This essay was originally published May 20th,
2007 on episode 97 “Monitoring of the Heart”
Every once in a while, I’ll
be sitting in an office, or a waiting room, maybe even a restaurant, and I’ll
see someone who clearly has lost their << joie de vivre>>, Their joy for life.
You’ve seen them too, look
for them sometime: they’re the elderly person who engages in some repetitive
routine, like playing Bingo or just watching TV all day. They are that smoker working on his or her
second pack of the day, sitting outside a local convenient store staring at
cars and people and clouds as they blow by. They are that unhealthy person hand coated in
a dusty sheen of cheesy poofs while they “chew, chew chew” with a blank expression
at nothing and no one in particular.
When you talk with them, they
rarely have anything good to say. “Oh,
it’s so cold today” or “It’s never been this hot before”, or “Can you believe
the price of gas?”.
If you try to raise
some positive aspect of life to them, such as “Well, at least it’s not raining!”,
they will look at you with contempt.
These are not bad people,
they’re just people who feel that they’ve lost their purpose in life. Some of them may be suffering from a form of
depression.
Now, I’m not smart enough to
come up with a list of ways for such people to regain their joy for life, I
know for certain that financial organizations like the “Church of Scientology” would
tell you that depression can only be cured by removing the sufferer’s covering
of tiny disembodied souls of aliens dispersed by the Galactic Federation leader
Xenu.
But I’m not here to put down
anyone’s wacky beliefs, I’m sure there are plenty out there who think I’m wacky
for eating a little wafer and drinking a sip of wine every Sunday morning…live
and let live, and to each his own.
But I do know that depression
is a very real thing, caused by a genetic predisposition, a neurological or
medical condition, poor diet, alcohol, other drugs, lack of sleep, seasonal
affective disorder and a postpartum condition.
I also know that there are
many good and effective treatments for depression.
Since I’m a runner, I’m a believer in the
positive mood altering benefits of exercise.
Those who are depressed don’t necessarily need to become runners, but
even light exercise can produce higher levels of chemicals in the brain, including dopamine and serotonin. A lower level of these chemicals in the brain
have been found to lead to depression.
This
is well known science; proven facts that Scientology conveniently ignores.
When we talk about having a
noble purpose for our running, it might be helpful to think that for some,
running can be a wonderful purpose for life.
You’ve heard the expression: “we need to feel alive”, well…that only
applies to runners like you and I in contrast to our daily usual
existence.
To someone who is depressed,
or has lost their << joie de vie>>, their need to feel alive is
much more critical. They need to feel
useful, needed, accepted and loved.
There’s that word again: It
all comes down to love, doesn’t it?
When you strip away all the
outer layers of crap that we wear, and hide ourselves under…the grim venire,
the vacant uncaring expressions, the “I don’t care about anything”
attitude…deep inside, like in one of those Jawbreaker candies with the
multi-colored layers…there’s a human being who wants to be loved.
As someone who has found this
special joy of running, you have an opportunity to spread that joy, to invite
someone who might be depressed or have lost their joy for life to join us on
the road. More than this, you have a
responsibility to spread that joy…when you meet someone whom you’ve sensed may
be depressed, or feels unhappy, unwanted and maybe even unloved, you have a
duty to at least introduce them to the idea of exercise, and offer them the
idea of joining us on the road.
Life is short, but it should
be long enough…and everyone who is alive should FEEL alive, living their life
to the fullest…not necessarily pushing back the window curtains and proclaiming
their << joie de vie>> to the world, but at least feeling like they
belong, like they have purpose, like they are loved….because everyone (even the
elderly Bingo playing TV watcher, double pack smoker, cheesy poof paw chewing
sedentary Scientologist…and yes, even Yankees Fans) has an important place in
this world, and a purpose that may not be clear to them today.
I mean, Yankees fans must
have some purpose….right?
I’m Steve Runner, a die hard
Boston Red Sox Fan….reminding you, to run long and taper.
