Walking Gifts

I've been walking to work. Every day. Through the snow.

It's not uphill both ways and I only live a half mile away, so I can't take too much credit. Driving takes five minutes and walking takes ten, so I'm not losing any valuable time. It does feel nice to leave the car in the driveway.

I'm in love with the squeak of snow under my hiking boots but less so with the crunch of treacherous ice. The challenge of stepping in the perfect spot so the ice doesn't dump me on my kiester keeps the daily commute from becoming dull. I basically have memorized an ice dance through repetition. The crisp clean air is intoxicating even if my eyeballs fight off frostbite by tearing up, leaving me without a shred of mascara by the time I get to school.

I spend a lot of time watching where I put my feet, so I also get to see mysterious bird tracks and paw prints and patterns made by other shoes and boots. The continual daily dusting of snow is just enough to erase the previous days tracks and offer a new selection to scan.

A blast of feathers and air above my head this morning turned out to be a kestrel disturbed during his/her meal of freshly caught quail. I love raptors, kestrels and red-tails alike, and we are blessed to have enough open space nearby to support them.

Who knew walking could be so much fun?