FALL INTO WINTER
Sunday, Dec. 15, 2019
When we look at countries – at society, at our companies or social groups, we see generalities, trends, high points, and hiccups. We notice excellent news, terrible news, and anomalies that stand out to garner attention. We never drill down into someone else’s minutia. Maybe we should. I suspect, if we did, we would find a mess far worse than our own, relationships far more complicated than our own, and unknown circumstances to curl our hair…
Still, that gives me little comfort. My life keeps smacking me in the face.
Not life in general, but more specific – consequences of my actions, of my choices, of my inactions.
Every day, I get up, and there it is – every element of reality.
Not just the world’s reality or a worldly view of life, but a specific detailed local microscopic view of my existence.
And, on another thought-track…
I’ve struggled in recent weeks to get out for long morning walks – not because of low temperatures, but from ‘fear of falling’ on slippery not-shoveled sidewalks and crossing icy streets. Some might ask why this is different, and the simple answer is ‘no dog.’ Walking Gusta every morning was a necessity for 16 years, but now that it isn’t, my desire to avoid pratfalls and aerial catastrophe has taken over…
I’ve been fortunate – each winter involved at least a couple of falls – to not break a bone or render myself immobile. While I might whine about gout and bursitis, neither were the cause of any falls or the result. But with each fall, the silent reminder in my mind that I don’t want to wreck my health or die from a fall – physically or metaphorically.
The alternative for walking exercise: I can use the treadmill, which I do – I get the exercise, but it isn’t the same, and I tend to go hard for a shorter time, but I’ve been trying an alternative I like. Mall walking. It’s comfortable and safe, a five-minute drive – not sure I’ll do it every day. I love the calorie burn, and I like the comfort of no-obstacles non-slip surface. Two or three days is not a trend, so it’s too soon to know if I’ll stick with this. There seems to be many fellow-walkers, most are slower and older than me – but it is nice to start the day with the civility of nods, smiles, “hello”s and “good-morning”s. I like that. No coincidence, I suppose, the doors they open earliest are right next to the Starbucks.
