this is the way to the prayer flags

Yesterday was a very dreary day in Savannah.  Most of the day was grey and drizzly with temperatures in the upper 40′s to lower 50′s.  Making myself go for a run was not easy.  I changed into my running attire but the motivation to walk out into that nasty weather and start running was a struggle.

Finally, I drove to the rails to trails.  My car and an old white pick up truck were the only vehicles in the rtt parking area.  I got out of my car and immediately felt like jumping back into it.  It was so windy and chilly outside.  The rails to trails tends to always be windy when I don’t feel like running.  Dang it.

to the left is where the trail ends at "the shrine" but it's actually 2.785 miles, not 3 miles

I had my long sleeve Nike winter running shirt on with a short sleeve summer running shirt underneath.  My legs were covered in the grey Nike winter running pants I wore for the Boulder 100 a few years ago.  My head covering was a blue Nike running cap.

My feet were clad in blue bikilas.  Need I say more?

Oh, I had a pocket full of prayer flags that had been resting on my fireplace mantle for about a month.  Those prayer flags were originally intended for the prayer flag project at the dairy farm but since there is no longer a prayer flag project at the dairy farm I didn’t know what to do with them.  It had seemed wrong to not do anything with them since someones’ prayers were on them.  I couldn’t take them to the dairy farm because it has become quite obvious that they are not welcomed there any longer.  So, I decided to take them with me and hang them at the end of the rtt where the initial prayer flag project originated.

the rtt is severely eroding as you can see. About a hundred yards further is "the shrine" and prayer flags

I stood in the midsection of the rtt.  To my right, the trail ran 3 miles until reaching the entrance of Ft. Pulaski.  To my left the trail ran for 2.785 miles until ending at the place affectionately referred to by fellow runners as “the shrine”.  The rtt prayer flag project is at “the shrine”.  I started the run at a brisk space and kept that pace going until reaching the end of the trail.

About half a mile into the run I came across an old man fishing.  The way he was dressed you would of thought he was ice fishing in Minnesota.  I said hello as I passed, he kind of grunted.  I assumed the gloomy weather was the cause of the fisherman’s gloomy disposition and kept running.

a walkway to the river at the end of the rtt

As I ran I began to think about the prayer flag project idea.  It was on this very trail that the prayer flag project idea first came to mind.  I remember thinking how cool it would be if we had a place in Savannah where people could hang their prayers and thoughts and hopes like people do in Jerusalem on the West Wall and, also in Tibet with the beautiful display of different colored flags flapping in the wind with the Himalayas as a backdrop.  I’ve always been moved by the pictures of the prayers crammed into cracks of the West Wall and prayers written on prayer flags flapping in the wind.  I wanted something like that in Savannah.  And, it seemed to me that other people might like the idea of a place where they can hang their prayers and let them flap away in the wind and make their way to God.  And, that’s when the idea supernaturally materialized in my mind…’start a prayer flag project in Savannah’.  So, I did.

the bridge before "the shrine"

On my way home from that spiritually awakening run I stopped at the Walmart on highway 80 and in a sweaty mess bought fabric – yellow, white, blue, green, red.  The lady cutting the fabric for me eyed me suspiciously.  Maybe, she thought I was on drugs because I was so sweaty, smelly and excited about getting this fabric.  I told her I was going to make prayer flags.  The Walmart associate didn’t share the enthusiasm I had.  After each colored fabric was cut into 1 yard lengths I headed to the camping section and got 100 feet of parachute string.  I went home and started making prayer flags.  The next day, I hung my first three prayer flags.

my niece made this prayer flag in December 2009 when she and her family visited Savannah

I remember going to the rails to trails every day and running to the shrine just to see if any new flags were hanging.  The only ones hanging were the ones I had hung.  That was ok.  I had a lot of personal prayers for God and knew a lot of people that needed prayers.  So, I began hanging my personal prayers and prayers for family and friends.  I then sent an email out to about a hundred million people about the prayer flag project at the end of the rtt.  About four people responded.  So, I hung prayer flags for them and sent blank prayer flags to each of these people.  I continued this for about a month and finally, I saw a prayer flag hanging that I did not make!  I was so excited!  I had become so intimate with the prayer flag project at the shrine that I could tell you where each and every prayer flag was located.  You could ask, where is the prayer flag for Jen?  And, I could take you right to it and even give you the color of the flag it was on.  Fyi, Jen was an old girlfriend.  I also had a number of prayer flags for my cancer stricken dog, Maccabee.  I so wanted a miracle healing for him because I loved that dog so much.  Any way, you can imagine my excitement when I noticed a prayer flag that I had not hung.  Nor was it of the same fabric I had purchased.  It was cool.

I gave my word that I would hang a prayer flag every week for this young girl (14 years old) until I hear that she is cancer free. I had hung 4 prayer flags for Rachel at the dairy farm before the flags were taken down. I have a couple of more to hang for Rachel to make up for the weeks I lost due to the flags disappearing at the df.

