One week
to go and I am getting a little nervous now. Have I thought of everything? Am I
going to end up looking silly? Why am I doing this anyway?
I'm still
searching for a worthy justification for my little pilgrimage. I'll be leaving
the boys for a week, leaving Naomi with the boys for a week, using a week of my
precious annual leave and putting myself through some not insignificant
discomfort... and for what? I'm not even being sponsored!
Far
greater feats have been dismissed with a simple 'because
it's there' but this does not seem to quite hit the nail on the head for me as it seems a little too dismissive of what feels like a special opportunity to do something different, even special.
My feeling is that there is an intangible benefit, an explanation and justification that's just
beyond my grasp and that I just need to put one foot in front of the other, one
step at a time in order to progress towards understanding what that benefit
might be.
This is not a religious pilgrimage but it certainly is spiritual. Carl Honoré says, ‘Travelling on foot can be meditative, fostering a slow frame of mind. When we walk, we are aware of the details around us – birds, trees, the sky, shops and houses, other people. We make connections.’ Making these connections with our surroundings can lift our spirits.
Aside from these lofty ideas putting one foot in front of the other is said to have more practical benefits. Walking has been shown to inspire creativity and clear thinking. Many people pace up and down when needing a eureka moment. Studies have suggested that they may well have one!
The reason for my 100 mile, 40th year, because it's there and because it feels special... walk is yet to be clearly known but I'm confident that it will come if I simply take one step after the other.
One more step along the world I go...
