Although this blog is primarily about my trips and travels, I have great expectations for what's possible. My friend Holly helped me get started, and Holly, your patient instruction WILL bear fruit, I promise. Holly asked me what I wanted my blog to do, and although I had an initial idea that it would document my travels, I know my aspirations are much greater. I'm hoping to be able to connect with family and friends, move my hand-written travel log online, store and share photos, and organize my pre-trip lists, documents and plans. A tall order to be sure.
So why Finding the Footpath? I'd love to tell you that I thought long and hard about this: that I laboured over exactly the right wording, while searching the internet for inspirational quotes, clever plays on words, or creative metaphors. The reality is quite different. When Holly offered to help she didn't tell me that I would need to name my blog before I could get started! So like so many things, this blog was named at the 11th hour.
Holly reminded me that I like to hike and we talked about the importance of walking as a means of discovering place and space, but in my life at home as well. I recounted the story of how sister Margaret and I were directionally-challenged on our self-guided walk along the coastline near Estaque in France last year. The trail was anything but clear. I recalled how in Istanbul, we sought and found a safe, certain route home from Taksim Square in new Istanbul to the Poem Hotel in the old city, in the dark of night. Intuition and a few familiar guideposts got us there. The footpaths were anything but clear, and that's how I feel just now as I launch this blog. So here's to finding the footpath! May it always be sufficiently elusive to be adventuresome, and clear enough to lead me back home.
