A. AliciaWalking cos I’m Alive!

Left, right, left, right, left, right, left.

Walking is my thinking time, my reflection time, my me time.

It clears my head, it lets me breathe,

It opens up my heart.

Right, left, right, left, right, left, right.

Walking through the gardens each and every day,

I marvel at the giant trees,

The sights, the smells, the sounds.

Left, right, left, right, left, right, left.

It’s the smallest changes that make me smile,

The growing buds, the flowering blossoms-

Oh, how wonderful to be alive!

B. Craig

C.Jenna

Walking for me is more than something I feel like I should do or something that I am told is good for me. I used to think a numb backside and stiff, rigid joints came with the territory when your work mostly involves staring at a computer screen. It can be difficult to find the time but when I work 8 hours a day, five days a week at a desk, a quick walk is always a welcomed relief. So, if you will, let me share with you all the things walking is for me as one of Australia’s many office workers and how I find the time to fit it in my day (and still get some work done).

For me, walking is a way to get to work. It helps me slow down the morning rush. How many times do we exclaim in a mad rush out the door that there’s never enough time in the mornings! I relish seeing my neighbourhood and admiring the beautiful gardens. I’m also bound to pass somebody walking their k9 friend. I can’t help but smile when I see an overly eager, excited dog on their morning walk. Most of all though, I smile to see other office workers grit their teeth in the traffic as I walk on by. Note to self: must learn not to take pleasure in other people’s misfortune!

When I get to work, walking is my stress breaker, my planning time, my ideas vehicle! If I am ever stuck on a problem I simply get up and go for a five minute walk. Even if I’m just cutting laps of the corridor I find my solution far more often than not.

Walking is my mini-break. When my eyes feel tired I print something to the printer furthest away and take a stroll past all the other desk bound prisoners to refocus both my eyes and my motivation. I also get up regularly to walk to the water cooler, to hit my target of eight glasses a day of course. It has nothing to do with the fact that the water cooler is the over-flowing hot-spot for office goss. Note to self: see previous note to self!

If I’m not feeling sociable and need some time out I take the stairs, down to the next floor’s toilets. Why not use the toilets on my floor? Well, walking is my competition feeder. On my return trip I love to stroll past the people waiting for the lift, happily meander up the stairs and still come out victorious at the top to see them exit their confinement. Rocky-Balboa stair dance is optional.

Last but by no means least, walking is my way to get home from work, to wind down, de-stress and regroup my happy thoughts before greeting my family. So when I finally do walk in the door I can sincerely say with a smile, ‘Tell me about your day’ and have the energy to listen.

D. JocWalking – my joy – my tension dissipater – my stress release.

Dicky hip - Waiting for a hip replacement, I was trapped – then found using a crutch to support the unreliable hip, I could stride out again. Walk tall – freedom again!

Asthma – chest tight –breathing foggy. The solution? Get out and walk. Two breaths in, four breaths out; 2 in 4 out; 2 in 4 out – twenty minutes and the asthma has gone. Thankyou Dr. Buteyko! Not a social activity – can’t rhythm breathe and talk!

Rubbish – cans and bottles, packets and plastic. Walk with a rubbish bag and clean up the environment along the way. Come home feeling well, relaxed and satisfied the environment has benefited too.

My Mate – My Dog. Her joy when I mention that magic word “Walk”. It lifts my heart to share her excitement – our favourite time of day. Fun and freedom - no lead for us on the dog beach.

Pole Walking – a recent discovery. An hour of steady walking at a good pace, with 2 hiking poles and great company. Discovering so many new and interesting walks in our neighbourhood, I didn’t know existed!

Just Walking – where you see so much! The clouds, the skies, the ants, the tiny plants, the shells, the trees – the unsurpassed joy of soaking up nature.

Strong Walking – sadly a pastime my partner of 53 years can no longer share. Now it is a slow wander – frustration for me and no doubt for him too. Makes me realise how lucky I am to still be

active, and get so much pleasure from this simple activity. Keep walking!

E. Katherine

Walking is good for exercise, thinking things through, reminiscing, meeting neighbours, even venting life’s frustrations with a pounding and vigorous step, and sometimes for solitude or problem solving.

I used to run in this area, when I was in my twenties. I’ve just moved back to the family home, 3 decades later, so there’s lots of reminiscing and reflecting on what is and what no longer is. Through my walks I’m reconnecting with the streets, the gardens and houses and buildings and trees and aromas of my youth, and having such a great time building my physical strength (and even endurance, given our hills!) with each walk.

