I walk every day, and everything is new.
There’s no doubt I’m somewhere different.
The community we live in now is not one I was familiar with. We chose it, bought a house, and moved here, knowing nothing. Being here is an evolution, a revolution, a metamorphosis.
I’m revelling in the ordinariness of life when it is anything but. Exploring a new grocery store is an adventure. Sideways traffic lights and fire hydrants that are yellow instead of red are notable, if only to me.
Every side street and every path holds promise. Footsteps disappear between the trees and I follow them.
An open space. Late afternoon sun lighting the trees on fire.
Further down, the horizon peeks through.
Snow is heavy on the branches. Sparkling white, gentle, pristine.
Bright red berries speak of the season.
Even the birds have a place to retreat to.
I have walked a lot over the last few years because the dog demands it, but it was always one more thing on the to-do list. A pain, not a pleasure. I walked but didn’t see.
Now I walk every day. A choice, not a chore. And I see because I’m looking.
And I’m watching my paradigm shift.
