Recovering from a recent bought of pneumonia I have found at the moment I am not able to walk anywhere nearly as fast as I usually can; this has coincided with reading a book by Eckhart Tolle and these things together have introduced some new joys not regularly experienced in the past.
I have noticed just how often the constant stream of words that are my thoughts, pull me away from experiencing life in each present moment, so I have decided to try walking without words. When words come to mind, I just let them drift away and choose not to entertain them; instead I focus on something I can experience with my five senses. These are some things I have noticed.
There is so much beauty, even in unexpected and surprising places.
- Rather than just a glancing recognition as you pass, have you stopped and looked at the wonderful shapes and colours in flowers and blossoms, or breathed in to smell the scent of those that have it?
- Have you ever really looked at the amazing shapes tree trunks make (best seen before they are fully in leaf) – how they twirl and twist and reach out; or taken in the fascinating texture of many of them, maybe even touched it to feel the roughness or smoothness of it?
- Have you noticed that even in amongst the decay, life breaks through – moss in between the bricks, tiny leaves in cracks, plants breaking through concrete, some with flowers, some without?
- Have you noticed the colours in brick and stone, or seen how different colours of dust, earth and sand sit in the cracks and create contrast which emphasises intriguing patterns?
- Have you noticed clouds? Have you watched how they move and change over time or simply noticed their amazing puffiness against the blue sky?
- Have you felt and smelled the dampness in the air as rain approaches?
- Have you marvelled at the stunning colours of a sunset or watched the shade of light shift, heralding dawn or simply a change in weather?
- Have you stopped and listened for birds and let their song bring joy to your heart?
- Have you heard birdsong nearby as yet unseen, then stood still long enough for your eyes to pick them out and see them with their wonderful shapes and colours, opening their beaks to trill?
- Have you seen the amazingly varied, and similar, structures, shapes, and colours in the things that mankind has created and marvelled at the ingenuity and creativity, or how time has changed it to a different kind of beauty?
I won’t go on … go for a slow walk without words and just use your senses to experience what is around you. It is ‘mindfulness’, but sometimes I find the word misleading, actually it is moving past your mind, which is often pre-occupied with judging, planning, scanning, and processing – taking you away from what is to what might be, was, or could be… it is just walking without words.
I’ve also noticed there is something more than mere beauty in experiencing things this way, something that touches me more deeply than just admiration; something that touches a joy that is in me and connects with it.
Seeing, experiencing, things this way gives me so much more than looking at a picture of them; it’s like the life in me recognising the life in something else and when they connect joy is made, like a chemical reaction.
I took the picture above because I had that feeling being there, the bare roots on the wall drew me in and the tree, despite having been drastically curtailed, was pushing out new shoots into the sky, but the picture in no way contains what I experienced looking at it at the time.
I completely recognise that I am not a good photographer, and someone with the skills and equipment I lack could do a far better job, BUT whilst beauty can be captured in a picture it is rare, if not impossible, to capture the life that was being experienced in the interaction. We can take a snapshot of it, and it may inspire memories, thoughts or reactions which can be very powerful, but life is only experienced in the moment and that is the point at which it is readily available to us all.
So, I recommend – take all the opportunities you can to enjoy the richness of life in the moment; after all that is where life is and it is constantly moving on, yet constantly there, because our life moves with it, even though a lot of the time we are too distracted by focusing elsewhere to notice!
Tales of the Universe 
An interesting piece, Share, the contents of which I will take to heart. I’ve found walking without words to be a bit easier when I’m with my dog, Haby, as she finds so much to sniff and stare at, I can’t help but join her – not the sniffing part, just the starring!
I’m happy to hear you’re recovering from your bout with pneumonia. Be well.
Thank you – I love the idea of joining Haby in walking without words – dogs are always wonderfully in the moment!