WATCH: how a brutal stabbing proved ultimately enriching
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Phil wrote the book after being stabbed, beaten and left for dead after watching a cricket match in Cape Town. It tells the story of how he used running as a way to live with the trauma of what happened. It also recounts the stories of 34 other runners who have run in the wake of awful things happening, from war to terrorism, from illness to addiction, from the murder of a loved one to the depths of depression: “I am totally convinced that running is a fabulous way to soothe and heal a damaged mind, a wonderful way to reconnect with the present moment and with the people around us,” Phil said. “Writing the book gave me a brilliant support group of people, in effect, who were all still trying to find their way. The people I spoke to were all so generous with their stories, all so happy to talk about the things that they had learnt along the way. We are all navigating our own personal marathons in life – and they have been wonderful company.“
“I owe my life to the guy who picked me up off the pavement. Without him I would have bled to death. But I look on the stabbing as the most astonishing reminder of just how great it is to be alive. Since then, both my children have qualified as doctors – a lovely thought given that they are saving lives after someone tried to take mine. And to have the book now translated into Chinese is the icing on the cake. It’s an odd thought though that I have written a book that I now can’t read!