The bunnies of Thornwald Park

Once Upon a Time... about 25 years ago in 1980, we lived in Carlisle, Pa., where I worked for the Evening Sentinel newspaper. During the time we lived there, the Borough of Carlisle acquired a lovely estate that included about 20 acres of forest not far from the middle of town, and just a block from the apartment where we lived on Walnut Bottom Road. Our little boy Ben was about five years old then, and when this estate became a public park, he loved to walk with us around the lovely paths in Thornwald Park.(http://www.dickinson.edu/carlisle/thornwald.html)

There were nice old trees in the park, some rolling fields and a family of bunny rabbits. The rabbits were very friendly and seemed to greet Ben when we went for our walks in Thornwald Park. They delighted him.

I was in my 30s and beginning to feel old. The "running boom" was spreading across the nation, and I was a convert. I started by jogging a little and walking a little, but before long I could run around the nature and exercise trail through the woods of Thornwald Park. It was a loop of about a mile.

Today -- 25 years later -- I am still running. We drove from Ashville, N.C., to Carliele, Pa., which is halfway home to Cape Cod. We checked into a Days Inn just off of Walnut Bottom Road. I changed into my running shorts and ran a mile down the road to Thornwald Park. Then I ran around the same old trail where I first learned to love running. And, best of all, the latest generation of rabbits were still there and just as friendly. They seemed to stop and greet me. I even imagined they asked what happened to my little boy. So I told the rabbits that my little boy now has a little boy of his own. I hope someday I can take him for a walk -- or maybe a run -- in Thornwald Park in Carlisle, Pa.

After the run in the park, I ran back to the motel and took off my shirt and shoes and jumped into the motel's outdoor pool. That felt great.

(Running: four miles)