On some walks I catch a glimpse of the city skyline (way grander and many towers more than just Nauru house we saw in the 70’s). On some downhill slopes I can view the Dandenongs, and fondly remember Sunday family drives to Tessilars in spring to see all those daffodils and tulips! Sometimes I walk to the shops to get some milk, or bread, and always bump into someone interesting, an older or a new neighbour, a familiar face to share a few minutes with. Sometimes its one of the shopkeepers I have a brief yack with. Once I walked to the station with a woman whose children I went to school with. We filled each other in on 30 years of family news in 10 minutes! Funny thing is I only knew her as I had as a child, so I said “hello are you Mrs Smith”, and introduced myself, and we went from there.

I enjoy the solo walks too, remembering who I knew in particular streets, and looking at the gardens for how they’ve changed, or stayed much the same, even through a decade of drought. I see old gum trees I remember and ask them how its been these past decades. I can almost hear them reply! Maybe they are saying “not the best years, but we’re still here.”

I went down to the railway line, to see if there’s still mint growing wild. There wasn’t any I could see. Given all there is now is onion weed and couch grass and a few abandoned computers, maybe I’ll drop some and see if it could take off again. Much of the wildlife is the same tho, the magpies and currawongs in the morning, the occasional kookaburra, the pairs of eastern rosellas when there’s a fruting tree around, the rainbow lorikeets at sunset, and the occasional bellbird still sing down a few familiar streets.

Most of the changes I notice are in the buildings, so many smaller homes, paved driveways, manicured gardens and tiny strips of lawn. I get to talk with people cause in the garden means nearly in the street these days.

Yes, long unmade drives, sweeping lawns, the scent from dedicated rose gardens and the put-put of sprinklers may be a distant memory, but every walk I fall in love with my Monty all over again.

F. MargariteWhen I tell people I don’t drive they often think I am really strange. What 30 something year old doesn’t drive. But I much prefer pounding the footpath to being stuck in a car, especially when traffic is crazy and one accident after the other is reported. Walking makes me feel grounded. There is something special about having my feet firmly planted on the ground, one step at a time. My favourite walks take place in parks and gardens smelling Spring blossoms in the air or walking along a beautiful street enjoying the architecture and especially the cityscape because to me Melbourne really is a beautiful city. I love observing life as it goes past me while I walk along. The cutest dogs, mums with prams with gorgeous gurgling babies, kids screeching with glee in the park, things you miss if you are stuck indoors. I recently became in charge of organising a walking group at my work. I now lead a walking group once a week and have discovered how nice it is to be a positive role model to my fellow employees, showing the way as we leave the office and explore nearby sights on this refreshing walk. After walking I feel like the wind has washed my worries away, even if temporarily and I can face the rest of the day. Perhaps walking is in my blood as my great aunt who turns 100 this year is know for walking every day of her life, come rain or sunshine. I may not quite be there yet, but perhaps one day. At least it gives me something to aspire to.

G. Sam

I had always been a walker, but it was not until I moved to Melbourne that I seriously started walking to get places. I was living in Northcote and working in the city and started walking to work. I have now been walking to get places for over 12 years. I am naturally an early riser, so getting up early to walk to work made sense and meant I could fit regular exercise neatly into my working week. I often walked home too, but also caught public transport.

One of the many things I love about walking is that you always know how long it will take to get somewhere without being affected by changes in traffic conditions, peak hours or public transport issues. Walking to work was such a great way to get to know Melbourne and connected me with my community.

Whatever part of Melbourne I moved to after Northcote, I made sure I was still able to walk to work. My furthest walk of 7.5 km was when I bought a house in Coburg seven years ago. I have gained so much information about my surrounding environment as a result of walking. I have observed changes in buildings and streets, learnt a lot about the people in my community and have become more aware of weather patterns, changes in light throughout the day and the differences between seasons. I carry my digital camera with me everywhere and take photographs of objects and scenes that catch my eye. I will often take a different route to get to know that little bit more about an area. I have made some wonderful discoveries and seen details that I would have missed if travelling any other way.

At the beginning of this year I started my own business and as a result, now work from home. I still get up early every morning and go for over an hour’s walk to start my day. It clears my head and gets my brain active. it provides socialisation and once again connects me to my community. If I have a meeting or shopping trip planned I will organise it so it involves at least some walking.

I also do a lot of work in the country and wherever I am, I take a walk in the morning to start my day. It is a great way of getting to know a place on a more intimate level. I don’t listen to music or radio when I walk, as my walking time is for my thoughts. It is like meditation and keeps me sane. I step out in the morning not knowing where my thoughts will take me. I walk and think my thoughts away, let my mind take me to where it needs to go. I have made some of my biggest decisions and had a lot of my best ideas while walking. In fact I wrote most of this story in my head while walking.