Walking Stats, 2017

As we approach the end of another year, I look back over what I've accomplished. When you are retired, your accomplishments change quite a bit, as you no longer have a career to consider. One of the biggest things I consider is my walking.

You undoubtedly know by now that walking is important to me. Mainly, it helps with so many health issues, such as cholesterol and cardiovascular areas. But I just enjoy walking. When I feel bad, a walk outside makes me feel better.

My father suffered from dementia his final years. Near the end of his life, he moved into an assisted living facility near me. This was against his will, and he even told the employees there that I had more or less kidnapped him. But that's another story.

Dad wasn't a happy camper, but his mind really was not working properly. He could no longer live alone. Something had to be done. So, the first few days in the facility he was mad. Donna and I would go over each day after work only to find that he had packed up everything in his room and was waiting for someone to take him home. Donna and I would patiently unpack everything, including the items that belonged to the facility and not to him (such as the microwave oven). We learned to time our arrival while he was in the dining room, so we could go to his room while he was eating and have him completely unpacked by the time he returned. When he returned, he was unaware that he was completely unpacked again.

So, this went on for several days. On the second weekend, I took Dad to our home to spend a Saturday with us. He was not happy and he was not comfortable. Finally, I took Dad for a walk to Synergy Park on the east side of Kilgore, where we lived at the time. The park at the time was rather new and consisted of a few trails through ab East Texas forest around a small lake. But that little park worked miracles on Dad. His expression changed; his attitude changed; his step became more lively. Taking a walk outside was like a magic elixir.

Now, the walk didn't cure his disease. In fact, when we took him home, we stopped at a local hamburger place. Dad loved burgers, and this particular place was well known for its burgers. Now, Dad had never been here before. When I asked him how his burger was, he said, "Oh, I've eaten here several times before; they make really good burgers." But at least he was feeling better.

A walk helps me, too. Being outside, feeling the wind in my face, seeing the clouds drift across the sky, hearing the chatter of squirrels or the whistle of a bird, all these things help me. So I walk simply because I enjoy it.

Well, I didn't mean to stray so much from my topic. I wanted to share my walking stats for the year. For 2017, I walked 487.51 miles. I purchased my current shoes on July 26, and I've put 278.11 miles on them. I had hoped to break 500 miles, but the extreme cold weather kept me inside the final few days of the year. Yeah, I enjoy walking, but not enough to freeze doing it.