I use to count all of the prayer flags every time I ran to the end of the rtt but stopped counting when the prayer flag project hit 500 flags.  As my dog, Maccabee, grew more and more ill I would take him to the dairy farm where his heart truly was.  That little dog loved the dairy farm.  I sought permission from the owner of the df, Cliff Roberds, to bury Maccabee at the dairy farm once he died.  Finally, on July 20, 2009 Maccabee died and I buried him at the dairy farm.  It was then that I began thinking that the prayer flag project should be at the dairy farm.  After all, this was the place my beloved Maccabee loved and was buried in.  And, this was the place I would go when seeking healing and peace from a broken heart.  At the end of the dyke in the back area of the dairy farm was a place called “the point” & it seemed the perfect place for the new prayer flag project.  The point is an isolated narrow strip of land enclosed on both sides by brackish water.  The dyke crumbles into the water about 50 yards from where the first prayer flag was hung at the df.

stuff at the shrine

The prayer flag project at the far end of the dairy farm became more important to me than the one at the rails to trails.  And just as had happened at the rtt so it happened at the prayer flag project at the df – it started becoming a popular place to visit.  I stopped counting prayer flags at the df when they reached 800.  By the time the prayer flags were taken down at the dairy farm, there were probably thousands of flags flapping in the wind at “the point”.

Any way, getting back to the rtt run yesterday, – I began to think a great deal about this first prayer flag project at the end of the rtt.  And, I had a pocket full of prayer flags to hang out there.  Twenty minutes after I started my run I was at “the shrine” hanging prayer flags and checking out the new ones and old ones.  I was surprised to find prayer flags there from 2009!  The prayer flags at the df did not last as long as they did at the rtt.  The reason for that is perhaps because the prayer flags at the df were exposed harshly to the elements contrast to the prayer flags at the end of the rails to trails where they are protected well from the elements by a thick canopy of live oaks.

I hung this prayer flag for the Tyson family that lost everything in a fire this past November 14 2011

I hung the prayer flags and started my run back to start.  As I was running back I came across two running buddies of mine from back in the day when I used to religiously run the rtt.  The two runners, Nelson Amos and Brian Welch, are amazing strong runners.  A lot of the reason why I became such a disciplined and strong runner back then was because of these two guys.  We used to run together a few times a week, always challenging each other to go a little further and a little faster.  Nelson is a 5 time veteran of the Boston Marathon.  Brian, is the strongest, most dedicated and disciplined runner I know.  Brian finished the RnR Savannah Marathon at a respectable 3:16.

bird house someone placed at "the shrine"

So, it was really cool to come across these two running buddies while running the rails to trails yesterday.  And, it was nice to reminisce about the original prayer flag project at the end of the rtt.  So many memories came flooding to me as I hung the prayer flags yesterday and read some of the new ones and, saw the old ones dating back to July 23 2009.  As I walked around the cluster of live oaks that look after the prayer flags I felt passionate about reviving the prayer flag project there again.

I realized then that when God puts something on your heart to do nothing can stop that from being accomplished.  The prayer flags served a purpose at the dairy farm for almost two years but, it is at the end of the rails to trails where it will continue to touch lives by giving people hope and have a place where they can release their earnest pleas to God through something as beautiful as a prayer flag.

the prayer flag project at the end of the rails to trails is looking a bit run down, eh? I'll fix that before too long.

Wildlife inventory:

• 6 crows
• 1 grumpy old fisherman
• 1 seagull
• 1 pelican

I wish I could say that I’m going to run today but the chances of that happening are pretty much nil because my parents are coming over for lunch this afternoon and then, I’m meeting a friend for coffee.  That’s the holiday season for me, – always something going on other than running and blogging.

Please remember that next Saturday is the Reindeer 8k on Hutchinson Island.  The proceeds go to support sexual assault victims, their families and friends and to provide prevention education for all ages.  Also, please consider sponsoring me for this race.  The money I collect will go to the Tyson family that lost everything due to a fire on 11/14/2011.

entering the shrine at the end of the rails to trails

• run log
• mapped run
• total miles on blue bikilas: 107.16
• total days until the reindeer 8k: 6 days

Well, thanks for taking the time to read through my novel.

I pray you have a wonderful day and week.

All the very best to you and yours.

Happy Holidays!

peace,

dh

12/11/2011

After finishing this blog I remembered this version of “The Scientist” by Willie Nelson and it seems perfect for the title of today’s running blog “Back to the Start”…going back to the original prayer flag project at the rails to trails.
I love what Willie has done with this Coldplay song and I love Chipotle too!

click for larger display

The prayer flag project at the dairy farm is gone.  Several dozen people have asked me what happened and the answer I’m giving everyone is the same, – I don’t know.  It was there a few days ago but it is there no longer.  It’s as if someone purposely erased it’s existence from the dairy farm.

If you’re familiar with Photoshop then this analogy may make sense to you…

It’s as if someone took a picture of the prayer flag project at the dairy farm, brought the picture into Photoshop and then meticulously took the time to erase every trace of prayer flags from that picture.  Even the ropes that the prayer flags hung from are gone.  Some of the rope was very difficult to string out and yet whoever was responsible for this managed to get to it all.  The “erased in Photoshop” analogy is very accurate in the sense that the trash that was lying about the ground of the trail to the prayer flags has gone untouched.  A small American flag that was hanging on a tree where numerous prayer flags intersected was left untouched.  The small live oak tree where the prayer flags began from had several Catholic memorabilia tacked to it along with a necklace and a fake rose – these items remain on that tree but the prayer flags are all gone.

