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Like most people, COVID-19 disrupted my daily routine. During the months of March and April, I never felt quite right. Being homebound with 2 kids, part of the reason was how sedentary I was. Looking back at my Health app, some days I took less than 300 steps. (Thread)
I spent a lot of time lurking on social media... more than I should have. I was always searching for updates on the virus. It became a little bit of an obsession. Fortunately, I had things to keep me busy most of the time, including home schooling my 3rd-grader & client work.
Also used the time for pro bono work for our food bank in South Bay. One of the best things I did was start a newsletter for @CTH465 which now has a whopping 40% open rate! Also wrote grants, 2 of which were funded, and got our fabulous executive director on TV with @LittleJoeTV.
But physically and mentally, I didn’t feel right. And I knew I wasn’t taking care of myself the way I should. Fortunately, I happened to be connected on social media to @SDuncovered who started posting no-filter photos of himself doing early morning walks, complete with masks.
Every time I saw his posts, I thought: “I should take a walk.” Then, this was the tweet that got my attention. A FOUR-HOUR walk?! Who does that?
And I was reading a biography of George Washington Carver, the pioneering agricultural scientist, at the time. It said that every single day, Carver got up before sunrise and took a walk in nature. He felt that was the best time of day to commune with God and see his creation.
So I thought to myself: I should do this walking thing. Before sunrise. Before the kids get up and demand my attention. Before I start scrolling through Facebook. And I did.
It started one day with getting up in the dark at 5:30, rolling out of bed and putting on a mask and some old sneakers. The hardest part was just getting up. Then, it was simple. I started, and I didn’t stop. I hit 7,000 steps one day. I started to feel better.
In the soft pre-dawn light, I walked by shops, restaurants and churches that had been shut down for weeks. I saw signs on windows that said “Closed until further notice.” Noticed dandelions going to seed, discarded blue gloves & other signs of neglect.
But I also saw the silhouettes of Palm trees, the charm of people’s front yards and the quirkiness of old Chula Vista - and that hadn’t changed one bit.
I guess what I’m trying to say is that you never know how sharing your personal journey may inspire someone else. In this case, seeing posts about early morning walks gave me the push I needed to start a habit that is making me feel better about things. I’m grateful. 
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