Coming to Terms with My Pace

For the past few years I have had trouble keeping up with others as we walk. Most people simply walk ahead, periodically looking back to make sure I’m still there and waiting for me to catch up at intervals. Only my friend Reya, occasionally my husband, and my dog Jake are willing to walk at my pace, which is definitely slow.

I can’t tell you how many times people have asked in genuine concern, “Did you hurt your leg?” When I reply, “That’s just the way I walk,” they feel embarrassed for asking. But it is true that my tendency to swing my right leg around gives me a strange gait that is markedly worse when I am tired or cold and probably impedes my walking speed.

A doctor recently commented that I totally lack depth perception when I walk, meaning that I have to use my eyes to scan for uneven pavement or anything that might cause me to trip and fall. This is perhaps why using walking sticks on a hike makes it so much easier to find my balance.

I don’t remember always being so slow or unbalanced. It seems to just have crept up on me with additional years. But I’m determined not to let that stop me from walking because I feel so good when my hip joints get lubricated and my legs are stretched out.

Jake and I had a wonderful long walk today to drop off a package and mail some letters. It was almost a relief not to feel behind as we ambled along with him sniffing and decorating every shrub and telephone pole we passed.

So be forewarned if you want to walk and talk with me, you may have to slow down and smell lots of roses. But then, what’s the big rush anyway?