A walk to remember

Circumstances beyond my control (my van in the shop) led to the need for me to walk home from the gym this morning after I finished teaching my class. Down to only one car right now while we await the completed repairs on our van, James dropped me off at work but then needed to get himself to work. Our Georgia rains have ceased, at least for today, so the walk from the gym to home wasn't that big of a deal for me. I couldn't have asked for better weather, and it gave me time to be calm and quiet and reflect. One reason I have neglected my blog for so long, I realized while walking, is that since I finished the marathon I have not spent any time running lately. The training runs were my opportunity to think and be alone with myself. That is usually when I collected my thoughts and then felt I had something to blog about. Since abandoning my running (or taking a very long hiatus from it) I seldom find myself alone or able to get much deep thinking in. Hence, the long break from blogland. Hopefully this realization will motivate me to take more walks which will in turn lead to more blog posts.

All of that leads into my post for today.

As I was walking home on this absolutely gorgeous day my route took me down various roads and paths, some with sidewalks, some without. It was on one stretch of grassy land with rather tall weeds on one side where I found my eyes scanning the ground in front of me looking for snakes. I am deathly afraid of the little devils.

As I was scanning the ground in high alert mode my thoughts shifted. I realized that had I been born elsewhere, in another land, the very ground that I walked on out of necessity could be a deathbed for me.

How fortunate am I that I was born an American where I do not know the fear of walking a field where landmines might be buried? How lucky I am that my life is in America and I am free to walk home from work when need be, without fear or treachery. How blessed I am to be married to a wonderful man who wears this country's uniform with pride and great honor. How humbled I am that so many millions of others currently answer the call, or have answered it, to defend our beloved America, to say to the enemy, "You won't hurt us today. Not my country. Not on my watch."

May God watch over all those who put themselves in harm's way so I can know the joy and beauty of a peaceful walk in my America. And may God wrap His loving arms around the heroes who walk with him in Heaven now.

God Bless the U.S.A.