TAKE TIME THIS SUMMER:
Enjoy the pleasures of walking, shoes, and life’s slower marvels.

Summer is always over too soon. Why rush it? Whatever your summer plans are, be they travel related, educational or recreational, be sure to take your time. Summer comes once a year, so milk each moment as much as you can. You raced from January to June, but from June until late August it’s time to take it slow, stop running, and slip into some walking shoes.

Take A Walk and Take Stock

Taking a walk is one of the most sacred and calming rituals we have. Not only are walks an easy and affordable form of exercise, they also help provide a fresh perspective on your surroundings and an opportunity to reflect on the year you’ve had thus far, not to mention the year’s remaining months. As you take an evening promenade in your comfortably fitted walking shoes, you can take stock of the specific and implicit goals you’ve set for yourself. From your finances to your relationships to your health and fitness, a little time for reflection can go along way toward re-focusing your goals and re-routing your approaches. The walking shoes you wear on these outings should reflect the nature of theses strolls—shoes that are comfortable and supportive, allowing you to wander as far as your thoughts may take you.

Appreciating the Little Things in Life

No matter where you’re walking, from neighborhood sidewalk to forest trail to beach boardwalk, a slower pace will allow you to notice things you never would otherwise. Knowing your environment, the energies and details that surround you, allow you to feel more connected and committed to your communities and to nature. Appreciating life’s nuances remind us how satisfiying simple things can be. The beauty of a sunset, the chatter of a neighborhood, or the comforting support of our own walking shoes—tiny pleasures are too often forgotten.

Breathing Before Achieving

We want to achieve a lot this year and we work hard every day to meet those goals. We run and exercise all winter in hopes of achieving a fitter, healthier, happier personae…but when do we get to enjoy the fruit of our efforts? Summer is the only time of year where you’re allowed and expected to let down your hair reap the benefits of our exercise, savings, and planning. When fall arrives, a new series of challenges and distractions will consume our lives, so make the most out of summer by taking it slow. We spend so much of the year racing and running, summer is all about walking shoes.