I went for a longish walk today. I tried, with mixed success, to follow the example set by Phil Smith’s practice of mythogeography, or at least to slow down and look at the city in a new way, with fresh eyes. I did see some odd things: iridescent pigeons and camouflaged mallards, a forester trimming tree branches who reminded me of the man roofing the church steeple in the Al Purdy poem, busy streets and empty sidewalks, closed shops and assertions of business-as-usual, friendly greetings and apocalyptic warnings. I walked until my feet ached and my back hurt. I stopped for a snack and a drink of water, and listened to a large flock of cranes flying north. Then I turned for home.
Maybe one thing I might be able to take away from the pandemic is a new way of thinking about walking. That might help to make up for having to take a leave of absence from my studies. It’s something worth considering. I’ll think about that idea the next time I go for a walk.