I walked downtown yesterday from my house. It's a short walk, maybe a mile and a half. The view is very different at ground level. I noticed things I had never paid attention to before; even the familiar things were transformed in subtle ways.
Observing the world as I walk reminds me of my childhood. It gives me a child's eye view of the world. When I was a kid I walked everywhere. The world moved by at a slower pace. I could observe grasshoppers and feel the rough exterior walls of buildings I passed by. Today I mostly travel by car; the world whizzing by the windows that keep me sealed away.
A few years ago I went back to the neighborhood I grew up in. I parked my car, got out and walked down the street. The memories came flooding back. I highly recommend this to people who want to get in touch with the past. At some point you will get back in your car and drive away, reminding you that you are no longer a child, no longer exposed to the elements.
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