So, the only thing I can deduce from this is that the prayer flags were targeted specifically and removed purposely.  If the purpose was  was to clean up the place then all of the trash and other memorabilia would of been removed as well.  I know, I know…The question “why?” begs an answer.  I don’t know why.  Someone, though, felt it was necessary to remove every hint that prayer flags were once there.

You can imagine my shock and extreme sadness when I suddenly walked upon a place that I had become so accustomed to seeing filled with prayer flags now completely vacant of prayer flags.  That narrow strip of land where all of the prayer flags hung now looks so naked, empty.

The prayer flags hanging at the dairy farm became a place to hang your hopes, dreams…your heart -on a flag and let it blow in the wind.  It was also a place to say goodbye to loved ones, admired ones, great ones.  The land where the prayer flags blew with the wind became a reverent place.  As you walked among the thousands of prayer flags you couldn’t help but feel peace, love, hope, anguish and reverence.  I would walk out among the prayer flags at the dairy farm just about every day and if I felt mad or sad when I arrived there you could pretty much bet that when I left I was at peace and filled with hope again.

When this project was started I could never have imagined the amazing impact it would have on so many.  People from different states contacted me about the prayer flag project requesting blank prayer flags to hang there.  People came to Savannah to see the prayer flags at the dairy farm.  A lady from Pakistan expressed her sadness at the news that the prayer flags were removed.  I had set up a facebook page called the Prayer Flag Project and Mrs. Taimur who lives in Pakistan would go to this page daily to see what new prayer flag pictures were posted.  I encourage you to go to the Prayer Flag Project Facebook page and peruse the pictures of the prayer flags.  There were many very heartfelt prayers being lifted.

I would come across people at the dairy farm and they would ask if I knew where the prayer flags were or if I had seen them.  The prayer flag project at the dairy farm became something bigger than I ever would have imagined.  It became much larger than the idea that suddenly popped into my head as I ran one day.  The prayer flag project was no longer something that I started but something that God breathed into existence and it took on a life of it’s own.  It became quite a beautiful thing.  It touched so many, so deeply.

There were prayers that hung there in different languages and pretty much covered every well-known religion, Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism and other religious views I’m ignorant of.

I do not know why someone felt such strong conviction to remove the prayer flags from the dyke at the far end of the dairy farm.  They are gone now, though, but the hope and beauty they inspired in so many is not gone and cannot be taken away.

We may no longer have a physical place where we can pin our hopes and dreams and sad invocations on a rope and let it fly away in the wind but we have it in our hearts and, with each other.  So many of us have become friends because of the prayer flag project at the dairy farm.  So many paths have been crossed in the most positive and beautiful way because of the prayer flags at the dairy farm.  The flags can be taken away but those human connections cannot be taken away.

The prayer flag project made us realize that although we may be different in so many ways our humanity is constant.  This prayer flag project reminded us that we all need hope, we all need comfort and, we all have dreams.

Through-out the world so many people are fighting for things they believe in and, are even dying for what they believe.  If you had read some of the prayer flags that were hanging at the prayer flag project at the dairy farm you would have seen that right here in Savannah, Georgia those people through-out the world had allies that were praying and interceding on their behalf!

It’s okay to be sad about the removal of the prayer flags at the dairy farm but don’t get angry.  To get angry is to counteract everything that the prayer flag project stood for.  For awhile we had a place where we could pin our hopes, our anguish and dreams in a physical location and let them blow out to the wind.  That was a very wonderful special thing.  That place no longer carries our cries out to God in a prayer flag but that’s okay because God has already heard every cry and every prayer that was written on every flag that flew there.   The prayer flags have accomplished their purpose.  Be happy and content in that reality!

Remember what the prayer flag project accomplished…it brought us closer to God.  It brought healing and hope.  It also brought the world closer to us.  Please continue paying it forward.

Please continue to pray and hope and intercede for each other, world wide.

The prayer flag project is gone but that’s okay.  Things come and go, – that’s just the natural cycle of things.  The book of Ecclesiastes in the Bible has a wonderful way of covering how things come and go…

There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:

a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

All the very best to you and yours.

In Christ,

dh

peace…

A little more than a month ago I posted some pictures on this site about a truck that had gotten stuck on the levy in the dairy farm that leads to the prayer flag project.  What this particular individual was thinking when he foolishly decided to drive to the prayer flags in his bigass s10 Chevy truck is beyond my comprehension.  For whatever reason, though, he decided to drive on this very narrow strip of land and of course, he got his truck stuck in the mud!  I think anyone with any kind of common sense would have known not to be so estupido and drive a car back there, let alone a large pickup truck!

Well, what’s done is done and the truck remained stuck in the muddy marsh for over a month.  A couple of futile attempts were made to un-”stuck” the truck but resulted in getting a digger and, a tractor stuck out there as well!  You cannot make up this stuff!  I guess it’s like Forrest Gump’s mother would say, “stupid is as stupid does”, eh?

Any way, finally, the truck was removed but the scars that were left behind are just heart-breaking.  I walked out there yesterday with Mr. Gypsy and I felt like someone grabbed my heart and squeezed it very tight.  I tried to let the surge of anger I felt roll off my back but it was a difficult task.

