Stepping Out

Because of an elevated triglyceride level and my past history of triple bypass surgery, my doctor and my dietician has pressured me into exercise. I have been walking. They suggested that I join the YMCA, but that didn’t appeal to me. I would have to drive about 15 minutes to the nearest one. The thoughts of pumping iron, riding a stationary bike, or tramping along on a treadmill wasn’t attractive to me. If they would have had a swimming pool, I might have become a member, but I didn’t find the allure enough to go.

I have been walking the roadways and byways near my home. There are several side roads that have limited traffic and make an easy trail to walk. None of the pathways are flat, but the hills are at least gradual. The scenery is what draws me. I try to walk at different times of the day. The sun shines with different strengths and at different angles which allows the different views and objects to catch my eye. I have been photographing and sharing them on FaceBook after each walk. The autumn leaves and colors were the draw when I first started out. Now they have dropped off, leaving bare limbs and a color scheme of somber grays, stark browns, or harsh blacks. My attention has now shifted to the patterns of rocks, limbs, clouds, or other items.

Sometimes it is a rusting road scraper or an orange dump truck abandoned in a field. Their colors are in contrast to the grasses. Sometimes it is the feathery grasses that are bright against darker reeds nearby. A buckboard buggy parked beside a shed is seen. I’ve seen a full moon still hovering in the azure sky or a large “bulls-eye” cloud in the heavens. Many places, the left over boulders from the push of the “Ice Age” glaciers jumble into intricate patterns and enhanced by a thick layer of vibrant green moss.

The weather often causes what I see to change. Coiling fog or a misty rain affects what I am able to see, sometimes ethereal and other worldly sights come into focus. Fog coils into valleys, shifting the views and rainy mists make the scenery damp and dreary. The wetness allowed me to walk up and photograph several deer from about twelve feet away. They were sound asleep and bedded down. If the leaves weren’t wet, my approach would have been noisy and I would never been able to see them, let alone take their portrait.

Sunday with the snow and wind, I headed indoors. I walked in a nearby gym. That doesn’t have much appeal. Who wants to photograph four walls? I may have to walk outside today.