When I talk to my parents on the phone, they'll ask the following two questions, every time: First: "Have you been keeping up with your studies?"
Second: "Have you been running?"
When I am without my family's physical presence, running provides an opportunity to sort my thoughts; to decide which are worth keeping, and which to leave on the footpath.
Through plodding and pondering, stresses are relieved, and negative moods are lifted.
It's a healthy habit, in more ways than one.
One young Kiwi, Mathew Broad, has taken his running habit a step (a stride, several strides) further, and is exercising for the health of others.
He's doing this by running the length of the country - that's 2298km - in 31 legs, over 35 days.
As if that's not enough of a task, his real challenge is to raise $30,000 for St John.
For further details, check his website at www.running north2south.co.nz.
Mat's route began at Cape Reinga on March 21, and he'll finish the trip tomorrow, in Bluff.
Aside from four rest days, he has covered between 31km and 98km per day, (although he says, "As crazy as it might sound, I'll be going for a small run on my days off, just to keep the legs moving").
Most of us would struggle to run just one leg of his journey, let alone complete such distances day after day.
On Monday, Mat ran through Dunedin, and I joined him for a mere 40 minutes (my timing was limited - dare I admit, thankfully - by classes and other commitments).
The uncomfortable combination of bitter wind, rain, and a never-ending Stuart St, was enough indeed to tire me.
Mat, however, was unperturbed. In fact, he seems to be fairly undramatic about the whole experience: The Desert Road was "a little tedious," and he enjoyed the "short" 55km run into Whangarei.
During our conversation, he said nothing "really crazy or exciting" had occurred during the trip. Hmm, as if the act of running 2298km is neither crazy nor exciting!
His understatements are simultaneously inspiring, and slightly concerning.
Perhaps fortunately, for the sake of Mat's sanity, we live in a beautiful country.
Photos of his journey so far show railroad tracks weaving amongst knee-high cloud; views from the glass floor of the Sky Tower (a sightseeing detour); the sunlit shore of an empty beach; freshly snow-dusted hilltops (courtesy of Dunedin, thank you); shimmering, long stretches of tussock-lined tarmac.
Rather than dreading each leg, Mat says it's a "delight" (now surely that's an overstatement, rather than an understatement) to get going again after a rest day.
It's comforting to know while a minority of hooligans are constantly undermining our generation's reputation, other youngsters - like Mat - are determined to make a positive difference.
His endeavour certainly could serve as a reminder to many students it's within our capacity to give a little, every now and then.
However, I wouldn't suggest Mat's marathon effort is something we should all undertake.
Personally, I'm content to keep jogging for self-therapeutic purposes only, and simply to donate to Mat's cause, via the ease of a keyboard.
I'd encourage you to do the same.
Katie Kenny studies English at the University of Otago.
