Walking

Today I saw an old friend that I stay in touch with, but rarely see. We had planned to visit a nearby place that he found interesting and through a slight miscommunication, we ended up walking there. To tell the truth, this was totally ok with me. I had figured that would be the mode of travel. But of course, the Florida heat took its grueling toll.

Despite the challenges, maybe because of them, walking is a very healing thing for me. I enjoy the rhythms it creates, and the very connected sense of space it creates. We live in such a fast world that distance is a relative thing. How far is a kilometer? How about 2? What does it feel like when you've walked it? Uphill or down? If you don't know, then you too have a distorted sense of distance.

CS Lewis said that cars evaporate distance. It's true. We move at various paces in cars that allow us to see the world passing, but not to experience it. And we can change speed without really feeling it. On foot, the difference between moving 6 kph and 8 kph is quite noticeable. But this effect isn't just in cars. We take trains, we fly, we use the internet...all of which evaporate distance and make it hard for us to tell how far or near something truly is.

Of course, there is true walking, and approximate walking. Many people live in such a way that every day activities for most of the world are special events for them. If they want to walk, they drive to a suitable location, wearing special clothes, with all necessary accoutrements, and walk. Some may even pay to have access to private circles or little belts that let you walk without going anywhere. This is not walking. This is an approximation of walking and while it is physically healthy, it will not lead to the benefits that I describe. By stepping out the door and moving on foot we are far freer than most other modes of transit. We can stop or stay anywhere. We can eat anywhere. We can change our route at any time. And we don't have to return to a parking place.

Then there's the adventure aspect of walking. Tolkien said that stepping out on the road is a dangerous thing. If you don't keep your footing, you could be swept off to anywhere. This is so true, if you walk a lot. Even a regular daily walk has its adventure. There is no end of possibility, and things that would feel very random can occur. For example, my friend was asked by another friend to take a picture of any odd looking fire hydrants. I have no idea why. But sure enough, we found a very odd fire hydrant on a certain point that we randomly came to.

While walking we truly encounter the space around us. We feel the wind, the heat, the dampness of the air. We get dirty with the soil of the road. We become a part of the place in the sounds we leave, the exhaled breath, the drops of sweat, and the impressions of our feet and hands. And the place becomes part of us, carried away in our ears, our lungs, our eyes, our muscles.

Today in particular the heat was impressive (some might say oppressive). The experience was marked by it throughout. At first we were merely hot. Then we were wet with perspiration. Then we reprieved and found drinks. Then again, the sweating. The sun began to alter our route...to chase us away from its full gaze. And eventually, the youngest of our band could take no more, and we stopped. Of course, we had to return. But this too was part of the adventure, as our heads began to ache, and we longed for cooler surroundings. We talked of water and swimming. Our minds driven to it by the heat. It was affecting us in a very real way. We weren't going looney, but it was certainly affecting, almost dictating our experience.

By the end, we welcomed the technological advancement of air conditioning. The cool of running water. Even on this simple urban trek, our illusions were shed from us. No more did abstractions matter. There were pressing matters of hydration, rest, temperature, to contend with. And as we rested in the cool air, our muscles and skin carried the memory of the walk. A walk that will never again occur in that way, even if we walk that route a thousand times. And, true to any adventure, the experience belongs to us alone. It is part of our story. We can tell it as we like, from our own perspectives. We shared it together, and no one who was not there, no matter how similar their experiences, can truly understand what the waves of heat radiating up from the pavement felt like, or how the breeze through the trees was so welcome.

Walking is real. Walking is purifying.