021.