Friends, I come to you today with the most wonderful opportunity

We spend a third of our life sleeping.
Let’s call that point A.
And another third at work. Point B.
The final third is spent going between the two.

So many options are available:
There exists, beneath our very feet,
a subterranean network of locomotives.
But why look beyond our feet?

Everyone’s got a walk.
Be it a gangster lean
or the no-self-esteem stoop,
everyone’s got game.
Even the under-fives
are in on the action.

People ramble, sure, they hike,
they jog, run and powerwalk.
But that’s all just footnotes.

The start up costs are low, my friends.
Most of us already own the equipment.

Who’s that dangerous mover
crossing the road without looking?
He makes love like he walks, they say:
that’ll be slow, rhythmical
and without imagination.
Oh, nice triple-drain axel, guy
– work them pigeon-toes!

And here’s another cool thing: as a walker,
you can occupy emotions
other fads can’t touch:
ever tried being wistful on rollerskates?
Ever seen a mournful downhill skier?
Ever seen someone on a waterslide
look lost and alone in this world,
nothing left but the stolid throb
of their blistered feet on the railway sleepers?
Didn’t think so.

You want slogans?
I got slogans!

Walking: it’s going places!

Don’t be a baby – get Walking!

Walking: bringing people together since we diverged from apes!

Walking: it’s like jogging, but without the jogging!

Most people catch a flight to try and discover
somewhere new. I urge them to look closer
at the spaces they already occupy.
Have you ever walked, slowly,
with the heavy steps of a headmaster,
around your flatmate’s room,
picking things up and smelling them?
No!? Well, you’ve got no reason
to buy flights to Brazil then!

Walking’s one of those things,
as soon as you think about it
you start seeing it everywhere.
Out on the street – someone walking,
in a corridor – someone walking,
on a coastal path – someone walking.

So how do you separate yourself
on the modern pavement?
Some people think it’s the shoes
that count. That six-inch heels
raise you above your peers.
Or high-tops put you up-top.
Not so easy, friends.
There’s more to walking
than just left foot right foot
in a pair of Air Jordans.

Here’s the secret. Real Walkers,
those who walk,
are in touch
with the surface of the earth.
Each step is its own destination:
a city, built in a moment,
and dismantled just as fast.
You can hear the mechanism
if you listen very close.

Don’t get left behind, friends.

There is somewhere better
than where you currently are.

Take a step back
then take your first step forward.