Walking Paths

     For awhile when I was in college, I enjoyed running.  It was hard work but very freeing.  Part of the reason it was hard was because of the Salem Lights I used for a warm up and cool down.  When push came to shove, the Salem Lights won and I quit running.  I finally stopped smoking 11 years later, but by that time I had other things on my mind like getting married.  Fast forward another 11 years past a daughter's birth and a divorce, and I find myself in the suburbs surrounded by walking paths.  Because my insurance company said I had to start moving if I wanted to keep my co-pays from going up, I did.  By this time my knees could no longer easily support the extra 40 lbs. I'd put on since college so instead of jogging, I walked.
     At first I had to drag myself out of the house to make the 1.5 mile trek, but by the end of the summer, just about the time school began once again, I was starting to build up a little more distance.  The logical step would be to simply change my walking time from mornings to late afternoons or evening, but school left me motivationless and it never happened.
     Even though walking alone can sometimes be intimidating, last summer I decided to stop being a fraidy cat and to explore the many walking paths around me.  After all, I'd now been in this area for 18 years and not once had anyone ever been hurt on one of the paths.  It was then I began to realize how lucky I was to be walking distance from three different lakes.  One lake actually has about 200 feet of flowers someone planted and maintains. 

Another has a long fishing dock.  There are trash cans along every path, very convenient if you're walking your dog. 

We're a friendly bunch, too, we path users.  Nearly everyone I pass says, "Good morning," and bikers frequently remind me not to deviate too much by saying, "Coming up on your left." 

     Last spring the police reported that a woman had been assaulted on one of the paths, but it turned out to be a fabrication.  Thank goodness.  My paranoia breathed a sigh of relief and went back to its normal level.
     I'm now walking 2-4 miles a day and thoroughly enjoying it.  This year when fall comes, I'll still be walking and I'm hoping that when winter hits, I'll be able to make the short hike to a nearby huge Target and walk around the inside perimeter a few times.  I was told that 4 times around is a mile.  I hope they don't get sick of me.  My plan doesn't include being chased by a pack of irate red shirted thugs.  I'll just tell them that when spring comes I'll be out of their hair.