Afoot and Lighthearted
One afternoon last December I came home to find a small, beautiful, book-sized package in my mailbox. The return label told me it was from a friend I met here, through my blog and email group. And as soon as I tore away the wrapping, I knew I was going to love it. My friend had given me a copy of Bonnie Smith Whitehouse’s Afoot and Lighthearted: A Journal for Mindful Walking.
Some books redefine us because they challenge our beliefs or shift our mindsets. Others redefine us because they confirm everything we’ve known for years but been too afraid to fully own for ourselves. Afoot and Lighthearted, for me, was in that second confirming category. I found its pages beautiful, the quotes and insights inside inspirational, and the journaling prompts profound. I told myself I would savor it, read it slowly, just one page or so per day. But I couldn’t—I devoured it in a few mornings over coffee, dog-eared my favorite pages, and even copied one and stored it away with my will as something I want my family to have when I move into eternity (more on that later).
In short, reading Afoot and Lighthearted was an experience. My favorite part? Realizing that even though I’ve walked more miles than I can count for all sorts of reasons from seeking healing to solving boredom and calming anxiety to discovering adventure, even though I’ve written about outdoor travel for over 10 years (one of my very first blogs back in 2019 was even about hiking), I still found so much to learn and grow from in this little book.
My favorite quotes & pages:
The pages that made me feel less guilty about the time I spend walking:
“I have two doctors, my left leg and my right.” —G. M. Trevelyan
“WALK AFTER LUNCH LIKE BEETHOVEN: Part of Ludwig van Beethoven’s creative routine included a planned walk each day after lunch. That daily walk in the woods was an important part of his composing process. . . “
“I will tell you what I have learned about myself. For me, a long five- or six-mile walk helps. And one must go alone and every day.” —Brenda Ueland
The pages that made me want to walk more:
“All truly great thoughts are conceived while walking. . . We do not belong to those who have ideas only among books, when stimulated by books. It is our habit to think outdoors—walking, leaping, climbing, dancing, preferably on lonely mountains or near the sea where even the trails become thoughtful.” —Friedrich Nietzsche
“Above all, do not lose your desire to walk: every day I walk myself into a state of well-being and walk away from every illness; I have walked myself into my best thoughts and I know of no thought so burdensome that one cannot walk away from it.” —Soren Kierkegaard
The page I read to my partner, copied, and stored with my life insurance policy & will:
“COMMEMORATION: I once attended a memorial service unlike any I had ever attended: a walk around a small lake. We were there to remember a friend who walked that loop regularly with her dog, and as we silently processed along the path, we kept our friend in mind. Instead of black, the mourners donned comfortable shoes and clothes; instead of a gilded ceiling, we gazed up to see a vivid blue afternoon sky.” (sounds perfect to me)
Sometimes we forget how deeply a simple walk for just minutes every day can change our lives.
Even when it’s raining.
Even when we don’t have time.
Even when it’s so cold we can see every breath we take.
If you forget sometimes too, this book Afoot and Lighthearted: A Journal for Mindful Walking by Bonnie Smith Whitehouse can serve as a valuable reminder. It’s definitely one I’ll be keeping on my shelves and flipping through year after year. If you’re looking for a copy for yourself and your local bookshop can’t get it for you for some reason, you can check Bookshop.org or the author’s website.
More about Afoot and Lighthearted from Bookshop.org:
“Afoot and Lighthearted will teach readers how to harness the power of walking to cultivate and nourish attention, inspiration, and determination, as well as to combat distraction, anxiety, and the dreaded creative block. Organized around thematic prompts designed to help makers take a break from digital life and tap into the transformational magic of creative journaling, Afoot and Lighthearted introduces us to innovative walkers throughout literature, art, philosophy, and history, and it offers encouragement in the form of inspirational quotes.”
I hope you love it.
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