Hiking in the time of COVID 19

Since shelter in place started (for our area) on March 18th, I have avoided the trails. My walking has been on the streets of Media, Havertown, and Swarthmore. I've done so much walking around Media, I'm surprised I haven't worn down a visible path.

I've stayed away from the hiking trails in the woods because there is not enough room to pass at a CV19-safe distance unless one wants to hop off the trail into the brush. And that's not an option for many reasons not the least of which is that I am highly allergic to poison ivy, oak, sumac, etc. It's a risk I take every time I go into the woods but I do try to be careful.

Earlier this week, I decided to attempt this hike. I chose Ridley Creek State Park because it's close to home, I love it, and the hiking trails cross the multi use trail enough that if I felt uncomfortable I could hop off the trail and get back to my car that way. What could go wrong, right? (Stay tuned)

I wore my  mask. There appears to be debate about whether a mask is necessary outdoors. I'll admit that I don't always wear it when walking the streets of my neighborhood although I do have it ready to pop on if I see that I'm coming up on others. Truth be told I probably should wear it more regularly. On the trails at the park, though, I put it on and left it on the entire time. I didn't want to fumble with on-off-on-off.

Wearing a mask does increase the risk of dehydration sooner so I made a point of drinking often. I was able to get my hydration tube under the mask easily enough to drink. Once or twice at the end  of an uphill climb I had to stop and settle my breathing. That was probably a mix of the mask and that I haven't done a lot of climbing lately. All in all though the mask did not take away from my enjoyment of the trail. Not one bit.

The park and the trail was crowded. I started out at 7:15 am! I have never seen the parking lot (I was at area #9) that crowded that early in the morning. I'm not sure how much of the crowding was folks fighting quarantine fatigue or if is normal for June at the park. I often visit Ridley Creek in winter and spring. It occurred to me that by summer I am off to farther away trails because there is enough daylight to drive 1.5 to 2 hours and still get in a good hike before dark. So perhaps the crowds are normal for June.

So CV19 gave me an experience I've rarely, if ever, had. Seeing the park in June. I must say it was glorious. Green and lush and full of sound. 💖💖💖

I did pass a lot of people on the trail - both hikers and runners. All but a very few had masks either already on or pulled on as we approached. For the few times I approached a mask-less person, I simply stepped to the side as best I could and turned my back to trail. That felt awkward at first since on the trail I've often come across some of the friendliest people I've ever met and now I felt rude. But I decided it was a necessary evil. No one was outwardly put off by it.

If you are still with me - thank you and here's the thing that went wrong. It's funny and embarrassing really. I hiked the White Trail Loop out of area #9. In recent trips I have started from Area #16 for a change of pace. I decided to change the pace back today. Well the pace changed a little too much and I missed a turn. How many times have I hiked this park and this trail specifically? Missing a turn is ridiculous. But there I was moving along and all of sudden realizing this looks a lot like the Yellow Trail where RCSP back up to Tyler Arboretum. It not only looked that way, it was. I had no need to finish in a hurry so I backtracked to the turn I missed.

The embarrassing part is the turn I missed was where the trail folks had place a significantly sized rock with the word TRAIL in big letters on the side and a large white arrow on the top pointing out the turn. I've often come to that spot and thought, "Well, no one is going to miss THAT turn". (insert laughing eye roll here). I was just having too much fun to notice this time.

Keep Smiling Keep Moving.
- Paula

What do terms like systemic racism, microaggression and white fragility mean?

I appropriated the title of this post from an article written by Halimah Abdullah and published on abc.go.news. I recommend reading Halimah Abdullah's article. More than that, I challenge you to read it and then reflect on your understanding of the terms. For me, the examples provided by the author paired with the definitions helped to bring clarity to the words and their meaning. I realized that I had a decent (not excellent) grasp of some of them and was misunderstanding others.

If I, a white person, is to be an ally I have a lot of work to do on many levels. I have to understand much more about who I am and the ways that I contribute to racism. Implicit bias is real. If I am going to confront racism in my life, in my work, or in my communities, I need to understand the terminology. Otherwise my words are just lip service.

Words matter. The meanings of the words matter more. If Merriam-Webster can admit to not being done with the learning, so can I. The editors at Merriam-Webster listened when Kennedy Mitchum, demonstrated that their definition of racism was incomplete leading some to point to the definition as proof that they were not part of the problem.

The dictionary story highlights the need to be critical of our sources of information. So I did some Internet research on Halimah Abdullah in an effort to support my acceptance of her definitions. I could not find any personal website. I did find numerous references to her as a respected journalist and author. Here's one. In the end I decided that, as a woman of color, her words carry the weight of lived experiences.

Keep Smiling Keep Moving (and Keep Learning)
-Paula