Issue 16 - Marathons & Metamorphosis

Hello and welcome to my weekly email newsletter, Deep Life Reflections: Friday Five, where I share five things I’m enjoying, thinking about, and find interesting.

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Here’s this week’s Friday Five.

1. What I’m Reading

What I Talk About When I Talk About Running. By Haruki Murakami.

There are two passions I share with Haruki Murakami. Writing and running. And something else too, introspection. In this reflective and philosophical memoir, written in the lead-up to the 2005 New York Marathon, Murakami explores the connection between his love for long-distance running and his approach to life. He draws parallels between the discipline, endurance, and solitude required in running and the similar demands of his writing career.

Murakami vividly tells the story of his first marathon, an unofficial attempt to run the fabled 26.2 miles from Athens to the town of Marathon in the unforgiving heat of a Greek summer. It almost breaks him. But he continues. Despite a terrible thirst and a thundering highway of speeding trucks strewn with the unfortunate remains of 14 animals (11 cats and three dogs; he counted them), he drags his barely functioning body to the end. There an old man at a gas station snips off some flowers from a potted plant and presents him with a bouquet. He is glad he no longer has to run. But it’s temporary.

Running for Murakami serves more than a physical purpose—it shapes his thinking and lends structure to his days. He mediates on themes of aging, mortality, and the boundaries of physical potential, whether he’s running in Boston, Hawaii, or his native Japan.

Murakami is 74 now. He’s still running. Running is as necessary to him as breathing.

“No matter how mundane some action might appear, keep at it long enough and it becomes a contemplative, even meditative act."

2. What I’m Watching

The Days. TV Mini Series. Directed by Hideo Nakata and Masaki Nishiura.

The Days is a tightly crafted eight-part series that dissects the earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan on March 11, 2011, leading to dire consequences for the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. The story follows the plight of the nuclear plant operators, management, the Japanese government itself, and various expert committees—all trying to grapple with an unprecedented disaster.

While comparisons have been made with the critically acclaimed series, Chernobyl, The Days has its own story to tell, a complex one entrenched in the nuances of Japanese culture—a culture characterised by respect for hierarchy and shared societal responsibility. The scenes set in the control room of the nuclear reactor are particularly moving, capturing the silent courage of individuals willing to risk their lives for the greater good, far removed from Hollywood’s dramatic heroism. Here there are no heroes, only quiet dignity and respect.

The Days moves hour by hour. It’s dark and stifling at times, with an invisible enemy shape-shifting by the minute. It doesn’t rush, and the measured pacing may not appeal to all. Yet, the power lies within the arc of its journey. It takes significant human effort, ingenuity, and sheer endurance to regain control, a testimony to Japan’s resilience and culture during one of their darkest moments.

3. What I’m Contemplating

Five years ago this month, I crossed my first marathon finish line in Stockholm. I did much of my training in Japan, running in the parks and countryside of Tokyo, Osaka, and Kanazawa. (The picture from this week’s newsletter captures one of my runs against the backdrop of Mount Fuji). It was an incredible month.

Like Murakami, my long-distance runs are contemplative. And like him, I discovered parallels between running and life, recognising the importance of discipline and endurance, as well as the commitment to craft—the endeavour to build something rare and valuable each day. Something hard to replicate, whether by human or machine.

I miss running. I’m recovering from a long-term injury and my last long-distance run was October 1, 2021. In that time, I’ve found writing has helped fill that void. It’s not a substitute, but a companion. And when I return to running, hopefully later this year, I will have an improved writing skill to sit alongside my running. And inspired by Murakami, it’s given me an idea…

4. A Quote to note

“The most important thing we ever learn at school is the fact that the most important things can’t be learned at school.”

- Haruki Murakami, writer and runner

5. A Question for you

What physical or mental 'marathon' are you currently running and how are you enduring it?

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Thanks for reading and have a great weekend.

James