Good Day Sunshine

The longest day of the year has come and gone having left us with 18 hours and 44 minutes of light. (although if you consider the nautical sunrise and sunset it was more like 21 hours)
I have a love hate relationship with the length of daylight that spills in though my window.  It's not the warmth or soul lifting that it brings into my life.  I crave sunshine no matter what day in the year.   I Love the way it warms my face on a cold winters day, or how it brings out the diamonds that lay on a field of snow.
No, it's the fact that I am already an early riser and don't really need the extra prodding to open my eyes at 4:30 in the morning that leaves me with a hint of displeasure.  
This could be fixed with darker blinds in my room.. but for those who know me, that'll never happen.

I will admit however that this last week of early rising has been a gift as I sit watching the sky change into the most magnificant colours to announce the coming of a new day.
Having to watch it through my living room window covered in the art of doggy nose prints added to my happiness as I was reminded of what a wonderful and full life I have.

Has it been aging that has finally let me see the joy in life?
Or can it be as I physically become healthier my mental health too has improved?

I have now run 5K more than once and have been so proud of myself.
I'm not quite ready to do the entire distance in one shot, however I do have to remind myself the location I am training on is all hills.   With my running group last night I did 10 minute runs 3 times.. it ended at the bottom of the long hill that is a killer everytime I run it... At the top of this hill is the 5K mark and it would have taken me all of 5 minutes to finish it..
I just couldn't find the energy to do it last night.

The sunshine that I crave and love was beating down upon me making it hard to breath as my sweat soaked through the t-shirt trying to cool me.  
We haven't had much heat as of late and I found it hard to complain, but it was the main reason I could not find the reserves that are usually buried deep down to run that hill one more time.

Knowing what I have accomplished in just 2 months time has led me to believe that I WILL be able to prepare for 100 miles on skis with my dogs.
And thinking ahead about the training season with my dogs I can only smile and feel a bolt of excitment rush through me.  What fun we are going to have!! 

Here I am not even 24 hours away from the longest day of the year and the first day of summer and I'm already longing for winter!

My motivation for the day....

Oh, why not.... the song of the day...