I made it to the prayer flags in such an agitated state.  Fortunately, the slice of land where the prayer flags are is sacred ground and I could feel my heart getting comforted.  I prayed and felt a lot of weight slide off of me.  I hung the 9/11 prayer flags up and sadly walked away from this once beautiful narrow sliver of land that’s pressed tightly on both sides by the daily incoming tides.

I know that the land will quickly heal the infliction caused by the careless, self-centered act of the person that owns that truck.  Still, though, I fight my anger.

If the land can be so forgiving so should I.  One year from now, God willing, I hope to walk back there and see the tall grasses encroaching tightly on me as I make my way to the prayer flags.  I hope that all memory of this one foolish act by man will be erased forever.

I’m not going to hold onto any anger toward the person that got his truck stuck back there by the prayer flags.  That would be the wrong thing to do and would defeat everything that the prayer flag project stands for.

I’m thinking that life has been very unpleasant and difficult for the man that owns the truck that got stuck at the dairy farm.  I bet that this mistake cost him a good bit of time and money to resolve.  I truly hope, though, that he learned his lesson.  And hopefully, there will not be a next time.  And, I hope he learns to respect nature a little more.  I hope too, that this man will go back out there again…on foot and enjoy the beauty, peace and comfort that the dairy farm and the prayer flags instill on so many that venture out there.  I hope that the dairy farm will bring healing and restoration to his heart as well.

Thank you for stopping by.

All the very best to you and yours.

peace,

dh

09/12/2011

The Whitemarsh Trail from yesterday's 3.9 mile run

Last night I didn’t have the energy to blog about my workout in the gym and the 3.9 mile run afterward.  Today, I did a 3.1 mile run at the dairy farm and around the neighborhood.  I would have liked to run more today but my left calf began cramping big time shortly after I started running.

After about two miles I knew this was not going to be a good run day for me but, despite the cramping left calf I did enjoy being outside running.

so true

I ran out to the prayer flags and hung a few flags and noticed that the darn silverado truck was still stuck back there near the prayer flags.  Why doesn’t someone get that truck out of there?  If that was my truck I would try to figure how to get it out of there quickly.  What am I saying?  If that was my truck it would never have gotten stuck back there because I would not have been foolish enough to have driven it back there!  It’s ridiculous!  Not only did this person tear up a beautiful trail with that nasty old truck but it’s just left there, abandoned!  I have a feeling that it’s going to become a permanent fixture out there.  The place will be called the prayer flag project and the stuck truck.  Argh!  I do not like that.  That area is such a special place.  Driving the truck back there is like blasphemy.  That strip of land is sacred ground.  Hundreds of peoples prayers hang on prayer flags out there waiting to be answered.  It’s a place of hope and restoration and now it’s been polluted with this truck.  Yes, it bothers me.

the stuck truck

Wildlife inventory:

• 6 dogs
• 2 cats
• 1 million fiddler crabs
• 1 king fisher
• 2 great egrets
• 1 falcon
• 6 dragon flies

the stuck truck, again

Well, aside from running the dairy farm trails I ran my neighborhood.  On Altman Circle I was chased down by three ferocious dogs.  I took pictures of them.  I thought they were going to kill me and steal my vff’s.  Thankfully, they had mercy on me and let me live to see another day.

the ferocious dogs that attacked me

So, the run started in front of my house and followed Wessels to Altman to Bonaventure.  I took Bonaventure to Kansas Ave and then hooked up with Larkin which took me into the dairy farm.  I did my dairy farm thing and exited through my secret passage way over on Bonaventure Road.  I followed Bonaventure to some other street but not before yanking a few weeds with my right blue bikila in a grassy area.  I reconnected with Tennessee over by the dairy farm and ran home with an aching left cramped calf.

the leader of the pack

• mapped run
• run log
• total miles on blue bikilas: 66.98

a beautiful sunset at the dairy farm

Yesterday’s run was a little longer at 3.9 miles.  I tore it up in the gym yesterday and then ran the 3.9 miles.  That was a workout.  Had I not worked out so hard yesterday I may have run more but I felt very tired as I wrapped up the run.  I slept hard last night.

Monday's workout

This morning, I woke very sore from yesterday’s workout.  When I started my run today I was very sore.  Perhaps, I should not have run today.  I don’t know.  My left calf feels fine now but my legs, butt, chest and biceps are still very sore.

Tomorrow is another gym day and short run.  I want to get a 6 to 7 miler in this week.  And, I want to get a 12 miler in this weekend.

picking weeds with my vff's

That’s about it.

Many thanks for stopping by.

All the very best to you and yours.

peace,

dh

08/16/2011

I've wanted to take this picture for a while. And, here it is.

red bikilas and prayer flags

This evening I ran 3.61 miles.  The day before yesterday I ran 2.5 miles.  And, I did these runs in my old red bikilas that I said I would never ever run in again.  Does that make me a liar or a politician?  I don’t know.

It is still so stinking hot outside.  At the end of my run the temperature was 87 degrees with humidity at 71% and, the Weather channel says that it felt like it’s 98 degrees.  I’m still sweating.  I’m literally having to stop typing every other sentence and wipe sweat from my face.  I’m also drinking a powerade zero.  The powerade zero is about the only “sports drink” that my stomach can tolerate during and after a run.  Gatorade makes me want to barf.

