The starting line
Seeing as I have not yet read a single book by Haruki Murakami, I spent the longest time trying to decide which one of his books I should start with. I’ve asked friends and did a little internet research myself, but was still undecided. And then I thought of something I heard from a class I took on critical reading: A lot of the time, getting to know the author would transform the way you read their book. One can achieve this by reading the acknowledgements page at the back of the book, or simply learn more about the author themselves. So, I made a decision to start my Murakami journey with his memoir, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running.
Based on the title, it doesn’t sound too “memoir-y”. I agree, because it’s not a typical memoir. In this book, Murakami talks about being an avid runner, and how it influences his life and also his writing. Running has grown in time to be something of a second nature to him. He sets personal goals, trains for and participates in annual marathons, and even incorporates running into his daily routine (aka, he runs every day).
I personally think you can tell a person by how they talk about their interests. I say that mostly because I think people can tell a lot about myself by the way I talk about my interests. But I equally love listening to people do the same; talking passionately about the things that make them happy, and how it brings joy into their lives in unique ways.
I don’t know if running makes Murakami “happy” in that sense, but his love for it is truly reflected in this book — however form that love comes in. He talks about it in detail, from the places he ran (Athens, Boston, and even a Japanese city which he shares a name, Murakami), to what he thinks of during those runs. He also explained the lessons these experiences gave him.
From him, I learned a lot about the importance of starting, and sticking to whatever that thing is that you started to do. Murakami began writing his first novel because he wanted to write a novel, not because he wanted to be a writer. He already had a job, but he had this desire so he just went for it, actually finished it, and won a prize for that debut novel. After that, he just kept on writing more novels.
With running, it was a similar thing. He wanted a healthy habit so that he can keep writing as long as he can. He chose running because it didn’t require many additional resources or people. To him, running is simple, all you need are running shoes. You don’t need others to play with or compete against, so you just set your own goals. Running eventually became one of the things he defines himself with besides being a writer.
The way Murakami has so much determination with running is nothing short of admirable. I think I speak for many of us when I say that starting something (especially something on par with exercising) and keeping to it as a routine is not easy. We make excuses and lose motivation quickly, or maybe never even started doing the thing to begin with.
I’m making a statement here, but because of this book, I’m going to start running again. (I haven’t run at a set routine since high school, so we’ll see how this goes.) I think the way Murakami talks about how running frames his outlook on many things is really great, and that’s mainly what I want to gain from the experience. Just like how this book became my personal starting line to Murakami’s works, I hope it’ll also be a starting line for this running goal of mine. Who knows, maybe it’ll change my life too.
