Wow. I’ve been working on my training for what I’ve been calling a distance walking challenge for over a year now. But it’s time to go ahead and say what I’m actually doing. The plan, I hope, is to walk El Camino Real from San Diego to Sonoma, visiting each of the 21 California missions.
There are tons of reasons why I’m doing this, but mostly it’s one of those bucket list sorts of things that I’ve always wanted to do.
But I also want to do good. To do something that will leave my world a somewhat better place and I’ve been feeling for a while now that this walk could be the way to do it.
I just have no idea how. I suppose I could raise money for some worthy cause. But that doesn’t quite seem right.
The one thing that has resonated is the idea of Giving Voice to the Voiceless. It’s a feeling I know well. Also, one of the things making me crazy and that I suspect was at the bottom of Hillary Clinton losing the election last fall is that our popular media remains almost completely dominated by men, and White men, at that. I’m not saying White guys can’t make good movies and TV shows. Only that it’s time to start sharing the spotlight, as it were.
So how is walking the missions going to accomplish that? I have no idea. But maybe you do.
So please comment and let the dialog begin. And check this space out every so often to see what I’ve gotten myself into. Sigh.