“I felt so satisfied exploring the physical places of which I had ideas in my mind. It felt good to see the details and feel the ground – to KNOW things that are real as opposed to just ideas.” First time FMWalker, Red. Mindfully walking all the neighborhoods of Fresno, we become citizen journalists, investigating and witnessing for ourselves the experiences of all of Fresno. Mindfully walk is ‘original source’ information – a way to validate news and information we read or hear about from other sources. Walking and seeing the reality is also a way to correct preconceived ideas, judgments or assumptions about people and places.
October 14, 2017, a group of mindfulness walkers gathered under the Black Lives Matter banners of the Unitarian church near Willow and Alluvial, to then stroll Fresno neighborhoods, cross wide streets, see ponding basins, spots of undeveloped land, and the campuses of 6 large churches representing a diversity of faiths. Churches included: Unitarian, Islamic Culture Center of Fresno, Th
e Well, Family Community Church, Cross City Church, and the Buddhist Temple.
Welcome walkers: Mike, Cathy, Sheila, Val, Gail, Carrol, Jim, Beth, Cristi, Red, Brenda, and Donna.
Walker’s had a rich conversation about this walk. Here are some of the comments:
That was awesome!
Churches have a lot going on on Saturdays.
Noticeable disparity between these neighborhoods and previous walks in neighborhoods along railroad tracks.
Loved all the geese.
Loved coffee shop in church (Frappe House at Cross City).
One walker described how she goes to the Frappe House, even though she doesn’t attend the church.
I enjoyed seeing such a variety of faiths in one walk – so close together physically. Would be wonderful if these faiths could come together to accomplish something big.
Everyone we met along the walk was very welcoming.
Glad to see the open walkway between Unitarian Universalist Church and the Buddhist Temple.
I can’t help but contrast this to the walk of 2 weeks ago. It’s just insane, the stark contrast from the walk along the tracks of Florafora, at Olive and Hwy 168, and the good conditions in this neighborhood.
Sights:
Tons of squirrels.
Found a jaw bone of some small animal, which was super cool.
Large flock of geese walking away from us was funny. They were almost mirroring the grouping and walking pattern of our group.
Noticed lots of redwood trees.
Enjoyed meeting the gentlemen at Family Community Church. They were so friendly, welcoming energy. They even commented that our walking group is a really good idea. The men invited us to come back at 4:30 for food trucks.
Walkers noticed a man walking with a mask on – reminder of air pollution.
Sounds:
Gong of the large bell at the Buddhist Temple.
Crunching of acorns. And leaves under feet. Birds, geese honking. Flap of geese wings. High flying airplane. Traffic.
Smells:
Frappe house coffee
Fresh air, felt good
Quieter, peaceful in the neighborhoods and on the church grounds.
Walkers talked about what we didn’t observe on this walk, as compared to other walks:
There wasn’t a painfulness, like there was on a walk a couple of weeks ago. Much more calm and a stillness in the neighborhoods.
No visible telephone poles.
No young children playing.
Few garages open, and didn’t see many people out working in their yards.
Few porches, which is too bad because porches are an opening, a sign of welcoming to the neighbors.
No train sounds on this walk.
No piles of trash. A few pieces of trash here and there, but no mounds or huge piles like in other neighborhoods.
Feelings:
Loved the design of the Buddhist and Unitarian churches. Good design elements are noticeable, such as the curve of a path or road, vs. a straight path. A friendly cat jumped up on the bench with the walkers and pawed at the keyboard to type this reflection.
Every walk is a reminder that these are our brothers and sisters in Fresno, and all of our lives and futures are tied together. Let that awareness influence our words, behaviors, and decisions throughout the week.
To see photos from this walk:
Google photo album: https://photos.app.goo.gl/l6vHgEro1F44mZkh2
Facebook photo album: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2042263129393764.1073741970.1429474537339296&type=1&l=641b74a1ea
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