After getting at least a few minutes of sleep last night, energized all night long for the hours-away first step of this project of a lifetime– which had been on my mind all day, every day, for nearly a year– I awoke to join my parents and Grandpa George for breakfast before heading over to my childhood neighborhood of Oakbrook, where I was slated to take my first steps of the journey.
Though I was to meet the crowd at Oakbrook Park, I asked Dad to drop me off a few blocks away, at the eastern edge of NE 35th Street; I planned to walk to the park from there. On my way to the park was my childhood home, where Mom had taken her final breaths of life on June 18, 1985, two days before her 34th birthday. Today, September 20, 2009, is two days before my 34th birthday– and from this highly symbolic point of life, I will begin taking many millions of steps across America, aiming to inspiring others to begin taking steps forward in their personal lives– starting with something so simple as a daily walk.
Though we’re unfamiliar with the current occupants of the house, I briefly set foot on the property, paid my respects, and moved forward to the crowd waiting at the park.
Donated by a locally-owned running store, these perfectly-fitting athletic shoes are ready for Day 1 of the Walk.
A couple dozen sweet souls, family & friends, greet me and prepare to join me for the first mile of the Walk.
Good Morning, Laura!
Chris & Justin, friends since high school, each of whom I'd lived with for five years, join me for the Day 1 send-off. Huey, my six-year-old dog, has been living with Justin for over two years, as I've been engaging in a number of projects and excursions that often take me far from home for long periods of time. These guys are the best-- I love 'em!
Vancouver Mayor Royce Pollard comes to see me off. He's interested in the details of my plan.
Before taking off, it's time to take a minute and briefly explain to all how preventable cancers and chronic diseases have already cost us far too many lives, and how each of us can and should begin taking steps forward to live a healthier lifestyle.
And AWAY we go!
Almost through our first mile, surrounded by the goodness of fine friends. I've also been walking happy little Huey the entire way!
As our first mile concludes, we meet and chat before the group splinters and I prepare to go it alone.
A month ago, while training on my 16-mile loop route in rural Oregon, my foot slammed into a nearly-invisible roadside spike and I was unable to walk (even to the mailbox) for nearly a week. The pain grew in intensity whenever I pushed too hard to get back to a multi-mile pace, so I made the very difficult decision to simply not walk any long distances until Day 1 of the Walk. I would have to physically condition myself all over again on the very day the Walk began. The plan worked out, for though I definitely had to work to achieve them, I couldn’t call Day 1′s first 15 miles overwhelming by any means. (Click here for today’s route from my childhood home in Vancouver to downtown Portland.)
Day 1 was so beautiful that for the first time in my life, I suffered a sunburn this late in the year in the Pacific NW. A freshly-shaved, milky-white scalp of course made me an easy target for sunburn amid fifteen miles outdoors on one of summer’s final days.
The day ended at the home of my friend Jim, a man a few years older than my father with whom I’d worked for several years.