Just walk.

I dropped my daughter off at school last Thursday morning. The sky was a dreary grey, there was a cold wind blowing, and the rain that had fallen overnight had left the pavement black and damp.

Her school lies at the end of a long road winding through what used to be farmland, and now is lying mostly unused.
As I drove away from the school, I noticed a woman walking against the traffic. As I got closer, I could see her face – drawn, tense, and it looked like she’d been crying. She walked almost absently, mechanically.

At the worst of my grief, when my stomach would churn and my mind would go over and over the ‘why’ questions and the ‘if only’ scenarios, sometimes I felt I had to do something. I felt if I didn’t I’d surely lose my mind.

So I’d go walking.

I think I must have looked something like the woman I saw Thursday. Sometimes I would weep as I walked, sometimes I would think, and sometimes I’d try NOT to think. Sometimes I would talk to God, asking Him for answers, and for some semblance of peace.

It didn’t change my circumstances. But it felt like it did some good. And after walking I could usually function better, and could make it through one more day.

So, if you’re at a difficult place,

And your stomach is churning, and you can’t quiet your mind,

Just walk.