Thoughts While Walking to and From Class -Elise Gunteski #5

 Usually I am always listening to music or movies. Whether walking to class or doing homework, I always have at least one earbud in. However, on my way to and from class at the Lion's Bridge, I chose silence. I usually feel uncomfortable without my music, but it wasn't always like that. I used to be able to sit in the woods for hours and just listen to the leaves, the beetles, and whatever animal wandered by. At some point I chose to stop noticing. After I moved from the woods, I bought ear buds to fill the silence. I was no longer interested in noticing. Last Thursday I decided to walk without music or distractions. This was partly due to safety and partly due to me realizing that I needed to reconnect. I began to see more and feel more. The ear buds were a wall to the outside world that I had put up. The more I walked, the more I felt that the static was dissipating. Once I got to class I stood by the water under a tree and listened to the wind for the first time in a long time. On my way back I noticed so much. From the three black  snakes to the squirrels interested in my granola bar to the flowers I have never seen before. I used to love listening to the world around me. It makes me wonder what happened to make me turn away from it. Is this lack of noticing self-inflicted or encouraged by my surroundings? Is it a symptom of growing up, or is it a piece of wonderment that needs to grow and develop with myself? Have others lost this piece of themselves and need to regain it?

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