on being grounded.
April 9, 2008
Last night I went for a walk with my family in the evening sun. Even though it is only early spring, you can still feel the warmth, and it was welcoming. I could feel the moisture of the greening grass between my toes, thanks to the funny shoes* I was wearing.
I have been ill for the past few days, luckily just a cold (my wife insists it is a man cold), and I’ve been away from my writing, at least from any serious writing. I’m not the only one either, Cath Lawson hasn’t been feeling well (get well soon, Cath!) Sometimes you just need to take a break, to reboot. The world keeps turning, and you get a chance to refocus.
I’ve still been able to read my favourite blogs and comment, but I haven’t had a clear head.
Or so I thought.
I had a lot of trouble sleeping, and seemed to slip in and out of consciousness. During the day, I had absolutely no energy, I could not exercise at all, though I tried, and I couldn’t pick up my children when they asked to be picked up.
This gave me pause to think. How lucky I am to not feel this way all the time. I have written in the not too distant past about the privilege of choice, about a cousin of mine who is dying of cancer. I learned three days ago that she only has three months to live, according to her doctor.
It is easy to get so caught up in the chaos of modern life, to forget about important things like family and friends. I get up in the morning, walk out of my home box, get into a wheeled box, drive to a box, sit in front of a box, get back in the wheeled box, drive back to my home box, and sit in front of a box. Hmm. Almost like I lose my way, from time to time. Perhaps I’m the very last person who should be saying this, as I’m constantly out here chatting with people on my favourite blogs, or tweeting away on Twitter. It is something I love to do, and I received lots of support from all kinds of wonderful people out here, telling me to get well, and to get some rest. We have a vibrant community out here in the ether. It is great, and I don’t intend to give it up, but there is more. There is balance.
I am lucky. I only had a cold. I thought tonight during my walk, as I felt the wetness of the earth between my toes, how lucky I am to only have a cold today. How important it is to be grounded, to appreciate the small things in life. Family, friends (near and far – they will be there for you, when you are ready), an evening walk in the sun. Take some time to celebrate life, today.
Though it seems that these things will always be here, we must appreciate them today. With luck, they will be there for us again tomorrow. The sun will rise, no doubt of that. I intend to rise as well! But if I do not, I want to be sure I can say that I truly enjoyed my day.
*These are my “running shoes”, Vibram Five Fingers – yes, they are a little strange, but when wearing them I just feel a bit more connected with things. I take notice of small things, like pebbles, and wet grass. Sometimes this is what we need, I think.
@Brett – your shoes rock at least as much as mine
I hope you’re feeling better, but it’s great that this cold (man cold or not) helped you appreciate life even better.
You’re on your way to becoming a very wise man, I believe
@ Joohliah: why thank you! I often wondered whether I should use a picture of those as my avatar…
but I still think yours are cooler!
Yes, I’m feeling much better, thank you for asking. It’s funny how things align sometimes, I’m never really one to feel sorry for myself when I’m sick (my wife may tell a different story…) but this weekend really made me stop to think.
As I get older, I’ve come to realize I do have pretty much everything I need. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try to be more, but it helps to appreciate what you *do* have.
Brett,
I could NOT imagine running in those shoes. Ouch! Give me my New Balance!
I do have to say that the picture captured my attention right away.
I am glad you are feeling better and I know what you mean about getting your priorities in line when you haven’t been feeling well. It is so true that a bad day makes the good days seem that much brighter.
Wendi Kelly’s last blog post..In the Silence are the Answers…
Wendi,
Thank you for stopping by – I’ll chat with you sometime offline about it if you like, strangely enough for a stocky fellow like myself it has helped my form a lot. I may blog a bit about running eventually, too. I used to run in Saucony’s and while they are good shoes, I could only go so far (I was heel-striking).
I tell you, it was all I could do to write this post. Now that I’m thinking straight, it’s time to get busy and write some *really* great stuff – like your latest post. I love it.
Thanks again my friend – Brett
I have a crush on those shoes. They look like something worn in the future.
Lovely post, you always make me a little wistful and deeply contemplative, and this is a good thing when approaching a day that looks to be hellish in nature. I’m glad you’re back to writing! I’m looking forward to more.
::thumps little fists on table:: More, more, more!
Tei’s last blog post..Welcome IttyBiz Peeps!
I like what you had to say about the box-box-box routine. So true. Is it the putting-on of barefoot-simulating shoes and touching the ground that’s bringing you back to life (from debilitating man cold and general funk), I wonder, or simply the stepping out from a boxed-in environment, regardless of footwear? I’m still rocking the hiking boots and big rubber wellies, with snow and mud on the east-coast ground — yet feeling enormously restored from a long walk yesterday in the spring sunshine. Come to think of it, though, yesterday’s walk was all about dragging an elderly & recently bereaved neighbour out for a bit of cheering up and gentle exercise, seeking signs of spring at the edge of the Acadian arboreal landscape. Nice. Perhaps, even more than escaping the boxes, it’s about getting out of our selves and lifting up those eyes to wider views?
rjleaman’s last blog post..Is Your Nonprofit Risking a Communications Nightmare?
