Walk tall, watch all, with thanks

The Spirited Walker, Caroline Scott Kortge wrote a good blog on falls and walking.With my CP I have always battled falls for my one foot which will occasionally drop and catch a side walk crack or root on the trail.This time of the year roots are under a layer of leaves to be discovered by all of us. As we age falling comes to all of us. So her advise touches both our walks.
She titles her blog Walk Tall, Walk All she means,

• Walk Tall - "Walking Tall" emerged as a mindfulness affirmation for me in response to a recent Wall Street Journal article about research on fall prevention."From Athletes to the Elderly: The Science of Trips and Falls,"identified poor posture, not equilibrium, as a primary contributor to many falls. The forward lean we often associate with aging is just as likely to show up  for walkers who let their gaze drop down to their feet, or find shoulders hunching forward on an uphill slog. The lean makes it more difficult to regain balance if one slips or trips, researchers observed. Upright posture aids not only breathing but also stability.
• Watching all - Carol had a fall in June where she broke her arm. She was encouraged to explore the process of being mindful with Ellen Langer, a Harvard University research psychologist who defines mindfulness not as meditation but rather as active involvement with the world. Langer presents mindfulness as a process of constantly looking for what is new, what is changing in the world around us. Langer explains “Paying Attention.”  Paying attention captures a moment, freezes time, she explains. It asks us to stop the action of life. Awareness of change is something different she insists. 

Together Carol shares, "Walking tall" and "watching all" are mental prods--reminders to myself to stay present, aware of surroundings and my body as I walk. Without these reminders, it takes no time at all for my thoughts to travel far and wide, leaving me mindless on the trail." http://thespiritedwalker.blogspot.com/
In walking we are tempted to look down and lean forward. This actually makes us more prone to fall. It is better to look up and be aware of our surroundings and mindfully walk though them. For me to mindful to walk a good walking form and see ahead the problems of roots or what may be hidden. There are walks I can let my mind go and there are walks where I have to be aware. When I sight see it is better for me to stop and take in a view and when I am walking to be more focused on the trail. 

In the Psalms we read, 119:105 "Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light on my path."  Psalm 17:5 "My steps are on Your paths; my feet have not slipped." When I was in Israel many times I was up some hill or mountain and you had to pay attention to the path. I have been on trails in the night with a flashlight and you had to focus on the narrow trail. At such times I have learned to be mindful and alert. At such times I am thankful and aware of God's care. As we get older and walk, let's walk tall, watching all and in everything give thanks. Keep walking