The Hero’s Journey a run to the forest

I wanted to share a story which explores the archetypal hero’s journey in some way. I thought about writing an epic tale of a snail trying to get across the garden but it was a tad slow… then I realised it was right in front of me. My daily run to the forest. Brace yourselves for call to adventure, crossing the threshold and lessons learned all in a half hour jog.

I sat in my apartment telling myself I should go for a run. Motivation is tougher than ever right now. There was an overwhelming temptation to have a nap or devour a loaf of bread and a block of cheese instead. Pacing around the apartment I noticed the trees outside swaying heavily in the wind. ‘Perfect! It’s too windy, I can’t run in that!’ Aware I was looking for excuses I pushed on to the bedroom to find my running gear. For some reason my entire sock drawer was full of single pairs of lonely partnerless socks. ‘Perfect! I’ve got no socks. I can’t run without matching socks,’ again it was a lame excuse so I found a sock and hit the pavement.

Half way across a desolate carpark I hit a blistering cold head wind. Pushing my legs I began to pick up pace. ‘I can do this,’ I thought until I hit an ugly main road and got slammed with fumes from buses and cars flying by. If I could just make it to the next stage, the entry to the forest, I would be doing ok. I trudged along the road until I hit…