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Arbutus Menziesii. Madrone.

Mar 1, 2021

Madrone Tree in Tacoma

by Kristen Lawson
Photo (c) 2020 K.D. Lawson

I walk. I most enjoy walking in nature, natural surroundings, or as close to that as I can get. Light, smells, and sounds change day-to-day and season-to-season. Right now, I am looking forward to the sounds of the song birds professing their love and territory, the budding trees and shrubs, early blossoms, and early sunrises. I am looking forward to the shedding of winter.

I think of walking as meditation. Meditation is not about an empty mind, in my opinion, but finding calm in the midst of the moving mind. A walk is the time for me to find that calm. I take notice of trees, birds, smells, flowers, sounds, and weather. My lungs fill with a large breath and release it. I feel my feet move over gravel, concrete, and dirt. In this way, I reconnect to myself and the present. I walk.

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