@ Tei: why, thank you! Some may say they won’t win any fashion awards, but that’s just because they are far ahead of the curve. I feel like Ziggy Stardust in them (or something like that…)
Thanks for your kind compliment, it feels good to hear that as that means that I’m doing a good thing. Hang in there – as Macbeth said, “Come what come may
Time and the hour runs through the roughest day.”
(Okay, bad example, we know what happened to him at the end of the day. But he was positive about it at least.
)
I’ll have more soon, I’m glad you are wanting more, and I hear your fists thumping loudly so I don’t want to keep you waiting
@ RJ: I liked that one too, I’ve thought it often. It’s the getting out for sure, not just the shoes and the ground, but the whole experience that brings back life, makes me appreciate that I *can* still smell the newness of spring. When I put on the shoes, though, it is sort of a transformation for me – no longer am I the nuclear engineer, I’m the guy with the funny shoes walking in the muck. I know I’m out for an adventure, a slow paced adventure where I’ll see, smell, and feel things that are so often missed while whizzing by in a wheeled box.
It’s no coincidence that I wore those shoes on my vacation in New Zealand last year, at one of the most beautiful places I have ever visited. I saw things there that just can’t be described. You have to see it with your own eyes to believe it, much like the Rocky Mountains or the Grand Canyon (neither of which I’ve had the pleasure of seeing).
There is a whole world out there to be appreciated, simple things, that exists outside of our multitude of boxes. We are so lucky to be able to see them, and would be foolish not to take the time to do so.
Hey blue footed! You’re back! I hear man colds can be a drag.
It is good to get outside. When I lived in the city, I craved the wilderness, and when I lived in the wilderness, I craved the city. Yeah, it is about balance and energy flow, and what you need in your life. I’m struggling with that right now.
I think we get out of touch with our natural rhythms ’cause we live in boxes. It’s called “civilization.”
Ellen Wilson’s last blog post..Writing the Wild Within: Part 2 – Predator and Prey
@ Ellen:
I like that name, it fits, like the shoes! Mr. Blue Footed. Yes, I’m back, and it’s good to be back – good to see you here too.
I think you’re on to something. I live in a pretty rural area (some say you can hear the banjos playing at night…), which can be nice, but – sometimes you need a change. When we visited New Zealand, I felt strangely ‘at home’ in Auckland, which is a city of 1.8 million roughly. Balance and energy flow, I guess I needed excitement. My wife felt the same, she said.
Sometimes we need to step outside of the box, and sometimes the box is what we need.
Ah, I get it. The shoes are more than funny-looking comfy shoes. A change of kernal identity – like Superman slipping into his skivvies in the phone booth, sort of… only different. Yes, that I get. I’ve just been out in the bee yard on snowshoes, getting my first 3 stings of the season. Feels good. Feels real. And has very little to do with the woman who sits at the keyboard for much of each day.
rjleaman’s last blog post..Is Your Nonprofit Risking a Communications Nightmare?
That’s it exactly!
When I’m out like that I’m totally unplugged. I bring my camera but no watch and no phone. Very nice.
I saw your same message about the beest up on Twitter before I saw your comment here. I love that image you painted, the feel of the stings – that’s a real, live interaction with nature that probably no one would ever think about, unless they had experienced it – but you’ve captured it and shared it today. It is a very vivid painting, I can almost feel it myself…
(Makes me think back to getting tattooed actually. That makes you feel alive.)
I love my Nikes… but I want a pair of those shoes, because I do a lot of barefoot stuff. Yes. I love those shoes.
I’ll bring ‘em with me when I come to visit (I mean it bro, if you’ll have me in for coffee once the weather is a bit better, I’m there… I guess I just invited my self over, didn’t I?)
Sometimes I run totally without shoes, but these are good for keeping out the broken glass
I highly recommend them for general purpose wear as well. You get *the best* feedback from the clutch on a car with these.
PS – they sell them online at Mountain Equipment Co-op
WOOT! MEC! I can order that online! Yes!
Seriously? They look perfect. I walk around on the shores of rivers and shit where there’s a lot of gravel, and I think this’d be way nice. And if I can use these to drive (yes, okay, I drive barefoot in the summer, I know, illegal), then I’m so there.)
James Chartrand – Men with Pens’s last blog post..Who Would You Thank for Helping You Get Where You Are?
