Walking without a purpose

Though I admit that my perception of the Walden walk transformed drastically over that past couple of weeks that I’d been taking them, I was pretty excited to learn in class that we would be allowed to take one of our walks in an urban area. While some of my past blog posts might suggest that a ‘walk’ in a urban or civilized area defeats the purpose of the ‘walk’ itself, let me just explain myself.

I am from New York City. For those of you who have never visited, let me first just say, it is true what they say: New York City really is the city that never sleeps. That being said, for those who have ever lived in the city, certain habits become essential for existence, almost second nature, for a year-round resident. For example, I tend to study best when there is a commotion of noise around me. This is why the third floor of the Hunt Library scars the living shit out of me, as I do not understand how it can be so incredibly and eerily silent. To me, as a New Yorker, the best kind of quiet is the ‘white noise’ kind of quiet—the commotion that sort of just distorts itself into background fuzz.

Similarly, much like little league is to the suburbs of New Jersey, people watching is a past time that all New York City residents grow up with. There is nothing more enjoyable than sitting in the window of the Starbucks on Broadway, sipping a latte, and just watching as the characters stroll by. I think its safe to say that most of my own favorite fictional creations were born right there in that window.

Ironically enough, the notion of taking a ‘walk’ is probably one of the most distorted for New Yorkers (and now, I’m not talking about the pushy way we tend to maneuver through crowds and traffic). Sure, if a New Yorker want to take a Walden walk they could make their way down to Central Park, but their existential experience would most likely be interrupted by a pack of tourists taking pictures or a homeless person asking for money. No, if you’re in New York City and you’re desperate for a walk in the woods, the best place to do it is right out on our streets—in the jungle itself.

That is why when I took my final Walden walk right out on Forbes Avenue, I felt in my natural environment.

I took extra precautions to prepare myself for my urban walk and to compensate for the fact that I would be walking in an urban area. I left my ipod, cellphone, and backpack at home, leaving my apartment with only a set of keys and a chapstick. I did, however, put a set of disconnected headphones in my ear so that way if anyone I happened to know tried to strike up a conversation when they saw me I could politely and obliviously just wave and walk on.

I started at the intersection of Craig and Forbes, making my way down towards the Pitt campus. It had rained a few days before my walk, and it was refreshing to see the urban landscape emerge from the seemingly unending blanket of snow that covered it. In my isolation I noticed details about the city, both natural and man made, that I had never notice before. I realized that I had never actually examined the Cathedral of Learning and it’s surrounding landscape before. I realized that the architecture of several buildings, even buildings that housed businesses as modern as Pamela’s and Qudoba, were actually beautiful and aged. I realized that I had actually never really walked down Forbes without a purpose before.

Possibly the most difficult part of my journey was deciding when to end it. When I reached what looked like the turn for the Penn Lincoln Parkway, I turned around feeling unsure about whether I would make it back to campus while the sun was still up. As it turns out, my urban walk ended up being my longest walk as I spent a total of three hours wandering around.

I think the most important lesson that I learned throughout this whole walking experience was that a Walden walk is rather spiritual. It isn’t so much about the nature or the trees as it about reconnecting with yourself in the isolation of the civilized world. This is what I think we, as Carnegie Mellon students who are often over preoccupied with matters outside of ourselves, were supposed to learn.

If you have the appropriate mindset, you can take a Walden walk just about anywhere.

Cheers,

Meela