Thumbs up to our Friend

Several years ago as our local "running group" gathered at the usual meeting spot, a "newbie" showed up. He had been told by the owner of the running shoe store that there was a group who met several days a week to run. Those of us in the "club" hadn't really thought of ourselves as a formal running group, but we were most decidedly a group of people who ran. So, we all introduced ourselves and off we went for a typical morning run around town.

Often times it has been noted that co-workers and friends don't really get to know each other, but I can't say that about the folks in our group. Once we exchanged greetings on that cold February morning several years ago, I felt like we all knew our "newbie" friend, as if he had been a long lost comrade. He has mid-western roots and then made his way East to NYU for graduate school. He and his wife found themselves living in Connecticut before moving here, and being from NE, this immediately endeared me to him.

Over the years, we have continued those morning runs, but now he has picked up the swimming and biking disciplines that the group routinely engages in as well. In fact, once he perfected the swimming and replaced his mountain bike for a more conventional road machine, he regularly leaves us either in his wake or in his dust.

As our friend celebrates the second anniversary of his milestone 5oth birthday, we all want to wish him Happy Birthday. Although our friendship started with a simple self introduction, it has grown faster than the county in which we live. The growth within "his" adopted city has been paramount, and now our county has been ranked as the healthiest in the state. Is this coincidental or just good fortune, who knows? It doesn't matter, because we all have grown and are healthier as a consequence of our bond of friendship. Happy Birthday and 2 thumbs up to "our" manager!