“My dream, even now, is to walk for weeks with some friend that I love, leisurely wandering from place to place, with no route arranged and no object in view, with liberty to go on all day or to linger all day, as we choose; but the question of luggage, unknown to the simple pilgrim, is one of the rocks on which my plans have been shipwrecked, and the other is the certain censure of relatives, who, not fond of walking themselves, and having no taste for noonday naps under hedges, would be sure to paralyse my plans before they had grown to maturity by the honest horror of their cry, ‘How very unpleasant if you were to meet any one you know!’ The relative of five hundred years back would have said ‘How Holy!’”
― Elizabeth von Arnim, Elizabeth and Her German Garden
Gladsome Lights 
This resonates with me for it has always been my dream to walk leisurely, to photograph wild flowers, to sit on a rock and to watch birds and insects – preferably in the company of a good friend. The sad reality is that it is no longer safe for women to walk into the wilds on their own anymore.
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Too bad the writer didn’t get to live until the 1960’s. Her dream trip sounds like my trip to Europe in the early 1970’s with backpack especially the bit about napping under hedges. Cathy
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Love this. Walking on trails is one of my favorite pastimes , but often I’m not alone. I do take walks down our country road to check the community mailbox.
Walking is a wonderful holy habit!
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Oh Gretchen, how I would love to walk with you and just this manner. Four as long as we wanted… I think that’s the kingdom of heaven… Which of course we will do together there!
Leslie
Sent from my iPhone
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‘leisurely wandering from place to place, with no route arranged…’
When we had our camperized van we would go out with no plan at all. That was a good compromise since neither of us was up to walking great distances.
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This has me written all over it. I am wont to go with the flow of the day, and to spend it with a dear friend. What a treasure. Love this so much, Gretchen.
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Looks like your summer colours are similar to ours even though we’re thousands of miles apart. 🙂
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I love this, too! All I want to do on Saturdays is find a new trail to traipse, but no one in my family has any interest, and I feel guilty abandoning them, and all the stuff that needs to get done, for a few hours to go satisfy an urge to wander. Our compromise is that Mother’s Day and my birthday are known hiking days.
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It’s time to reread her book. I loved it very much the first time, and I don’t recall this passage. I wish my body would allow for that much walking (and the weather, which is also opposed). I can think of a few friends I’d love to do this with. It sounds like the New Earth, doesn’t it?
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