Walking

In an effort to reconnect with the Earth, I have begun walking for 15 minutes first thing every morning. I used to do this years ago, and it had a profound psychological effect. That's how I came to identify so personally with the Eramosa River. Now that I'm working regularly, it's a difficult habit to reestablish. I am not a morning person anymore.

I bargained myself into it partly by taking along my camera, because photography is something I do for joy. Those first few mornings, the thought of that remarkable morning light falling on spring flowers was enough to draw me out of bed. The other bargaining chip was to establish a daily photo journal with images drawn from these walks, because I am process-oriented, and the idea of an artistic and nature-oriented ritual appeals to me.

Starting on a fine morning in April was easy, but five weeks later the obsession is going strong. May has been a fine month, and I haven't yet needed to contend with inclement weather. The daily journal begins to reveal a patchwork of places I have slept: Poplar Bluff, Delaware Avenue, Easton Mountain. The other day Sue Richards at Blog Guelph chose one of the photos (shown here) as the Friday Gem, so this project seems to be serving the main purpose of resuscitating my creativity.

The greater challenge will be to maintain this process through less pleasing weather, because one cannot truly know nature while avoiding certain of her moods. I do not hate winter the way I used to, but it remains to be seen whether I can abide it at 7 a.m. on a January morning when I would rather sit and sip something hot. The prospect of a challenge can be more invigorating than the reality. The prize will be a deeper intimacy with the places where I live.