Now I want to start by saying, I am not running a marathon. I truly hope the early-30's-hunt-for-purpose-hell-I'll-run-a-marathon! phenomenon never ever gets my new address. I do not want to do it. I don't want blood blisters or chafing, no sir. Keep it.
Although I do not want to personally partake in the blood and sweat of it all, I can understand the appeal. It's people throwing their body into a wall of pain for a plethora of reasons. They love to run, that high people speak of, an act of selflessness to raise money for others, or hey, life is feeling a bit directionless and putting one foot in front of the other is the best place to start.
I send a big pat on the head and kiss on the nose to all of those people. I'm sure it is incredibly fulfilling but the piece of it all that truly fills my cup is all that is taking place around them.
The supportive, heart-warming joy a marathon seems to stir up in friends, family and strangers alike. My TikTok is full of people chanting strangers names in what I can only assume are moments of sheer pain and exhaustion. I've seen videos of people giving out bunches and bunches of bananas, Gordon Ramsey high-fiving shocked passers-by as he urges them to keep going and people frantically looking up bib numbers to be able to identify people by name as they shuffle by, shocked as a group of strangers cheers their name.
This energy isn't just from behind the barriers though. It's struggling runners, throwing their arms around each other under buckling knees to drag each other across a finish line that nobody is making them cross because they understand the effort it has taken to get there. Friends and loved ones circling back to cross these lines together.
Nothing is making these people do these things, hell, Gordon Ramsey is, I'm sure, a very busy man! They are simply out there spreading some love around. People being nice for the hell of it is one of the purest things in the world.
Everything can often seem so dark and depressing, especially with the amount of unnecessary hate being tossed around by certain world leaders these days. It is easy to be negative, cynical and forlorn about the cards that are being dealt in front of you.
Doom scrolling can sometimes be all doom, super gloom but every now and then you get little morsels or joy. Love and motivation and silliness.
Unironically, I think one of the most beautiful move scenes of all time is the start of Love Actually. Marathon Tok belongs right there nestled under Hugh Grants words.
Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion’s starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don’t see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often, it’s not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it’s always there – fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends. When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know, none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge – they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I’ve got a sneaky feeling love, actually … is all around.
I hope I never ever leave!