Today’s run was through my neighborhood and through the dairy farm.  I stopped a few minutes at the prayer flag project and hung a few prayer flags.  If any of you want some blank prayer flags let me know.  If you want a prayer on a flag and then have it hung at the dairy farm prayer flag project, just shoot me an email with the prayer and I’ll write it on a prayer flag and hang it out there for you.  If you want me to photograph the flag with your prayer I’ll do so and then email you that picture.  I’m serious.  My email address is: dlh14255@gmail.com

After hanging the prayer flags I ran out of the dairy farm and down through a couple of streets that led me to Bonaventure Road.  I followed Bonaventure road to Altman.  I took Altman to and around the Wessels round-about and then made my way back home.

Wildlife inventory:

• 3 dragon flies
• 7 doves
• 1 seagull
• 4 dogs
• 2 cats
• 5 mocking birds
• about 100 ants

so true

Tomorrow I’ll do a 10 to 12 mile run.

I tore it up at the gym this week and, I paid the price for that the last few days.  I’ve been so sore but dang have I needed to work out that hard.  By the time the rock n roll savannah marathon comes around I’ll be one lean mean running machine.  I gotta get in shape.  The zombie apocalypse is just around the corner and if you get caught with your pants down when the zombies attack you’re going to be missing some vital pieces of your anatomy, not to mention that you’ll become a zombie just like the rest.  You don’t want that.  And, we all know that when the zombie apocalypse hits the fatties will be the first to go because they cannot move so fast.  So, remember please, work hard on your cardio, take it easy on the sugar and soda pops and eat lots of greens and very lean meats – best to eat chicken, in my view.  Try to keep it organic.  And, you may not want to eat too much fish because of the mercury.  Mercury can do some weird things to living critters.

i really like runtastic app for the iphone

• mapped run
• running log
• total miles on red bikilas: 503.66 miles

Be strong, stay faithful and buy your weapon of choice for stopping zombies.

Many thanks for stopping by.

All the very best to you and yours.

peace,

dh

07/29/2011

have a great weekend!

the dairy farm as i ran it & a storm encroached.

Thursday went by way too fast.  I had hoped for a 12 mile run but instead had a very short 3.5 mile run.  I had taken the day off from work to get a lot of things taken care of for my visiting family.  You see, my brother, Sam, is getting married this weekend and there’s a lot of family coming in to town.  So, not much of a run today.  On Friday, though, I have already cleared it with all of my kin that are in town that I will be cutting out for a couple of hours to get at least a 12 mile run in.  It will happen come rain or snow!

Thursday was another miserably hot day.  We’ve had 50-something days straight with temperatures reaching over 90.  Add the humidity and the horrible mosquito infestation we have and it’s just not much fun to run in Savannah as of late.  I know that I’ve said in the past that I like running in the heat but I have finally reached my threshold with heat.  I’m tired of it.  And, this mosquito problem is just outrageous.  Normally, running will keep the mosquitoes away but not these.  This season’s pesky mosquitoes will chase you down & suck you dry!  The dairy farm, the rails to trails and my backyard are thick with buzzing mosquitoes.

By the time I started my run a storm was brewing.  I wanted it to remain hot and muggy (for the training) but in the back of mind I had hoped for a torrential downpour because we need the rain and, I wanted the rain to cool me down.    As I was wrapping up the run a car pulled up slowly by me and the sweet young doctor Jenny said, “you better hurry!”  Rain threatened to come down the entire run but never came.

the rain never came but it threatened to the whole time.

At the end of  the run the temperature was 86 degrees and the clouds were thick and dark.  I took a picture (above) at the dairy farm that gives you a good idea how threatening the weather looked.

Wildlife inventory:

• 6 mocking birds
• 9 fiddler crabs
• 2 dragon flies
• 4 dogs
• 2 cats
• 2 great egrets
• 1 crow
• 4 doves
• 1 wasp

one of the well known entrances to the dairy farm

I started the run out my front door and took a left on Wessels.  I then took Altman around a ways and got back on Wessels, crossed Bonaventure and hit 37th to Herbet.  I then took Herbet to Kansas and then entered the dairy farm from a side entrance.  I followed an old jeep trail in the dairy farm that took me to a sandy clearing in the marsh.  At the far corner of the clearing is a narrow trail that takes you to the prayer flags.  As I ran the trail I had to be careful not to step on any fiddler crabs that darted back and forth from nickel sized hole to hole.

As you work your way up the trail tall grass that looks like corn encroaches heavily on you from either side of the trail’s edges.  A few feet to either the right or left are creeks that depending on the tides will have water either far away from the trail or lapping at your ankles.  The young, pretty doctor Jenny has told me that she has seen a dolphin and an alligator in these creeks as she’s hiked this trail to the prayer flags.  Yeah, no lie!  This is dangerous terrain.  One false move can have you at the mercy of an alligator or an ill-tempered dolphin.  Not a nice way to go, I would think.

this is the secret passage to the dairy farm but you will never find it.

