It’s difficult to be completely alone when you live in a small community. There’s always someone who’ll see you going somewhere. And there’s always someone who knows where you go. I was concerned about this. This couldn’t go on for the rest of my life surely? Sitting quietly at home was just about impossible. There was always noise to contend with.
Why should I need to be alone? My friends always wanted to hang around together; be a gang. For me it was like a calling. An invisible cord gently pulling me.
I could discover something important. Something that only I would know about. Maybe there would be a place where I could slide back the air and step through?
I’d leave the house and start walking. Many times I didn’t know where I was going. Anywhere would always work out fine. Discoveries would be made in the most unexpected places. You can’t plan it.
I enjoyed walking; it gave me time to think. The rhythm of my breathing and the sound of my footsteps became comforting; almost hypnotic.
But I was still aware of my surroundings. And as I walked, the sounds of streams and animals and the breeze would be a kind of soundtrack, like I was in a radio play or something. These were the times when I could be alone. Just me, the natural world and my imagination.
