walking

I've recognized rather recently how much I appreciate walking. It's more than just a utilitarian movement, it's a life affirming activity. Seriously.

I find myself feeling my body as I move - not really my whole body but rather specific points, really focused on the hips down. The weather isn't really conducive to this walking awareness right now, but I'll try to explain anyway...

When your leg swings free it's freeing... you know your foot will connect, heel first, then roll and your momentum carries forward and you repeat, right leg, left leg, right leg, left. You don't need to think, you don't need to focus, you're just free to be... You can feel the movement deep in you hip and buttocks, and then in your thighs, the back of your thighs, feel the sensation in your knees as they bend and straighten, but then you may skip to the impact of your heel and the gentle flow as your foot rolls along the ground, pressing on your toes as your rise up. You breathe in and out, your arms swing freely and you move across the earth, a part of it for a moment. You can be fully in your body, experiencing the movement in the muscles across your shoulders, down your back, straightening your spine, aligning your body and being inside of it, feeling it function in that moment in time.

A few years ago, on a few different levels, this wasn't really possible for me... maybe that's why right now I am so appreciative of the sensation of walking - walking with an inner awareness. It's not something I can do all the time, or even at will, it's just sometimes that happens. I'll be outside, walking somewhere, and then realize... I'm walking and it feels good and I feel good - and even if I don't feel good - I can feel that I don't feel good, which means that I'm feeling, and that I'm aware of my feelings and my body - and that is good.