Until 2013, I had no idea how magical walking can be. It all
started when my company went through large-scale layoff and I was back in the
market searching for work. Knowing that a lot of us were in the same boat, searching
for work helped tremendously in coping with the job search blues. As they say,
misery does love company. But I have realized that no matter how big or small a
struggle is, at the end of the day, we as a person have to deal it and face it
all by ourselves. Loved ones and well-wishers try to help, but at the front-end,
it's all us, only us. And it was the same here. There was a lot of help from
all fronts, but I was the connecting point of every single interaction that was
required. Job search can be exhausting in more ways than one can ever imagine.
All of a sudden you become the busiest jobless person. Unfruitful job search attempts,
rejections after tedious long interviews, inquiries and status reports from
not-so-well-wishers often were of no help. The mood changes like a sine-curve
every single minute of the day.
One chilly afternoon that winter, I realized I needed to get
away from it all, just for a few minutes. I bundled up with layers and multiple
pairs of gloves and winter hats and got out for a stroll. I walked around for
over two miles and came back feeling a whole lot better than when I left. I kind
of liked that walk a lot as to how it made me feel afterwards. I went back for
a walk the next available free day when I had an afternoon off. I came back more
cheerful than I had been that entire week. Couple of more afternoon walks and I
started to notice a pattern. Every time I returned from a walk, I was feeling better
than when I started the walk. The cheerful mood only lasted so long, but it
felt great. However temporary that positive mood lasted, I wanted to feel that
more often, on more days. I made it a point to find some time on daily basis
from the job search tasks and networking events to go for afternoon walks at least
4-5 times a week. And for whatever reason (which I found out later on), afternoons were more exciting times
for walks than mornings or late nights. I didn't enjoy the morning / late night walks as much. I realized that only after a few weeks
when I started to notice a pattern. I kept on looking forward
to the afternoon walks just for the sunset colors I got to see. And if it were cloudy, the sunsets were even more gorgeous! I felt like a kid
with icing filled cake in front. To keep myself motivated, I started
documenting the walks by taking random photos of daily sunset colors. My walking route wasn't that picturesque or anything with so many electrical towers on the way, but then I improvised. I started to shoot silhouettes of those towers at sunset and every day that's' what got me excited to go for a walk again. I can’t
remember exactly when but just during that winter, I fell in love with walking and sunset
colors. Things have changed a lot in last three years but the love for walks
and sunset colors still remains. I haven't gotten so bored of either one of those yet. These days, I don’t get to go for daily walks or as
often as I’d like but it’s the best outdoor activity I have found in recent
times and I absolutely look forward to my late afternoon/evening walks even
today.
Thinking back to 2013 experiences, I think anything that happens is for the best and sometimes seemingly difficult experiences are in fact blessings in disguise. I feel thankful for those experiences.