I ran to the prayer flags and hung a few more before heading back out.  Instead of exiting the dairy farm from the two well-known entrances I decided to exit it from my secret passage.  Nobody knows about this secret passage.  It’s a total secret that I only know.  I will tell you, though, that it’s near the canal and Bonaventure road and the Bonaventure cemetery.  Don’t try to look for it fore you shall never find it.  The passage only opens up to me because I have been deemed worthy by the lady of the dairy farm.  Who is this “lady of the dairy farm?”  Follow the narrow, broken path and ye shall be confronted along the way by lady of the dairy farm.  She will ask you three questions.  If you get them right she will show you the secret passage.  Get them wrong and she will turn you into a tree of despair.  I’ve seen it happen.  Not a pretty picture but the tree you get turned into can be pretty cool looking.  Actually, the tree pictured at the very top of this blog was once a man that answered all three questions wrong.  Now, he’s a tree that points the way to the prayer flags for eternity…or until it gets chopped down to make way for a new starbucks.

So, I took the secret passage out of the dairy farm and ran up Bonaventure Road to Georgia ave and then to my street and home.  It was a short muggy run but good.  I then showered and went hung out with my family for most of the evening.

the prayer flags blowing in the winds of an approaching storm

• mapped run
• run log
• total days til the CrematorUltra 50: 8 days

I just remembered that I had said on Wednesday that I would give details on the CrematorUltra 50 on this blog.  Oops! :/ I meant, Friday evening’s blog.  Ok?  Cool.  Thanks.

Thank you so very much for stopping by.

All the very best to you and yours.

peace,

dh

07/15/2011

Christmas cheer in June

I ran 8.48 miles Friday evening and, still had energy to  watch the Green Lantern.  I enjoyed both immensely.  The run was around Thunderbolt and my neighborhood and, I watched the movie at Victory 9 theatre.

A guy had a seizure during the first 15 minutes of the movie, though.  That was rough.  My brother, David, actually helped the guy when he stopped breathing by giving him chest compressions and sticking the dude’s wallet in his mouth when he began biting his tongue.  The paramedics arrived and took the guy away.  The theatre manager then restarted the movie.  It was amazing.  My brother proved himself a hero.  I’m very proud of him

Back to the run, though…

I was a little sore on Friday from my bike ride from the day before.  I wore my compression calf sleeves while at work but removed them before the run.  The calf sleeves really do help in recovery.  I’m a firm believer in these things.

one of the prayer flags at the dairy farm that I hung

My Nathan Elite 2c plus belt pack came in the mail on Friday, just in time for the run.  I washed the two 22 ounce bottles that came with it and went for my run.  The pack has three convenient pockets which I totally utilized.  The pocket between the water bottles contained my house key and $6.00 inside a ziplock bag.  My right side pocket contained about a dozen prayer flags that needed to be hung at the dairy farm prayer flag project.  The left pocket contained my camera and one electrolyte cap.

nathan pack pocket that contained the prayer flags

Speaking of electrolyte caps, – I took one before the run and the second one 32 minutes into the run.  That worked out well.

The Nathan pack was at first a little quarky.  It felt big on my waist and the water bottles jumped up and down while I ran.  I didn’t enjoy that sensation.  After adjusting the belt, though, everything fell into a perfect harmony and I ran without any annoyance.

Today, Saturday, I’ll test out the Nathan pack on a much longer run.  Carrying 4 extra ounces of water makes a huge difference for sure.  Not only did the Nathan pack feel a bit heavier than my older one but having that extra water quenched my thirst when I began to feel a little nauseated toward the end of the run.  I downed completely the bottle on the left and still had a little water to spare (on the right bottle) by the time I ran up to my front door.  The nausea disappeared almost immediately after downing that one bottle.  It was another hot day in Savannah.

another prayer flag i hung at the dairy farm. this one is for my sister-in-law's mother.

On Friday I also had the opportunity to try out mophie juice pack plus battery extender on my iphone 4 during a run medium length run.  I definitely felt the heavier weight of the juice pack when I strapped it to my wristband in the waterproof case from dry case.  Still, though, the heavier weight didn’t bother me.  It just meant that my arms hung a little lower below my waist during this run than usual but, didn’t feel uncomfortable.  I’m a firm believer in adjusting and adapting.  And, that’s what I did and everything turned out rosy.

Saturday’s long run, though, will be the big test for both the Nathan Elite 2v plus pack and the heavier iphone with mophie juice pack plus.  I’ll report on that some time after today’s 20+ mile run.

a great blue heron by the wilmington river

Wildlife Inventory:

• 2 rabbits
• 1 crab
• 1 red-winged black bird
• 2 grackles
• 3 mocking birds
• 1 great blue heron
• 1 snowy egret
• 6 doves
• 9 dogs
• 1 cat

one of the rabbits i saw on isle of armstrong

I started the run from the front of my house and ran up Wessels, crossed Bonaventure Road and turned left on 37th.  Followed 37th passing up a huge candy cane and turned left on Herbed and then to Bonaventure Road.  I followed Bonaventure Road past Bonaventure cemetery as well as a pack of four freely roaming dogs, 3 of which were pitbulls.  That was kind of scary but I didn’t give in to fear, just like the green lantern.

