"One should always have a definite objective in a walk, as in life it is so much more satisfying to reach a target by personal effort than to wander aimlessly. An objective is an ambition, and life without ambition is… well, aimless wandering."
From Alfred Wainwright, a seasoned walker, writer and illustrator of various authoritative hill-walking guides, a wonderful quote I'm finding very pertinent at the moment. As I put plans together to walk a hundred miles from my home town to the sea, I'm facing numerous fears and concerns. The quotation gives me focus, and shows me how much aimless wandering I've done over the past twenty years.
I'm not here to lament the past, but to plan for and celebrate the future. I'm here to prove to myself and all those around me that, if I put my mind to something, I can achieve Great Big Things.
In the middle of September, after much planning, preparing and packing, I'll leave my daughter and our cosy home town and walk 100 miles to the sea at Canvey Island. I'll spend five days walking twenty miles a day across mostly rural countryside. There'll be four nights sleeping eight hours a night - hopefully - in a tent with very few home comforts. It's likely to be punishing and I think I'll be exhausted when I finish, but over the past eighteen months I've watched my body go from five-mile jaunts to 16-mile epic walks, and I know deep down I can do it. I'm working on a regular walking schedule to keep my body in order, and a couple of consecutive days doing twenty miles to check my kit and discover any issues with my legs, feet, boots etc. I'll be spending a few quid to get some kit together, maybe a new rucksack and possibly some walking shoes instead of the rock-solid Meindl boots I'm using now.
There's much left to do, not least finish the walk itself. I've recently gained a bothersome apathy when it comes to getting off my arse and walking on out there. The sofa currently seems like a much more promising proposition than wearing myself out. I think I know the reason for this and hopefully that reason will resolve itself this weekend or next. I know I'm getting a little lonely on my walks; having experienced walking with others, doing every walk on my own is becoming a little wearing. This is something I must overcome, however, as I think each of my one-hundred-and-two miles will be walked alone.
A word on why I'm doing this: along with the desire to prove I'm capable of Great Big Things, I want to raise money for my charity, Walking for Wellbeing, which helps people who are feeling low by taking them for walk-and-talks in the countryside. It needs funds to pay for simple things like web hosting and development, printing costs, broadband and a basic counselling skills course for me, to improve the service I can offer to clients and give my current skills some credibility. I'm regularly told the premise of the charity is a really good idea - now it's time to capitalise on that recognition and ask for a little help getting properly set-up.
As I said in yesterday's post, I'm excited and terrified in equal meaures. I think, steadily, this new ambition is helping the fear ebb and encouraging the excitement to grow.
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