The Marathon Problem

I first became aware

Of this thing

I have come

To call

The Marathon Problem

In 2009

At the US Air Force Europe

Chess Championship

I was being beat

Unceremoniously

By the eventual champion

We were both members

Of the US Chess Federation

And I told him

My rating

(Just under 1400,

If that means anything

To you

Then you know

I’m not particularly good

If it means nothing

To you

Then I am probably better

At chess than you

Probably)

He told me

From his position of expertise

That my rating

Meant that I was better

At chess

Than 95% of

The people

In the world

Yes

I said

But those are

The 95%

Who don’t show up

To chess tournaments

I ran my first marathon

In 2010

And didn’t notice

At the time

What I didn’t notice

At the time

Even though

I did much better

From a time perspective

Than my second marathon

In 2011

The occupy movement

In New York

Began using the phrase

We are the 99%

To address issues

Of wealth inequality

In America

At the time

I was in

Afghanistan

Becoming even more aware

Of wealth inequality

On the global level

I still did not

Understand the marathon problem

I didn’t have a name

Or a framework

Or a way to think of it

So I missed it

Again

In 2012

I ran

Not ran

Mostly walked

My second marathon

I have only

Completed the two

And will likely

Never do another

I am no expert

On marathons

But still

Running

Not running

Participating

In a second marathon

I noticed something

I had missed

The first time

I saw

What I saw

Which is

For hours

I saw

Only

The backs

Of people

Faster

Than me

That is

The essence

Of what I call

The marathon problem

In a marathon

You have to keep moving forward

You have to keep working

Towards the finish

But you don’t spend hours

Staring at the finish

You don’t spend hours

Staring at the crowds

Or the scenery

Where ever your marathon

Happens to be

You spend hours

Staring at the backs

Of people

Faster than you

Almost half a million

Americans

Run a marathon

Each year

There are over

Three hundred

Million

Americans

Meaning

If you completed

A marathon

In the past six years

You could make the case

That you

Are in the top

One percent

Of American

Distance runners

But

That is probably

Not what it felt like

To be running

In your marathon

It seems

When you are running

A marathon

That everyone

Is faster

Than you

And you are running

So hard

Working

So hard

To keep pace

To keep up

With the backs

Of the people

Faster than you

This is

What I call

The marathon problem

I assume

Perhaps without merit

That it translates

To the one percent

Of wealth aggregators

In America

That if you

Are one

Of the three

Million

Wealthiest

People

In America

What you see

Mostly

Is the backs

Of people

Richer

Than you

You probably

Finally

Have enough

To get into

The good club

In your area

And you see

That what you thought

Was wealth

Was really the slow

Plodding

Four hour marathon pace

Of wealth

And there

Are people

So much faster

So much farther ahead

That all you can do

Is run

And run

And try to keep up

And stare at

Their backs

Unaware

The entire time

In your haste

And feeling

Of being beaten

By these people

So close

And yet

Faster than you

Unaware

Of this

The Marathon Problem