Walking. Pulled forward by Good.

Posted on by Live & Learn

It’s 2 a.m., and Wally’s licking my arm: “Sorry Dad,” he says, “Gotta go.” “Jesus, Wally, now?” And that was the end of that. 

I turn to the morning papers, blog posts and RSS feeds. Kaveh Akbar’s words echo: “Time flattens everything. Family, duty, whatever…There’s something comforting about that, something vast and, yes, inescapable. Like bright ink spilling over everything at once.”

I pull into the parking lot. Sigh, another day, another walk.

1502 consecutive (almost) days on my Cove Island Park morning walk. Like in a row.

I walk. 

Eyes burn, fatigue has set in.

65° F, 10 mph winds from the north — I immediately regret not bringing a windbreaker. Left it resting on the front seat of the car. 

I’m dragging my a** around the track, directly into the headwinds. Shiver. I could turn back, walk ¼ mile to the car, and grab the jacket. But that simple turn, a few hundred steps back, just seemed to be too much. 

“Irascible.”  Mimi’s one-word description for me in the 1500 Consecutive Day tribute. I had to google “irascible” – and, and, and, I’d say that’s about right — no, not about right, Bang On.  

So, I’m too tired to walk back, but never tired enough to b*tch about it, and drag it around my walk. 

I walk.

4:45 a.m. I’m trudging along, and I spot Mark, fishing rod in hand, standing way out on the dam, halfway to the other side of the Cove.

Higher tides approach, and Mark makes his way back to the shoreline.

I met Mark a few years ago, he’s another one of the handful of early morning regulars at the Park.

At 4:45 a.m., I’m trudging along, and I spot Mark, fishing rod in hand, standing way out on the dam, halfway to the other side of the Cove. Higher tides approach, and Mark makes his way back to the shoreline.

Princeton psychologists find that “it takes just a tenth of a second to form an impression of a stranger based on this face.” And I’m confident that my judgment was registered with the tolerances of their study.

Mark has striking silver hair.  He’s tall, walks with an efficient gait, and is always ready with an easy smile, offering a good morning. He never seems to be aggravated by a poor day fishing.  Just happy to be present in the peace and beauty of it all.

I watched him from a distance that morning a while back. He was picking up trash left by other park visitors.  He made several trips from the shoreline to the trash can, and when he was satisfied that he had restored his fishing hole to its natural beauty, he went back to fishing. 

A good man, doing good things. And that moment, Mark’s act left an indelible impression on me.  Seeing Mark make his way across the dam, I felt his “goodness” pull me out of my funk and gently push me forward. 

Good man. Good Human.

I walk back to the car.

No, couldn’t be.

Did that wind slow?

Did the wind change direction?

Is that warm wind coming from the South?

Notes:

  1. Top Photo of Mark taken this morning at Cove Island Park @ 4:52 am. More photos from this mornings walk here.
  2. Bottom Photo of Mark taken at 6:18 a.m., September 22, 2022 at Cove Island Park
  3. Post inspired by:
    • John Wooden: “The true test of a man’s character is what he does when no one is watching.” 
    • C.S. Lewis: “Good and evil both increase at compound interest. That is why the little decisions you and I make every day are of such infinite importance. The smallest good act today is the capture of a strategic point from which, a few months later, you may be able to go on to victories you never dreamed of.

34 thoughts on “Walking. Pulled forward by Good.”

  2. What is Mark fishing for?

    I shivered when you said you’d left your jacket behind. I would have had to go back for it, and Wally would have had to cross his legs for an extra minute or so.

  3. a goodie…. cold or not – any time before 6am IS too early (for me at least). Was just thinking of the nights I had to get up to get my pet out for a wee – at least that is over! (Point 2 you probably mean 2023…)

  6. Kindness is a boomerang. Put it out into the world and it always comes back. Believe that. Love this post. One of my favorites of late. Thanks DK.

  8. “Time flattens everything. Family, duty, whatever…There’s something comforting about that, something vast and, yes, inescapable. Like bright ink spilling over everything at once.”
    So grateful for this bright ink of time in life…

  10. A lovely post, pal, as so many others have noted. It takes so little to move the needle. Mark is out there living his truth and yet it is so much more. Remember someone complimenting me on my smile on a Boston train one day YEARS ago…it was a passing remark for him, don’t think he even broke stride…but that small kindness changed the trajectory of my day and still suffuses me with indescribable warmth all these years later. Small acts, big ripples….

    2. I had something similar happen to me, Lori, while I was waiting for some friends outside of a restaurant. A man passed by, stopped, came back towards me and told me I was beautiful. He said he had decided at one point that from now on (whenever that was), if he felt he should give a good word, he would. How can one not smile for the rest of the evening after that? Plus, it marked me. And since then, I do the same. If someone is wearing something nice or has lovely eyes, or whatever, I tell them. I feel that the one I once told that she has striking eyes remembers that day, too. After I told her, she thanked me, stating she had become invisible since becoming a mother. Still brings tears to my eyes when I think of it.

      2. LOVE THIS, Dale! He was right…you are beautiful..and you are right, too. How can one not grin from ear to ear after receiving such a compliment. And what an amazing exchange with that woman. It takes so little to extend oneself and it can mean so, so much….❤️

        1. Oh stop. It was 15 years ago 😉 It’s impossible to not feel it. I was so happy I told her. So often we notice something and say nothing. After seeing her reaction, I decided no more will I hold back. 💞

  12. Martyr! was such a good read and I thank you, once again, for directing me towards a wonderful book 🙂

    And yes. Those infinitessimal moments grow exponentially.

  14. Remembering a word a friend through at me when I insisted on trying a particular route while saying that “I know I may be proven wrong, but I just have to try it!” OBDURATE And, of course, it was the wrong choice….

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