Walking with the memory of running...

Random thought come in to my head.. twenty years ago the walking and running had helped to restore wellness but there was an erosion of knees, routine, schedules..
Nice Friday afternoon.. seawall is there.. and something says.. go.. . Rubber slippers are not comfortable to walk in but nothing is comfortable any more.

Seawall does not have too many people. Breeze is nice, tide is there.. sun is still hot.. going down. I did not bother with the warm up stretches which used to be a thing when going to run. I remember the rhythm of walking first.. walking east and facing the breeze as the warm up. The path is narrower now because of the rip-wrap thing. Slippers are not too bad, the legs start tinging.

Legs move though and I walk in the memory of the times. This used to be the best exercise.. different from anywhere else because of the open space. I see a nice boat with a rippling reflection in the water and think, Hell, I should have brought the camera.. and laugh because back in the day I would see these and admire and pass because focus was on the exercise and loosening the body. I used to walk, run the two miles and then go home and do the evening yoga routine.

It is the last day of June , half the year is finished .None of the wellness goals have been achieved. Things are not improving and even working on a routine to sustain the current level of wellness is a big joke.  But walking and facing the breeze and the sun going down in the north west behind me is okay to forget these things. I am wearing one of the tee shirts, thin and nice. old.. which I used to wear when I used to run here

 A few people pass.

I reach the point with two steps to come down and look down and realise that I can't do it as easily as I used to. An older man skips down. I feel off balance.

I reach the end.. I remember stretching here.   I don't bother now. No point really. Feet are still okay, feeling tingly in the slippers.. toe has a bruise now. It doesn't matter.


Turn and face the west. Back in the day this was the time.. breathing deep, regular,, start the slow jog to go all the way down to Kitty . Use to do the run by not thinking of the end, but rather thinking of each step.. and short distances.. reach the half way to the step, reach the curve by the pump, reach the other curve out by OceanView hotel.. reach conversation tree, reach sheriff street, church road, russian embassy.. and then burst towards Kitty and breath and if possible turn back and come back up.. and then thank God and take off shirt and breeze off and think I can conquer the world.

Walking though.. slower.. slippers kind of slower.. someone asked me to read a book called Born to Run , bnt not now.

Meet a man who I remember from the running days,, in those days I used to be running past him. He would be walking.. but now that I am not running we stop and talk because is years since I see him. We talk about exercise, diabetes, food, walking.. running and the shoes. He tell me to keep up the anti-alcohol thing.. that I should go on TV and so .

I keep walking.. not like runnign when the breath used to be harder and when I used to start chanting in my mind.. 'sherrif street, then church road, then hotel..' and ignoring any other pain.. breath was more the issue than pain the legs. Now the pain all over.. not the breath is the issue.

Breeze is nice, sun is going down over the sea. I am glad I am here. I don't know if I can come back as exercise.. i know that I can't do it , proper shoes or no.. as the feet are shaped badly.

Come home and see a text message from a woman with a big smile and a big heart who was born without feet and without parts of her legs.. "How ru luv?"