A Walk In The Rain
I went for a walk in the rain this morning. Although a morning walk wasn’t unusual for me, the rain certainly was. We’ve had quite the dry spell here in Saskatchewan this summer.
Only one lonely dog walking its master crossed my path. On any given morning, along my regular riverside loop, there are easily ten times that many walkers with and without dogs – and a half dozen cyclists thrown in for good measure.
But, this morning, I had the river to myself. Well, not exactly to myself. I had a podcast playing in my ear.
During the dark days of covid and the cold winter months, I started listening to podcasts on my walks. It was a way to take my mind off the pandemic and entice my reluctant, cold-resistant self to get out there and keep moving.
Previously – in my years of regular Pause blog posts – those morning walks were a time of meditation. With no external input, other than the sounds and smells of nature, my mind was free to roam. And roam it did – always returning with fresh observations and ideas for things to write about. That doesn’t happen when someone is talking in my ear.
Halfway through this morning’s walk, I had enough of today’s podcast and shut it off. The world around me turned on. I heard the wind blowing through the top leaves on the poplars and a train whistle blowing from the tracks a mile or two across town. I smelled the fresh earth washed clean by the morning rain, and I felt myself sinking into the moment and thinking, ‘Hmmm…I’ve missed this!”
I don’t think I’ll give up listening to podcasts completely, but now that I remember what I’ve been missing, I’m sure I’ll walk solo just a bit more often.
Well, I’ll still take my Nordic walking poles with me; I don’t leave home without them. But they’re not much for talking
Tags: appreciation, focus, Pat Katz, Patricia Katz, pause, perspective, time out, wellness