Walk It Off

We all know the phrase, “Walk it off.” At moments when you are overwhelmed by life and upset at the world and especially your current situation or circumstances, people often say, “walk it off.” Well, what do you do when you want to walk away from everything, but your mind is racing to keep up with you? I used to take walks to clear my head when I was upset and overwhelmed by life. It was a way for me to not have to focus on anything, just let me feet go and the rest of me, mind and body, would follow. Then, I started walking for exercise. I don’t really like exercising, and the word itself often makes me cringe and I head in the exact opposite direction, straight for my couch and a snack. But, I have found that I do enjoy getting my exercise when I walk. I put on my I-pod and just go, letting the beat of the music lead me.

When I was living in Phoenix, surrounded by mountains and a wonderful view, started taking walks that served a dual purpose. They, of course, allowed me to get my exercise (especially considering there are a lot of hills in the area that I walk in), but they are also a good time, since I was joined on these walks by my good friend, Kevin. To explain quickly, Kevin was the first friend I made in Phoenix, a very close friend, one of those friends that every girl needs, the sweet, fun, and awesome gay guy. So, Kevin and I took walks through these lovely neighborhoods, up on the hills of Camelback Mountain, overlooking central Phoenix. The houses are gorgeous, many with gated drives, so we would of course peek in wherever we could. I found that these walks, ones that normally would have helped me to “walk it off,” to escape from my thoughts and the rest of the world, actually have the opposite effect. These walks often made my mind race, so by the end of the journey, not only were my legs tired, but my brain as well. Kevin said all kinds of nice things and we had great conversations, some light-hearted and some heart-to-heart. It is the latter that made my mind run faster than my feet. Unfortunately for my mind, my feet got to rest when I returned to my apartment and curled up on the couch, but it did not. It continued running, chasing me, although I don’t know where I was headed mentally or emotionally, I just kept going.

I would love to recapture the time when a walk was simply that, not a time to exercise for the good of my body, or to chat and think, for the good (or demise perhaps) of my mind. I long for these moments to simply be for me, for the whole me, all of me. Now, don’t get me wrong, I love sharing those moments with good company now and then, and if I wanted to walk alone, I would. But, perhaps these real physical walks are like our walk through life – we are not meant to walk our road, to take this journey alone. And, perhaps my thoughts, as fast as they chase the rest of me, are there so that I am not alone, just like my good friend Kevin was. He was there, right by my side, walking along beside me, not only as we trekked around my neighborhood, but also as we trekked on through the new lives we were both living there. Our journeys have now taken us elsewhere, him back to Missouri and me back to Illinois. We may not take physical walks together anymore, but I know he is there, walking beside me through life as my friend. Maybe I will find a new walking buddy here in Springfield, and perhaps the days of my solo walks, my empty mind are gone. But, I can just “Walk it off.”