Egret and reflection

Egret and reflection – Photo: Charles Arcudi via Trover

“I have walked myself into my best thoughts” said Kierkegaard. Harvest this temptation. Get outside, walk, stretch, breathe deeply.

Can’t speak highly enough of the inspiration, fun and enjoyment I take in regular short walks. Lucky me, to wander a beach is easy; to walk through wetlands or in neighborhoods fragrant with Jasmine always energizes the day. Getting out the door is the hard part and never regretted.

A favorite morning walk and easy year round, is following the shore walk along Mission Bay in San Diego. It never fails to surprise me. Often it’s the people who show up regularly. There are small groups who probably walk before breakfast meetings. Several speed walkers, a twisted older gentleman who never fails to say hello, torking his body to keep a steady pace. Sometimes I see a tall blonde woman who never offers a smile or acknowledgement. If I get a later start the crowd changes tone and joggers, moms with strollers, gaggles of matrons, walk past. I’m sure if I traced the same steps in the evening it would be an entirely different scene.

One favorite discovery:  Egrets nesting in Eucalyptus trees as I walked through the Post Office parking lot.  Once I drove for hours to to see Egrets nesting near Bodega Bay. My family watched them with reverential whispers but here, in Encinitas, they come to the same bustling parking lot each year. Little reverence, hardly noticed. Having them fly overhead is always a gift, but stay out of the splash zone, as cars have found out too late!

Each walk has its own personality but in all I find the joy of walking, of that simple freedom, is full of inspiration and rewards.

Elaine Masters, http://www.DrivetimeYoga.com