You should definitely order some (I know you will, further to our IM chat), you won’t regret it one bit. You can go right from your house or your car or bike or whatever through grass, on gravel, right down into the river, and back out again. Then 5 minutes in the sun, and they’re dry. Awesome!
(I drive barefoot too, even since I’ve had these – just too lazy sometimes to put on shoes… I’m stuck in shoes at work, often heavy safety shoes, so my feet need a break.)
I just wish they came in children’s sizes. I think I’ll email the company right now. My kids like them so much, they’d be selling four more pairs a year for some time…
I think something must be going around the blogosphere. I’ve been under the weather lately too.
Those are the *rockinest* shoes!
I thought those were socks at first… I have some similar to that. I think I would be uncomfortable in those shoes though… I get fidgety when I have stuff separating my toes…
Allison’s last blog post..It’s Your Time To Shine!
Hey Brett;
Related to the “footwear theme”, I thought it was hilarious a couple of months ago, when you cleared the snow off your driveway wearing only your Crocs. You did it out of principle…just to prove a point to Old Man Winter.
There’s some wisdom in that. Get out of your comfort level, break with tradition, and show that you can overcome adversity, etc..
(…or mabye you were just being stupid.) : – )
Regardless, I think that could be the subject of another interesting blog posting.
Friar’s last blog post..Oprah Mommy Writes: My son, the genius artist
Ooh I love your shoes. I am all about fuzzy socks and slippers in the winter and barefoot all summer long. And believe me, if it was warmer in the winter, I’d have naked feet all year round. I could never understand why all my former employers insisted I wear shoes to work.
The weather here is warming and I can’t wait to start taking my dogs for daily walks again. Seems like my life is all about boxes too, though it’s pretty much just this one that I’m staring at right now. Ah, such is the life of a freelancer.
Hey, don’t those shoes feel weird going between your toes like that? I had a pair of socks like that once and they tickled.
Melissa Donovan’s last blog post..Jeff Buckley: Grace (Album)
@ Allison: no kidding, well, we all need a break from time to time. I have toe socks too, but these definitely feel different, better actually. The toe socks feel more invasive. You might actually be able to wear these, you never know. But thank you for calling them “rockinest”
@ Friar: yes, my neighbour still laughs about that one. Hey, who says you have to give in to Old Man Winter, right? (there’s a good chance I was being just plain stupid, ask Cathy and she’ll tell you…) We’ll talk more about this one over a few pints, I know it…
@ Melissa: thank you very much! It sounds like you & I are very much alike in that respect. This company makes another model with thicker neoprene and I know someone who claims to have worn them down to around -20 C (or -4 F) for running, so I may check them out next winter.
When I get to where you are and only have to stare at the one box, I’ll be in a better place I think. Not that I’m unhappy, though. It’s easy to unplug if you just think about it for a second. And put on your funny shoes.
As I said to Allison, they feel different from the socks. The only way to know really is to try them on and see if you like them. I bought mine by mail order, put them on and loved them immediately
Brett, I just had a recent bout with the flu followed by the death of my nephew. I can completely relate to your post. While I was ill, I had many of the same thoughts and of course losing my nephew has definitely reminded me of the brevity of life and precious value of each day. I’m glad you’re feeling better. Thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.
Karen Swim’s last blog post..Fame is Fickle
Karen,
I am so sorry to hear of the loss of your nephew. That is not an easy thing to face. Thanks for your words. And in kind, I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers. Let us all live each day to the fullest.
Brett,
Now your barefoot running is starting to be a dialog over at my site too.( Courage to start). I do declare- you have famous feet!
Wendi Kelly’s last blog post..Before the Play is Done
Wendi,
I just noticed that, wow! I still love that post, by the way. It is a very powerful and inspiring piece. I’m going to show it to my wife Cathy, as she wants to start running next week. We’re going to run together.
And your new post – beautiful. Thank you for it.
Hey Brett, glad to see you back on track. You were missed that is for sure. About those shoes, I first thought they were socks.
Never seen those things before, but for some reason they look quite cute. Can you actually walk in these? They don’t look like they give much balance, but then I could be so wrong …tell me I’m wrong.
Monika Mundell’s last blog post..A Few Hickups
Hey Monika,
Thanks very much, it’s good to be back. I will have a brief post tomorrow morning, and then follow up with a few more this week and continue on the path. (Note to self, write as much as possible for when you’re sick…)
Oh yes, you can walk in them quite readily, all of the balance comes from your own body. I run in them too, drive in them, you name it. If you wore shoes like this – or no shoes – for the first few days, your lower legs would be sore. I know mine were. A lot of modern shoes cause more harm than good as they constrict our feet, throw our balance and posture off, and weaken our legs.
Of course, they won’t win any fashion contests…
but they are the best shoes I own.
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