Walking... Reflecting... Talking with God.

I walked to work this morning. I try to do this often. It's only an additional 6-7 minutes on foot over driving here. 

The thing is that I find when I'm walking or hiking, my mind operates better. It's not that I don't think when I'm driving or working or running errands... but those thoughts are usually more task oriented or structured. When I slow down and walk down a quiet country road or hike in the woods, it's as if my mind is able to zoom out, look at the big picture, and spend time thinking about the really important things in life. Additionally, I often find myself naturally talking with God in those moments. 

Suzy and I watched 'The Hobbit' the other night for the first time-- my parents were kind enough to mail us an original copy (original copies of movies are hard to come by down here)! Being that this movie didn't cover half of the book, we decided to start reading the book, The Hobbit, aloud together. We actually started this a couple years back, but never finished it. I have confidence we'll finish it this time around!

There's something compelling and extremely relatable to me about books/movies like the Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit. It's not that we have incredibly hairy feet or that there are orcs and goblins around every corner... it's that we're on a journey. We're all walking forward; sometimes taking in incredible vistas and feeling on top of the world... other times struggling to take the next step forward and feeling hopeless.

I'm going to give you a little sneak peak on something I was working on yesterday. It was designed with the intention of being put on a little stretchy material that people here wear on their heads like a stocking cap, or at times pull down around their neck like a scarf. We'll see what it ends up getting used for in the end... if at all. But either way, you're getting a sneak peak. I feel like it's somewhat relevant to what we're talking about.

We're all walking in this life together. Many of us are on different paths, in different locations... but we're all somewhere. God is calling to us to get away and simply BE with Him is His creation. When was the last time you set some time aside to simply walk, listen, be quiet, and let your mind (and soul) breathe?