Pawsitive Journey: Let's Walk

This cute wooden rack hangs by my back door. Lots of different collars (many with bandanas!) and leads ready and waiting for our next walk. Did you ever look at something and have a flood of memories hit all at once...out of no where? I thought about how very much I love to take a walk and how much walking with those I love was such a big part of my life.

My Grandma, Mom, Dad and Sister all loved to take walks! I remember when I was quite young, holding my Mom's hand swinging our arms as we sang on our walk to her work. We lived in town and walked a few blocks up to the town square and the small diner where she worked as a waitress. Faber's was quite a popular place where you could get a G-burg Special with fries and a drink for a couple dollars. Her boss, Mr. Faber was a very kind man and loved kids. Which was a very good thing as often I would sit behind the counter on a big potato chip can while my Mom waited on customers. Being a single mother, Mom would often be in a crunch for babysitters and I would have to wait for my Grandma, Aunt or Sister to come pick me up. I loved those walks.

I remember my Sister and I walking that same route to visit Santa Claus. His house was just off the town square right in front of the National Bank. It seemed back then, you know way back in the 70's, we would get a bunch of snow at Christmas time. It was wonderful and so beautiful and as a kid I always looked for the biggest drifts to walk through. My sister would fuss at me and say "you're going to get snow in your boots and I'm not carrying you!" Invariably I would get snow in my boots and beg my sister for a piggy back ride the rest of the way. Although, she tried valiantly to stick to her guns, she would eventually give in and carry me. We would stop into Faber's for the best homemade Hot Chocolate you ever tasted before the trek home.

My Grandmother would take me each week with her to her hair dresser appointment. This was back in the day that a trip to the hair dressers was a highlight. A place to get all the latest "news" of the week! This little salon was located in the front of the house of the lady who did my Grandma's hair, just a couple blocks from our house. What a sweet memory walking with my Grandma. It would seem that I always had a ton of questions for her during our walks. She was so good and tried to answer all of them, but I knew when she tired of all my questions as she would start saying "because Barbara it just is..." or "because I said so...." and that was my cue to stop asking so many questions.

When my Dad would come and visit my sister and I, he would always take us for a walk. Most often on the Battlefield and we would talk and catch up. His visits were often unannounced and a surprise. Often I would just see him walking up our sidewalk. "Dad's here!"

As I grew older, I was the resident dog walker! I took our dogs on walks all through our little town and on the Gettysburg Battlefield. What happy memories with dogs past and present on those familiar sidewalks, trails and paths!