[to stop counting]

A few weeks back a friend loaned me a book: Born to Run by Christopher McDougall. It's about a hidden tribe in the copper canyons of Mexico and their amazing ability to run endless miles over treacherous terrain. They wear sandals instead of running shoes, eat natural foods instead of goo packs and have never considered (or maybe even heard of) stop watches, heart-rate monitors or iPods.

Oh yeah. And when I said endless I meant it. Not 5K fun runs. Not marathons even. Try 50 or 100+ miles in one shot and then the same the next day. No joke. And no problem for them. So what's their secret you ask?

Turns out a lot of things. But of all the discoveries, one stuck out to me first. 

They never measured - distance, times, whether their feet under or overpronated, how many pounds they lost, BMI's, nothing. It wasn't about their mile splits or having a direct path marked out on GPS beforehand. They ran for the fun, the experience, the thrill, to get somewhere. They ran to enjoy and soak in their surroundings. They ran with friends and against friends in competitions. Where the victor's prize was simple pride in their accomplishment. No need for medals, Tshirts, money, beer tents, instagram photos and "post-race results."

In short, more than physically running, they discovered a pure heart and love for the sport. 

The day after I read that, I stopped measuring. Stopped taking my watch and iPod with me. I still mapped my routes beforehand to know mileage, but that's it. It's only been four weeks, and already I've noticed changes.

And it's got me thinking. What if we stopped measuring in every area of life? What if we stopped counting, stopped weighing, stopped assigning numbers to everything.

What if being healthy was more than counting calories, measuring inches, calculating pounds?

What if job success wasn't based on percents, sales, profits, efficiency?

What if the value of education and teachers wasn't based on test scores?

What if ministry wasn't about attendance numbers?

What if social media wasn't about "likes", "re-tweets" and "shares?"

What if life didn't revolve around constant comparison in how we "measure up" to others so that we are free to just be?

This I think could free a lot of people, myself included. To return to the basics of why we do what we do. Why did I start running? Truthfully I wanted to get to state cross country in high school. Then I wanted to avoid gaining the "freshmen 15" in college. But the true love began when running evolved into an escape and a prayer journey and a way to release and refresh. 

Somewhere along the way I forgot that though. I was obsessed with mile splits and pace after every run. I had goals for improving my half-marathon times and running a full. And sometime last year I started burning out, started a plateau. Running became a chore instead of a delight. My legs were tired before I started, and no matter how new my shoes were, they felt old and broken. 

I think the same thing can happen in any aspect of life if we're not careful. So I've stopped counting minutes and mile splits. Stopped analyzing times. Stopped relying on music to entertain myself. And though there is no "magic bullet" that works for all, it's been a true joy to reconnect with the basics again.

No measurements to define success.

No stopwatch to tell me I'm fast, slow, capable, not.

Just me, God, a road, a world waking up and a sunrise most days through the trees. Now to apply to the rest of life..