smashing gumballs

Missouri has a kind of tree I have come to know as a gumball tree. I can only assume it's named this because of the spiky gumball-sized orbs emitted by the tree. As I chugged along during this afternoon's run, I looked down as the slushy ground slowly passed underneath. I noticed that with every step I was crushing these once intimidating land mines. The soggy whether had rendered these spikey creatures mushy lumps. My tender pink feet were able to triumph over the gumballs thanks to the engineered wizardry of pvc, rubber, and space age nike-plastic strapped to my feet.