This week I walked. For three days in a row, each day I took time to explore the woods and hills around my new home, a total of around 36km (about 22 miles to my metrically-challenged readers) over the three days. No headphones, much randomness, many smiles.When I sat down back at my house after the third walk, I opened a favourite book: “Walking – one step at a time” by Erling Kagge (see my earlier post here), the book falling open at a random page at which I discovered the formula above from the late Arne Næss, Norwegian philosopher. Kagge, somewhat of a Norwegian philosopher himself, then mused:
The equation assumes that a small increase in glow can outweigh a lot of pain. If you have very little glow for anything whatosoever, you will also experience little well-being, no matter how few inconveniences you might suffer. Næss told me that he wanted to point out the meaning of pain, while simultaneously spoon-feeding the belief that it is more valuable to increase one’s glow than to reduce one’s pain.
Erling Kagge, from “Walking – one step at a time” (buy here)
So, yesterday, to start the year, I asked: “What will you start in 2021?” and, in that post, also asked you to consider what you will do more of. Well, today I have a simple wish for you, that you choose more glow.
As we would say in the Caribbean, in 2021 may you “walk good”, or perhaps “hamba kahle“.
Oh, and if you would like to walk with me, contact me, my walks are less than an hour by train from the centre of London.