walking trail – one letter UP ~ diary 2.0

This post inspired by Frank at Dutch goes the Photo

The prompt: Trail

One year ago, my daughter, son-in-law and 2 year old grandson came to visit. Grampa and I babysat for two days while his parents went to a wedding.

Perhaps babysat is not the most accurate term. Very little sitting took place.

A walking trail encircles our condo building. The builder never finished grading it properly…forcing us over-55s to step carefully along the uneven gravel surface.

However…the two year old dynamo in the Washington Nationals baseball cap had no trouble at all. With only one year of walking experience under his non-existent belt, he was fearless.

And fast.

June 2018 trail

Grampa, on the other hand, had to pick up the pace to keep up.

If you stop to be kind you must swerve often from your path.

Mary Webb

I have stopped watching the nightly news. Which is totally unlike me. Usually wanting to know…What Is Going On. The importance of being informed and up-to-date was always at the top of my list. Part of being a responsible citizen.

It seems to me there used to be more balance. The good and the evil. The positive and the negative. Now all I do is wince. Our leaders fighting. Shouting. Accusing. Deaf to the voices of reason…or fairness…or empathy. Especially empathy. Unwilling to even pause and consider a different path.

Nightly Breaking News punches story after story. Announcements line up in 10 second sound bites. Assault…Abuse…Cheating…Lying…. Young child missing…young child found in a shallow grave. Inconsolable parent. Another shooting. Blurry security camera video. One more senseless loss of a sister, a brother.

The news anchor drones on, his face barely changing expression. Night after night.

Rarely would I see kindness…until the final 2 minutes of the broadcast. Showcasing an act of generosity. Compassion. Selflessness.

Good to know there are people still out there…
On a different path.

They deserve more than two minutes of air time.

walking trail