National Start! Walking Day

I read in the paper that today is National Start! Walking Day. Which is pretty cool because it just happens to be the first time in 168 days that the temperature has reached the 70's in Chicagoland. Six months without without ever seeing 70 degrees, except on the thermostat! That's a long time. If ever there was a day to Start! walking it is today.

I Start!ed a routine of walking just about everyday last October. (I know, really smart, right at the beginning of the 70 degree slump.) For a long time I had been thinking about going out and walking a little, either by driving to a park or some other scenic venue. But I never could find the time and was never quite sure where to go. Finally I decided to just go... Start! Walking. My neighborhood is flat and sidewalks abound throughout this suburban paradise. Just do it I thought. It's time to get healthy.

But I still had my doubts. When can I find the time to do it every day? What am I going to do when the snows come? Are there really enough sidewalks? But as I kept on walking those obstacles and fears became minor because I discovered I enjoyed it so much. I have been able to find the time. Some days I'm moved to go for a 5:30 a.m. stroll for an hour. In December I often walked late at night, when the streets were bare, new snow was on the ground and half the homes were decorated for Christmas. It was a Christmas Wonderland. I actually found the cold winds to be quite invigorating.

But more powerful for me than energizing walks at various times of the day was the discovery of how spiritually moving a good walk can be. Since October I have learned to understand 1 Thessalonians 5:17, "pray without ceasing," in a new way. A good walk became a time for meditation and prayer. At times my walks have helped me gain fresh insights about myself, the world, people, and God. What started out as just exercise has become part of my soul. I don't know how I find the time, but I do for the most part find an hour a day to walk. I walk for my body and I walk for my soul.

There's a reason they put an exclamation point after the word "start" in National Start! Walking Day. Start! is a command. Its an imperative. Just do it. It doesn't cost a dime. It doesn't take specially designed areas, like you see in the picture of the bridge from Millennium Park I posted with this blog. All it takes is two feet, two legs and one hand to open the door outside. You may be surprised to discover who is walking with you.