I never know what I’ll encounter during my morning walks. First thing after coffee, I walk. It is usually dark, except for near the summer solstice. The peace and solitude makes it a meditative experience, which is a nice way to start the day. 

Yesterday, a fox scurried across the street carrying a plastic-wrapped copy of the newspaper in its mouth. While some unhappy subscriber will probably complain about a missing paper and blame the carrier, the paper was absconded by a neighborhood fox. Apparently, the early fox gets the paper.

Does the fox peruse the news with morning coffee or is it teaching the kits to read? Without a smartphone or internet access, it would allow them to stay current with events. Or, depending on perspective, stealing newspapers could be a ploy to rid the world of heresy. My husband thinks the fox is probably insulating its den with the paper, but I like thinking about literate foxes roaming the neighborhood. It gives me hope for our society.

The foxes terrify one of my neighbors. She alerts the county when she spots one.  The foxes and I practice mutual evasion; they have never given me trouble and I don’t bother them. What scares me are the noisy predators with headlights. But at least I can see or hear these pervasive invasives coming and avoid them.

This past weekend, we found an iPhone during our walk. According to my husband, it was a new model, probably over $1000 to buy. The phone was locked and had no identifying information. We visited the local fire station to see if they knew how to return a phone to its owner. The firemen we spoke to indicated that a lost phone is not an emergency, therefore it falls outside of their purview. A few hours later, the owner realized the phone was missing and initiated an alert. But that just caused an annoying buzzing without a way to connect. He tried the alert multiple times, then finally called the phone, which allowed us to link up. The owner was visiting the area and appreciative of our efforts to reunite him with his lovie. Placing a business card between the phone and the case is a low-tech way of identification. People don’t plan to lose their phones or other items, but marking stuff makes it easy to get reunited with lost possessions (remember labeling clothes for camp). Make it easy to get your stuff back. 

I’ve been walking long enough to detect the shifting cultural pattern between canine / human partners on their walks. It used to be that the dog would be the limiting factor—stopping to investigate every fire hydrant and mark every bush. The tables have turned. Now it’s the human who stops every few feet to sniff, I mean engage with the glowing pendant in their hands. The dogs seem to say: “Enough already. Just do your business so we can get on with the day.” 

Solvitur Ambulando: Latin for: “It is solved by walking.”

While walking has health benefits and is a useful form of transportation,  I appreciate its value as a contemplative start to my day and as a time to figure out my MIT (most important task).

© Joan S Grey, 23 AUG 19
IndexCardCure™: Happy 6^th birthday, Allison!
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