2 of the four dogs i saw on bonaventure road during my run

I followed Bonaventure to River Street to Victory which then became highway 80 as I crossed the Thunderbolt bridge with the Wilmington River far below.  Ran through Isle of Armstrong and saw two rabbits there.  I went back over the bridge and hopped on Bonaventure again.  Warily, I ran past the area where the roaming pitbulls were and fortunately, they were gone.  I darted into the dairy farm and ran to the prayer flags.  After hanging the prayer flags I headed toward home but before I exited the dairy farm I saw the very beautiful Jenny B, the future doctor.  I just find her so pretty but please don’t tell her I said that.

• running log
• mapped run
• total miles on red bikilas: 476.35
• total days until the CrematorUltra 50: 35 days

a tender moment shared by the two lead actors in the green lantern

I made it home feeling great.  I quickly showered, ate a turkey and spinach sandwich, guzzled down a glass of chocolate soy milk and a quarter gallon of orange juice before heading out to meet my brother and some friends to watch the green lantern.

It was a great day.  Life is good.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this blog.

I wish you and yours the very best.

peace,

dh

06/18/2011

Saturday

prayer flags at the dairy farm

You too will find your strength.
We who must live in this time
cannot imagine how strong you will become–
how strange, how surprising,
yet familiar as yesterday

We will sense you
like a fragrance from a nearby garden
and watch you move through our days
like a shaft of sunlight in a sickroom.

We will not be herded into churches,
for you are not made by the crowd,
you who meet us in our solitude.

We are cradled close in your hands–
and lavishly flung forth.

Rilke
From Book of Hours
Love Poems to God

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rilke, my favorite poet, my favorite writer. I draw so much inspiration from his writings. His books are always nearby, just like my Bible. Good stuff.

Thanks for stopping by.

All the very best to you and yours.

peace,

dh

06/11/2011

Saturday, 11:31am

My Red Bikilas are now in the 400 mile club!

This evening, I broke the 400 mile mark with my vff bikilas. Yep. I’m at 402.96 miles on these red, smelly, falling apart bikilas. How much more can they take? Huh. That’s the hundred dollar question.

The fabric in between the toes has torn on almost every toe on both bikilas.  The soles are severely worn down.  In the center ball of the foot of both bikilas the rubber soles have gotten so thin that I expect a tear any day now.  I don’t think these bikilas have too much left in them but I’m going to push them a bit more.  When I can see the bottoms of my feet while wearing the red bikilas I will then know that the time has come to retire them.

After retiring them I may actually send these red bikilas to Vibram so that they may bronze them and place them in their hall of fame…hall of stank.   In the end I just may bury them at the dairy farm and everyone can go there and pay their respects.  I love those bikilas.  The thought of retiring them brings a tear drop to my eye.  Or is that just sweat?  I don’t know.  At least, I have my blue bikilas standing in the background waiting to get a chance to jump into the game.  The fourth quarter  is approaching.  So, they may get their chance before too long!

left red bikila

Wildlife inventory:

• 6 turkey ducks: 1 was a baby
• 1 red cardinal: female
• 7 dogs
• 4 crows
• 1 blue jay

right red bikila

Today, after work I went to the Island’s Y and did a really good long stretch, worked my abs out hard, did a hundred pushups, scissor kicks, kickbacks, french curls and then went for my run.  Oh, I dropped off 20 blank prayer flags at Island’s ymca front desk for the ACS DetermiNation Savannah group.  The young lady organizing the Savannah chapter asked for the 20 flags.  When I get them back I’m going to hang them at the prayer flag project at the dairy farm, photograph the flags waving in the wind and email them to this young lady.  It’s really cool that DetermiNation is doing this and, what a very worthy cause!

stretching my bikila

I ran the Island’s Y trail and some of the outlying areas around it.  The total distance was 4.45 miles with a temperature of 85 degrees.  It’s getting warm out there!

right heel

I felt strong during the run but I didn’t push it.  I saw no reason to.  I’m now totally in summer training mode.  That means that I don’t focus on speed.  I focus on mileage.  I have one month to expand my threshold and be prepared for the CrematorUltra 50.  July 10th, I begin my taper.

• running log
• mapped run
• red bikilas total mileage: 402.96

Well, I’m going back to watching “Fangs“.  It’s an incredibly intense, thought-provoking movie about genetically modified killer bats.  The chicks are hot too.  And, it’s a nice family movie.

Thanks for stopping by.

All the very best to you and yours.

peace,

dh

05/31/2011

Tuesday, 10:15pm

PS: Would you like to see a turtle video I took this evening on my way home after my run?  Ok, here it is…

This morning, instead of sleeping in I roused myself, ate a yogurt, dressed up for my Memorial Day run and lightly jogged to the dairy farm with a handful of prayer flags (23 of them) for soldiers that have fallen in battle so that we may have freedom and peace in America.

