I had the best run of my life today( 5/10/08)...

..and it wasn't because my time was a personal best, or because I ran that extra mile. It's because the blood and sweat pumped to the rhythmic beat of my feet on the earth led to me having nothing but my thoughts to focus on.

I remember in the 12th grade, in my AP English class, I learned that in literature, nature represents the natural, primal human mind. I think it makes sense..

As I ran down the Donaldson Run trail, I ran further from what looked like Suburbia and closer to what looked like spaces only touched by God, and my feet. Rock, stream, sand, plant and animal all created by him.

Being in such a place, I wasn't distracted and had time and the clear mind to think about my life. Since my commencement is tomorrow, I think I had a strong desire to reflect on everything I learned in these 4 years...and it turned into something much more.

I looked back on all the relationships that floated back to memory, like the debris floating down that rain-filled stream to the Potomac.

So here's what I learned....

With every relationship I've had, I have lived it, it has ended or grown, and I have taken an experience from it...and each of these experiences have helped me in the next relationship(s)

Each one idea I get flows into another and helps me evaluate not only various situations, but into my own mental state, allowing me to grow and mature.

This makes me realize that although I have had a much harder time than a lot of people my age, that I am blessed to know so much about myself. I have learned what I want out of life, love and the future, and I am working towards that now...