Monday, December 5, 2011

Setting a trend walking to church.... not yet

View from pedestrian bridge
Vegetation by the pond
I'm hoping at starting a trend for people to walk or ride their bikes to church.  Let's just say it hasn't exactly caught on like a wildfire quite yet.  I have  been encouraged however to see a couple of families riding their bikes to church.  I'm only a little over a year into the effort.

Bassett Creek
For me to walk to church takes about 20 minutes, rather than 8 minutes by car.  I'm just a bit over a mile from church. Thanks to a pedestrian bridge over the highway, I have a more direct walking route than driving. It is difficult to break habits, especially if they are more comfortable, quicker and easier than the alternatives.

Church
One of the challenges of walking in suburban areas, besides being counter cultural, is the lack of sidewalks.  Despite their many advantages, I've discovered lots of people are adamantly opposed to sidewalks eating into their yards.  They prefer the low maintenance, isolation and privacy of their sidewalk free yards.

Sculpture along the route
As we grow increasingly aware of the disastrous long-term effects of pollution and inactivity on our personal health and the health of our planet I hope that more people will be inspired to enjoy the healthy benefits of walking, even during the colder months of winter.  As the Norwegians are fond of saying, there is no such thing as bad weather, only poor clothing.

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