I arrived at the dairy farm at 7:58am and waited until 8:05 in case someone was to join me for today’s run.  No one showed but a man walking his dogs.  So, at 8:05am, I started my run to commemorate the Georgia soldiers that have died serving our country in Iraq and Afghanistan.  It was an incredibly beautiful morning with birds in abundance chirping and flying about.  Squirrels were also out in abundance.  I counted 13 squirrels during the run.  It seemed ironic to be such a beautiful and perfect Memorial Day.

the dairy farm prayer flag project

I left the dairy farm and headed up Larkin to Maryland.  Maryland took me to Bonaventure Road.  I took a left, heading toward Bonaventure and Greenwich cemeteries.  I entered Greenwich cemetery first.  I had no music on.  As I ran through the cemeteries my eyes scanned the numerous tomb stones and the American flags that were scattered about here and there.  There was so much activity going on in the cemeteries but it was not human, – it was myriad species of birds, squirrels, insects.  The cemeteries were so lively with these critters.  The tombstones, silent testaments of human souls, lives come to an end slowly or abruptly.  Both young and old are buried in these cemeteries with histories dating back to the early 1800′s.

Greenwich cemetery

As I ran the cemeteries I thought of those 23 American lives that had ended in Iraq and Afghanistan.  I now carried with me prayer flags for each of those lives.  Normally, I am happy when I run but this morning as I ran on such a beautiful day I was sad.  Throughout the run I purposely stayed focused on what this run was about.  This run was about 23 soldiers, some way too young to be in this mix, that had died fighting in wars half-way across the world.  These twenty-two men and one woman died fighting for our country.  They died fighting for a belief they held dear, that the United States of America is a good country, imperfect as she may be, she is still a good country.  And, these soldiers answered their call of duty and paid with their lives that America may continue to improve and, to be free and to be good.

Forest Lawn cemetery

As I exited the cemeteries and headed back to the dairy farm my heart felt empty and broken.

I entered the dairy farm and ran to where the prayer flags are at.  The run to the prayer flags was pleasant.  As always, coming upon the prayer flags is moving.

As I hung each prayer flag I read them with terrible sadness in my heart.

1. PFC Austin G. Staggs; born 01/11/1991, died 11/29/2010
2. Staff Sgt. Cynthia R. Taylor; born 1972, died 04/16/2011
3. Spc. Gary L. Nelson; born 01/23/1991, died 04/05/2011
4. Maj. Wesley J. Hinkley; born 02/19/1975, died 04/04/2011
5. First Lt. Scott Fleming; born 04/03/1986, died 09/17/2010
6. Lance Cpl. Christopher Rodgers; born 05/04/1990, died 09/01/2010
7. Lance Cpl. William Richards; born 01/31/1990, died 06/26/2010
8. Lance Cpl/ Joseph R. Giese; born 09/17/1986, died 01/07/2011
9. Lance Cpl. Raymon Johnson; born 08/29/1988, died 10/13/2010
10. Cpl. Stephen Sockalosky; born 02/12/1989, died 10/06/2010
11. Sgt. Jonathan Peney; born 07/01/1987, died 06/01/2010
12. Sgt.  David Holmes; born 1976, died 06/26/2010
13. Sgt.  Johnny Lumpkin; born 11/30/1971, died 07/02/2010
14. Chief Petty Officer Patrick L Wade; born 1969, died 07/17/2007
15. Staff Sgt. Sheldon Tate; born 09/18/1982, died 07/13/2010
16. Pfc. Jacob Dennis; born 07/28/1987, died 07/03/2010
17. Sgt. 1st Class Edgar Roberts; born 01/16/1971, died 08/17/2010
18. Spc. Shannon Chihuahua; born 05/10/1985, died 11/11/2010
19. Spc. Chad Coleman; born 03/15/1990, died 08/27/2010
20. Sr. Airman Michael Buras; born 07/28/1987, died 09/21/2010
21. Pvt. Jeremy P. Faulkner; born 05/05/1987, died 03/29/2011
22. Sgt. Brandon S. Hocking; born 04/03/1985, died 03/21/2011
23. Senior Chief Petty Officer David McLendon; born 11/29/1979, died 09/21/2010

Bonaventure cemetery

Today’s run was very special to me.  Today’s run was to honor those that fell so that I may continue to live freely and safely in America.  I never knew any of these brave soldiers yet they have touched my heart and my life in the most profound way.

When I gripe about hurting calves and ill-timed traffic lights on Abercorn there are thousands of American soldiers fighting in wars never knowing whether they will die of old age on American soil or brutally and abruptly in hostile lands.  And, whether we want to admit it or not,  they are fighting for our rights to be free and to be heard.  Most of the soldiers listed above are no older than most of the students that to go to SCAD, where I work.

Each prayer flag I hung today in honor of fallen heroes broke my heart as it should have.  We must remember them.

I saw this magnolia tree flower in Greenwich cemetery

Wildlife Inventory:

• 13 squirrels
• 1 great egret
• 1 snowy egret
• 4 woodpeckers
• 2 butterflies: 1 orange-winged, 1 black-winged
• 16 doves
• 7 grackles
• 2 blue jays
• 1 moth
• 1 pelican
• 1 red-tailed hawk
• 1 vulture
• 2 carolina wrens
• 1 red cardinal
• 2 fiddler crabs
• 2 green herons
• 1 ant
• 10 dogs
• 8 mocking birds
• 1 cat

Today’s run turned out to be 8.19 miles.

• running log
• mapped run
• total miles on red bikilas: 398.51

Many thanks for stopping by.

All the very best to you and yours.

To our soldiers, thank you for what you do.

peace,

dh

05/30/2011

Monday, 5:34pm