Mavis Gallant

I'm back from my first walk. I walked around the block. 1.5 hours. I listened to a Writer's & Company CBC podcast. An interview with Mavis Gallant. It was very good. Mavis is 86 years old. Mavis explained what life was like for her in the early 1920's. At the age of 4, she was placed in a convent school down the street from her house. Her parents got rid of all her toys slowly. At the age of 10, her father died. They didn't tell her until she was 13. They told her he was in England. She waited three years for him to return. A friend of her mother's told her in passing on the street. Her mother died soon after and she never got any answers as to why she was placed in the convent. What was going on at home.

It is so nice going for walks and listening to my iPod. It was semi cold but the wind was the thug. The trail has a stretch that has no trees. The wind has its way with your face here. The rest of the trail is covered in giant trees whose canopies block out the sky. The wind leaves you alone here. Under the protection of the trees, you can enjoy the feeling of fresh cold air invigorate you from your Christmas vacation lethargy. Heavy food, lots of baking and a warm house will do that to you.

Which is why I need to walk.