spring outside: reflecting on six months of regular walks
watching the seasons turn in my neighborhood.
The very first time I shared on seasonal things. I wrote about going for walks in the wintertime. I had always theoretically known that walking was “good for you” but walks were not a regular part of my life before this winter. I had tried going for walks once in a while over the yeras but I always felt uncomfortable, like I only should be out for a walk if I had a dog or a baby or a friend with me. Lia Leendertz invitation to find a “usual spot” and photograph it throughout the seasons was just what I needed to finally get outside on a regular basis.
I went for my first neighborhood walk on January 21st, photographing this willow tree at a local pond. It was cold, the sky was gray, and getting outside before sunset in January in Minnesota is not easy, but I loved it anyway. I had been working from home most days, hunched over a desk for 8 hours inside and barely moving. On average, I was walking around 2,500 steps a day. A twenty minute walk of simply moving and breathing in fresh air felt so good. I went for another walk a few days later and eventually I made a habit of it.
There wasn’t always a lot to see on my walks in January, February and March, but the time outdoors still felt great. Covering the same few blocks and looping around a pair of ponds, the views became deeply familiar. I came to know the shoreline of the ponds, the arrangement of trees, and gradually the plants along my route.
As soon as it started warming up, I was delighted to hear birdcalls on my walk. I hadn’t noticed the silence before, but now the voices of birds became a cacophony. One of my first observations after a few months of walking was where the birds gathered around the pond. As I rounded the pond each time, there was a clump of tall grasses where birds seemed to gather and the calls would reach a fever pitch.
As the temperatures continued to edge up, I noticed tiny hints of spring peeking through. The first delight was buds covering each of the trees one by one. I never realized how different each and every tree looks as it starts to bud, unique to each species and unique every step along the way. The Seussian buds in the photo above enchanted me the first time I passed by. Each time I passed the tree, I wondered what in the world they would turn into. (Eventually I learned: pussywillow.)
In past years, I only realized spring had arrived as I was driving down the street and caught a bright blossoming crabapple tree out of the corner of my eye. This year, I closely monitored each tree on my block, noticing initial buds, my anticipation growing as they started to open, and feeling pure delight as the pink and white blossoms burst forth in late April.
The temperatures continued to rise and my walks started getting more and more comfortable. As the crabapple and cherry blossom season passed, a few other hints of color started appearing. At first tulips and teeny tiny Siberian squill dotted my walks, later purple sprays of phlox sprouted up alongside the pond. For the first time this year, the whole world started looking incredible green and lush, grasses growing tall and trees filling into a leafy, shady cover. It was only thanks to the many walks through the cold and the brown and the icy months of February and March that I could truly appreciate just how lush and green my neighborhood had become. Spring is so incredibly special, I just had never noticed before.
Now as we turn the corner into summer, I see every single color of flower on every walk. My neighbor’s yards are full of stunning plants - yellow and fuchsia and crisp, bright white blooms. I watch the cheery heads of flowers swaying in the summery breeze, flickering in and out of sunlight. I feel overcome by nature’s beauty on a regular basis.
I don’t live in a particularly scenic area. Before my walk routine, I would have said you need to drive to another part of the city to enjoy nature. There are lovely lakes in Minneapolis to walk around. There is Minnehaha Creek, where you can walk alongside a babbling stream. We also have the Mississippi River, Minnehaha Falls, and Fort Snelling State Park only a few miles down the road. It turns out I don’t have to get in my car to appreciate nature. After walking around just a handful of blocks near my house for the past six months, I have found so much beauty to admire and so many more things to be delighted by than I ever would have expected.
One thing I am certain of after walking regularly during the first six months of this year: I always feel better after a walk than I did before and I feel even better during the walk itself. If you don’t already go on regular walks, can I encourage you to go for a stroll this week? No matter how little time you have or how little distance you can cover, it will still be worth it. Many times, I have just walked a single lap around my block when that was all the energy or time I had. If you need a nudge to actually get out the door, try to find a usual spot to grab a photo of once a month. It’s a lovely way to watch the seasons turn.
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