Continually Ascending

One of the great joys of running and racing is the feeling, and occasional proof through personal records, that I am continually improving, that I am better now than I was. Fortunately for me, my faith in God delivers similar comfort that I am continually understanding Him better. Similarly engineering also builds on itself as we solve increasingly complex problems and push the products to be more capable while minimizing their impact. Yet long distance running with it's clear numbers delivers proof that words have trouble quantifying. 

That progression over the long term and the short term is part of the draw. To be a little better now than before feels very rewarding. It's like climbing a mountain with many summits. There is always something more to strive to, yet there are many peaks that signal success. To be clear, a mountain has one summit, and it is the top. There are few activities you can compare the past to the present yet running with its clear numbers says unambiguously, "this is where you are today, and that is where you were yesterday."