Walking on my Heart and Mind

Just an FYI - there are a LOT of photos today, so definitely will get cut off in email. You’ll need to click/tap through on the title for the whole thing.

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Walking and journeys are very much top of heart and mind for me right now. Last Sunday, my sermon was greatly shaped by what I shared about in my last post. This coming Sunday, we’ll be focusing on the story from Luke 24 where the resurrected Jesus meets two of his followers on a day walk from Jerusalem to Emmaus on the day that we today call Easter Sunday. Tonight, I’m seeing The Odyssey with my family. And this morning, this was the poem from The Slowdown - “Return Path” by Lesley Wheeler.

The only way to pray is through my feet,
earthward, jolted in return by the fizz
of a spiking current. I never thought a circuit

would loop through me, believed I was separate,
alone, done with gods, but here it is:
I’ve found a way to pray. Through my feet,

I reach down. There’s something animate,
mycelial, that touches me back. It’s a species
of love, a thinking-spike, a zinging circuit

of energy and dirt, blood and spirit—
plutonic conversation, mostly wordless.
The way I’ve found to pray is through my feet,

sole bared to wooden boards, or rug, or slate,
or buggy grass, just as you want to press
skin to a beloved’s, sparking a current, a circuit.

Not that earth loves me, exactly. Matter’s what
matters. She wants me to return the mess
of my only body, pray from head through feet
as I sink, unthinking ash, into love’s circuit.¹

So yeah, walking and journeys are very much top of heart and mind. When Scout and I went out this morning, all of this was there for me as I noticed that there was going to be a really unique sunrise emerging. I decided to simply photograph a bunch of points all the way along - not just the beautiful colors of the sunrise (which they definitely were) but places up in the sky, down on the path, to the sides, and so forth. So I’m simply going to share those images and then I’ll offer some commentary at the end. If you want to skip the commentary, no problem - simply enjoy the walk with Scout and me from this morning.

First, here’s the map of our walk. We started at the blue dot and went clockwise. The first photo you’ll see below the map was from the first bridge (bottom left corner) and the last photo is back at the car. A few key points along the way. The first panorama is from the green line just to the right of the “2.” The other bridge images are on the far right side of the path. The last panorama is from the point out into the water and then the rest are along the loop up a hill back to the car.

So a few thoughts on the winding path today:

Different tools for different moments. Some of the photos were with my iPhone’s camera and some were with my DSLR. The iPhone camera is great for basic photos like the ones on the latter part where there isn’t as much dynamic color or where it is simply a “pull the camera out for a photo.” The DSLR however, is far better at accurately reflecting the colors of the sunrise. Life parallel? Our lives can’t be just one tool and one perspective all the time.

Even more so, this felt like a very large labyrinth walk this morning. Like the labyrinth, there were points that felt like the short, inner rings of the labyrinth and close to the heart - vibrant colors, stunning light, soft clouds, and more. While other points felt further from the heart - when the clouds shifted to greys and were growing thicker with the coming weather front. There were moments of noticing along the way such as the white bird standing still in the middle of the water, the golden flowers along the edge of the path, or the barely-noticeable stone heart embedded in the asphalt. The whole walk felt like a contemplative walk - like the circuit being made such as in the poem or walking alongside Jesus while not even knowing it.

Grace, Peace, Love, Hope, and Joy,
Ed

PS - Any of the photos above (or any of the others I share) are available to be used for blessings/bestowals. Check this post for more info if there’s someone in your life (or if you) need a blessing.

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1. https://www.slowdownshow.org/episode/2026/07/21/1563-return-path-by-lesley-wheeler