Choose Strong
For Tim.
"Snake!" called out someone in the front after a scream. Lying in the bright
yellow grass at the edge of the trail, the coiled light brown serpent must be
over four feet, the largest I had seen in the wild. Despite of the excitment
around, the creature stayed still with its rattle flat, unimpressed by a bunch
of weekend hikers, bored to death by the monotony of shelter-in-place.
After giving one pint of blood in mid Apr, I stopped 20-mile+ weekend trail
runs. I felt less energetic even in 7-mile weekday runs. Since one could donate
every two months, I guess that it must take about 60 days to recover. I therefore
quited fighting and turned to what I COULD do, taking Tim for a hike, e.g.
I am thankful that my 13-year-old has taken remote learning well. Every morning,
his online class starts at around 8:00am. Tim told me it was much less stressful
compared with the past, when we used to head out at around 7:00am to cross the
bridge to school. (We did two painful commutes every weekday for eight years.)
I am worried, however, about his lack of exercise. His daily kettlebell training
takes only 20 mins. Remote PE and BJJ classes and neighborhood walks and
bike-rides do not provide enough cardio, in my opinion. He is strong for his age
but heavy just as I was in middle school. He hates running and used to dread
climbing Mission Peak.
Maybe times had changed or it was just cabin fever. Regardless, I was glad that
when I suggested a hike, he said yes. So we have visited the summit every Sat
for the past four weeks. The goal is to make it a habit for him to go out and
stress his heart and legs regularly and I am glad to see we are getting there.
Once again, his trust touched me deeply: if I lead, he would follow.
7:00am was early for Tim but he dreaded even more the hot weather to come later
that day. As we headed east, I could feel his apprehension for the arduous task
ahead. The Xero shoes I started to put on him two years ago did not make his life
easier. I since allowed cushioned shoes in sports such as sprinting and basketball.
But when hiking, I insisted he wear the Xeros.
The Standford Ave trailhead was closed and the trail blocked, as a result, the
traffic at the Ohlone College side seemed quadrupled. We had to park far down the
road on Mission Blvd. The place had become even more of a zoo than before.
By the end of the first big climb, Tim had sweated a good amount but his mood
was up. That it was very hard to be depressed and running at the same time, I
remembered reading somewhere. Hiking felt the same and it was nice to have
conversations with him as he would check his phone less often.
His endurance seemed improving fast and today he even enjoyed a few legs of
downhill running. We saw wild turkeys and a large raven with a red-beak perching
above and staring at a roadkill while a group of hikers staring at the bird. All made
the trip worthwhile. The rattlesnake was the highlight, however, and a reminder,
first for him not to walk too close to the edge and then to get strong so that he
could carry me in case I got bitten.
