[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MeZe2qPLPh0]
YHC’s forecast of three pax proved true. #Creepy YHC was sure that Blu would come swinging into the parking lot, with or without his FNG, but no dice. Three it was, which meant some modification to the Tortoise and the Hare.
Tortoise Work:
- 10 knee-to-elbow
- 20 squats
- 30 merkins
- 40 box jumps
- 50 big boy situps
Hare Work:
- Run to top of bridge, 10 merkins
- Run to top of Charles Street, 10 merkins
- Run to Manning Law Firm, 10 merkins
Start with Tortoise Work. Complete one round and follow with Hare Work. Rinse and Repeat.
It was about halfway through round three that YHC spotted two creatures of the night walking into the park or onto Grove Street. Beano was in the park alone and Trojan was making his way up Cambridge to the law firm.
Beano’s down in the park by himself.
Quit being melodramatic. You just want an excuse to stop running up this hill.
True. But Beano is still down there alone.
Do you really think those two guys are going to do anything to Beano?
No. . .
See, I tol—
. . .but I sure wouldn’t forgive myself if they did.
Internal dialogue completed, YHC spun around and bounded down Charles Street to the rescue of Beano. Would I just tackle the first guy I saw? Kick in Knee caps? Find Beano hurt and the creatures of the night on the run?
As I raced into park at the speed of a honey bun on its way to mouth, my head swiveled wildly back and forth in search of the anonymous assailants. Wait, there was Beano, cranking out sit-ups. Where are these two dudes? Are they hiding, waiting for a more optimal time to strike? Assessing the strength of our numbers?
Trojan came rolling back into the park.
“Did you see those two guys walking into the park?”
“See what? Two guys? I didn’t see anyone else out here. . .”
Trojan’s words trailed off with the insinuation that YHC was borderline delusional and possibly in pursuit of his own personal Tyler Durden.
Off I went to finish the third hill of the Cambridge Bowl Trifecta still with some trepidation that those guys still might be hiding out waiting to pounce. And they just saw me leave the park alone. . .
That put a little extra spring in my step and I ran up and down that hill like there was an entire rack of ribs just waiting to greet me at the bottom.
Oh, good. There’s Beano.
“Did you see two guys walking through the park?”
“What? No, I didn’t see anybody.”
“That’s crazy, I saw them walking into the park a few minutes ago.”
“They didn’t come through the park over here.”
He didn’t have to say it; I could hear the words boiling out of his mind.
Jugs, do we need to drop you off on the third floor before the aliens return to kidnap you again?
No! They were real!
It was at this point that YHC came to, in the middle of running up a hill, chugging along like I just left Shealy’s buffet 5 minutes before the workout started. Man, oxygen deprivation is C.R.A.Z.Y.
Beano and Trojan maintain there were no creatures of the night. YHC maintains that they slithered through, perhaps on their way to hide from the coming sunlight that would reduce them to mere ashes in a matter of seconds if exposed. Either way, it was 0600 and “Recover!” was called.
NMS:
There were three of us, so it eliminated the partner version of the tortoise and the Hare, which YHC will reveal at some later Terrapin Q. But it still followed along with the story a little, and gave YHC an opportunity to relate it to his life.
We are mostly the type of men who charge forward. There is little, if any, timidity among those who post regularly. The type of men who are willing to get out of bed and post in the predawn hours is the type of men who have little trouble pushing toward a goal, whatever kind of goal it may be. Many times, we (meaning: I) rush ahead at a sprint, only to find ourselves burned out. We then discover that, in our mad dash ahead, we have left those we love the most behind.
Life is meant to be embraces as the tortoise, moving deliberately through the world at fast enough pace to keep moving forward, but at a slow enough pace to be present in each moment. Sometimes, we (meaning: I) just need to slow down, be still.
Throughout the Bible, we are taught to care for today. While making reasonable plans for the future is a wise thing to do, we must remember not to rush forward ahead of everyone else, but to embrace and enjoy each moment. We must move consistently and deliberately though the world.