The last public outing I recall going to was the Laker game on March 10th when they lost by 2 pts to the Brooklyn Nets (WOW. AD missed a buzzer beater. It happens). I went with my dad and it was awesome. We enjoyed the game in our usual seats and my dad even bought me my favorite snack - a cinnamon sugar wetzels pretzel. The kid sitting next to me was VERY TALL and all by himself which I thought was interesting. “dude, how tall are you?” “6’10”. Little did I know that would be my last stranger interaction in…all of 2020?
Because the next morning, March 11th, the world woke up to a new reality: the pandemic.
Things haven’t been the same since.
April came and was weird. A very unfamiliar situation we all stepped into. So many things changed and I began to feel myself worrying constantly about what could happen… or what wouldn’t happen or …what if that happens? I felt restless at night and restless all day. No fun. Finally April was winding down - somehow I got through the month thanks in large part to my parents and siblings for bringing so much joy to this life- and then God spoke to me.
It was gentle. It was calm. It was quiet.
“wake up and walk.”
What?? Did you say walk?
“yes. wake up early and go on a walk.”
So I did. May 1st rolled around and I woke up at 6AM, laced up my shoes and exited my front door. Where was I going to walk? I wasn’t sure. Around my neighborhood I guess.
About three minutes into my walk I started to feel it…the change. I felt suddenly…me again? Happy to be outside. To appreciate the sunshine. To feel my lungs alive. To see pretty flowers. To have a purpose and a goal- even if that was just a simple walk.
I’ve always been a morning person, enjoying a nice hot (black) coffee and journal sesh. But it has taken this quarantine time to get me to add walking to that routine. After that first walk, I decided to make it a goal of mine to wake up every morning in May and get my feet moving. Not too strict about the distance or time, but all I have to do is just walk. God graciously and kindly instructed me in this new hobby of mine and proved once again that He knows what is best for me. Ever since I started this walking habit, sleep has returned as my best friend and I look forward to waking up each day to get my mind and heart to pump with hope and joy again.
God is good, all the time.
Scenes from my walks, *
*Not surprisingly, at the same time I decided to walk I stumbled upon this writer based in Japan (discovered via the chaotic and endless world of twitter). His name is Craig Mod and he is really cool. I discovered that Mr. Mod enjoys three things in life - Writing, walking and the country of Japan. Would you look at that!??
So I dove right in. Reading all his articles (Eater, Wired) , reading his weekly newsletter (Ridgeline) and basically becoming a HUGE FAN GIRL as I can often do (cough cough BTS). What I love about his writing is that you can tell he has a deep and abiding appreciation for the Japanese countryside (inaka) and the incredible humans that occupy it. He is a rare breed of foreigner blood that is captivated by the beauty and simplicity in the Inaka and not just the big mega cities. I mean, last year the dude spent 40+ days walking an old ancient trail from Tokyo to Kyoto and documenting the process via photography and words…WHAT!!!
How epic is that? Basically, Craig Mod is living my dream life and I am fascinating and inspired by his approach and philosophy behind walking in general. Very cool stuff worth checking out. He has been a great source of inspiration and reflection in my new attempt to walk daily.
hope to continue walking and writing as he has.
** SIDE SIDE NOTE: God is a gracious father because he told me to specifically W A L K not run :) You might think this a cop out for me not to exercise, but it is actually quite hard to slow down enough to actually walk. A run is satisfying in the fact that it pumps your blood and makes you feel really productive which are great things, but I have found a different and yet equally fulfilling challenge in walking. In order to walk, one has to completely fall into a rhythm and be okay with your own thoughts. Why? Well, walking is slow and kind of boring, and you aren’t distracted by the sharp pain in your chest from being absolutely out of shape, so you are really forced to face your own mind and look at the world around you. This turns out to be a very beautiful thing. So, even though people run past me in the mornings, I have made it a conscious (and enjoyable) effort to keep pace with the 6AM crew aka the grandmas and grandpas on the streets along side me and take on that steady, calm, walking pace.
more later! off to bed, so I can wake up and walk :)