old winter's song....

We’re still a week away from the clocks going backwards… but already I find myself needing my bike lights at both ends of the day for my ride to and from the office, and I’ve started running my winter routes in the evenings because it’s now too dark to head out along the river or the canal. You’d imagine that this would be depressing, especially with marathon training starting to loom on the horizon, but it really isn’t. Maybe I’m weird, but I couldn’t wait to get home the other night to head out on a run. It was dark and cold when I set off, but I actually found myself wishing that it would start to rain. It did too, and it was great.

me, disguised as a banana at Oxford parkrun on Saturday

For some unknown reason, there’s a part of me that glories in this sort of discomfort. Winter is coming, but the change of the seasons is something to be enjoyed and not something to be complained about. Cycling to work in the mornings at the moment is a real treat. Sure, it’s darker and colder in the mornings, but the colours in the trees as they turn from green to yellows and fiery reds is sublime and fills me with joy. I think this might be my favourite time of the year, all the way up to Christmas. I like an open fire, a woolly jumper and a slow-cooked stew as much as the next person – maybe more – and I understand the attractions of staying indoors in the warm. Believe me, I do…..but to feel the rain on your face as you slog through the night is to feel truly alive. It’s nice enough to run in the sunshine with your shades on, but it’s just as nice to run wearing your beanie and wrapped up in loads of layers, right?

That can’t just be me?