There are so many ways to tell a story. Art, sculpture, pottery and gardens all do this. Of course, you can also use words. One of my favourite ways to tell a story is the quest narrative.
This is where we accompany someone on a physical or emotional journey. Think Mission Impossible, Pilgrim’s Progress and every crime novel that you’ve ever read.
Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales is a great example. And, before I lose you, let me just say that this is people, on a long walk, telling each other stories in the pub. Back with me now?
Walking alone is lovely. I enjoy seeing the incremental changes that each day brings: the unfurling of leaves, the emergence of seedlings, birdsong, a riot of colour.
But it is a real pleasure to have company, just like Chaucer’s pilgrims.
Uplifting
This week featured two walks where this happened, and they were utterly different from my normal nature walks.
First, two town friends visited, full of stories, updates on their lives, the good news and the bad. I thought that the bluebell wood could be a good diversion from the troubles of the day, and every now and then, stopped to point out bluebells, wood anemones, sheep with lambs, and far vistas.
It is important to stop – sometimes mid-sentence – and take in your surroundings. It can lift you from the daily grind to the prospect of something beyond.
Cake, tea, and a beautiful walk left us all feeling considerably better.
Then, later in the week, I joined a friend and her dog on a yomp over the gallops in a brisk breeze. Fortunately, it had stopped raining, but the wind and clouds were scudding along.
There is something about walking alongside a person that opens up conversations that would be harder to have sitting face-to-face. Without lots of eye contact, you’re free to discuss almost anything, to approach subjects obliquely. If you ever listen to Radio 4’s Ramblings, you’ll know about this.
Occasionally, we stopped to take in the breathtaking views, which stretch for many miles, in which spring was emerging.
After nearly an hour of this I was ready to take on the world: uplifted and cheered.
Company
We live in a siloed world where our lives may not include much walking alongside people, whether emotionally or physically. We can be on a busy path with a long to-do list, barely seeing our neighbours, family or friends. We may work somewhere in which the departments or teams don’t communicate and achieving a shared goal is therefore harder.
But walking alongside each other enriches life, and it’s something that we can all do in one way or another. We can listen to each other’s stories and accompany one another, even for short periods. Everyone has time for a phone call, a 20-minute walk, or a cup of tea. And at the end of all of that, we have woven friendship, built community and stepped out onto the quest, whatever that looks like. In a time of fear and uncertainty, when we may be feeling powerless, that’s something we can all do.