Inspiration Mondays: Slower Feet

When we walk like (we are running), we print anxiety and sorrow on the earth. We have to walk in a way that we only print peace and serenity on the earth... Be aware of the contact between your feet and the earth. Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet. - Thich Nhat Hanh

I've been struggling with my feet over the past few weeks. I've had difficulties with plantar facsciitis on and off over the years, and it looks like it's back. That means I spend a lot of time stretching and massaging my calves and my feet in the evenings. Most of the time, I work through it. I keep running, I keep wearing my heels at work, and I keep on trucking, rushing about, getting things done.

Such are the toils and troubles of a person who wants to get crap done all the time, and wear cute shoes whilst doing so.

I had a rare day to myself yesterday, and I immediately starting filling it with plans to make things: wind some yarn, bake some scones, clean the bathrooms, do the laundry... and I caught myself in the midst of this over-achieving mess and said, "Dude, you need to just chill." That's hard for me. But I made up my mind that I was NOT going to pack the day full of things that "needed to get done."

That meant:

• I did not get up at 6:00am.
• I ran 8k instead of 10k.
• I pawed through my yarn stash and daydreamed about what I'd make next.
• I made some tomato soup and a grilled cheese sandwich on my homemade bread. That doesn't sound very relaxing, but man it was good.
• I napped.
• I made blackberry scones. I ate two.
• I read a magazine on a bench while Rascal sunbathed.
• I came home and stretched.
• I soaked my feet, scrubbed with with peppermint scrub, and massaged them with peppermint lotion, then sat and looked at my feet for an inordinate amount of time.

My feet carry me everywhere. They've carried me when I was extra heavy, both physically and emotionally. They've worn vastly inappropriate shoes and danced in them for hours. They've taken me to weddings and funerals, and to work and back home, to hospitals, offices, banks... but I've never though much about how I walk in them, and what it does for me, nor the Earth I walk upon.

And maybe if I just slow down a bit and rest, release some of the tension, the pain I feel in them right now will go away, and I will not only feel relaxed, but a bit more at peace. And others might feel that, too.

Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet. Pucker up, Earth. Here I come...