To the Editor:
I enjoyed Lydia Polgreen’s Sept. 24 column, “No, I Don’t Want to Go for a Walk With You,” and related to her love of solitary thinking time.
I’ve run every single day since Jan. 1, 2011, and recently passed a cumulative distance of 24,901 miles (the distance around the Equator). Most of those miles have been solo — no music or company. Just me and my thoughts. It’s an invaluable quiet time that’s led to ideas, insights and questions that have helped me as a runner, father, husband and leader.
That said, there is so much joy and learning when I do have a chance to run with other people from time to time. In fact, the depth and relative ease of those conversations were what inspired my family to start Talk a Mile, a nonprofit in Portland, Ore., that connects young Black leaders with local police academy trainees for one-on-one conversations.
They literally walk, talk, listen and learn together for one mile. Participants say it’s a deeply impactful experience that has them feeling both seen and heard.
The Joys of Walking, Together and Solo
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