To the Pond ... and Back

On the morning of Friday, October 23, I left my driveway and began the journey to Walden Pond.  I arrived at Walden at 9 AM on the morning of Saturday, October 24 -- in a state of tranquil disbelief.

I have been home now since the evening of Wednesday, October 28, and that feeling is only just now beginning to dissipate.  I am still processing, still understanding, and still smiling.

Believe me when I say from the bottom of my heart that I could not have done it without you.

At the time I set out on my pilgrimage, it was my intention to blog each and every day.  I quickly realized, however, that I did not have the brain power or time to spare -- that writing, and editing pictures, would take up finite and valuable resources.  In short, it became clear that if I blogged every day, I would have nothing to blog about, because I wouldn't be able to do much else.

So I took notes.  Lots and lots and lots of notes.  I scribbled things down, and took tons of pictures, and recorded verbal snippets into my iPhone.  I tried to upload some of what I was experiencing onto my Instagram account, using the #WaldenPilgrimage hashtag (and sharing it on my Facebook page).  But I knew that the writing -- the real sharing of the experience -- would have to wait until I got home.

I'm home now, with my notes, pictures, scribbles, (and the flu, but that's okay), and I'm putting together the blog posts I would have loved to have shared with you while I was away.  I will be backdating the posting dates so that it will be just like it would have been in "real time."

And again -- thank you, from the bottom of my heart.

It's Like This.

It's down to the last sixty hours of my Walden Calling campaign.  Thank you so much to everyone who has contributed and shared so far.  For those who may be looking for the link, it's www.igg.me/at/waldencalling.

Part of the reason it's going to be costly for me to go is because I have to take so much rest time, and that means spreading it out over twelve days (and therefore twelve nights' accommodations).

The largest reason I am doing this trip is so that people can see what it's like to live with a brain injury.  It is a constant juggling act between what one has to do, what one wants to do, and how much rest one needs in order to be able to do much of anything.  When the brain decides it's done for the day, it's DONE.  The best we can do with our limitations is try to work around them, often feeling we are letting down our friends, family, employers ...  People don't understand, and are often hard on us while we are already being hard on ourselves. 

We have to "live deliberately," as Thoreau says, because if we don't, we have no quality of life at all.  What is essential?  What is too complicated? 

"Simplify," indeed.

"Why do you have to go to Walden? Don't you have lots of woods in New Brunswick?"

Yes, we have woods in New Brunswick.  I've been spending time in solitude in the woods of New Brunswick since I was five years old! :)

There isn't just one reason I need to visit Walden Pond.

- In rereading Walden after the brain injury, there is a real resonance within me as I read.  The ideas of simplicity, and focusing on what truly matters, and what it really means to be alive have taken on a whole new meaning.  I need to stand where Thoreau stood.  It is a compulsion -- there is no other word for it.

- My self-faith shattered when I was hit by the car.  Travelling to a place I have never been before, under my own power (driving my car), in a different country, away from all friends and family will go a long way towards repairing that sense of trust in myself.  My head knows I will be just fine.  My gut needs me to prove it.

- In planning the nonfiction book Crossing the Street (about my journey since the accident), I didn't know how to end it.  But I had a sense that I would know the final chapter when I saw it.  This moment this pilgrimage came to me, I knew.  This trip to Walden -- and beginning the writing of the book in the room where Thoreau himself was born -- is that final chapter.  It is the culmination of the journey, the changes in mindset and attitude, the standing on my own again.

I must go to Walden.

Hello, Everyone!

I hope this note finds you well. :)

I know it has been a little quiet here since I first launched.  One of the lingering effects of my brain injury is that I can sometimes get overwhelmed easily.  The flood of offers of (sometimes quite expensive) services to my campaign in-box was unexpected!  If I had $300 to spend on such things, my campaign goal would be $300 less than it is.  I calculated that figure of $3500 to be the amount I actually need to make this happen.

My seasonal job has begun picking up, and although I only work a couple of days a week at this point, it has been quite tiring.  My job involves carefully watching my environment and talking constantly for up to eight hours a day. 

If you have never had a brain injury, it is difficult to appreciate just how much information the brain takes in minute by minute -- all of those colours and shapes and shadows and movement.  And that's just visual stimuli!  Brains are amazing things, and when one's grey matter is still repairing itself, all that data coming in over a prolonged period of time can really kick the stuffing out of it!  So I have to rest for a day or two both before and after each day I work.  But I really love what I do, and the fact is that I am able to do it when I couldn't have a year ago.  So I will gladly take care of myself the way I need to in order to do it.

But that's why you haven't heard from me in a bit.  I will do better. :)

Be well, my friends.  And remember -- if you can't contribute personally, sharing my campaign so that others see it helps tremendously.  Your support is so appreciated!

-- Karen

Indiegogo Campaign is Now Live!

Well, I did it.  I bit the bullet, trusted my heart, and took a leap.

In my heart of hearts, I know that this is what I am to do.  But taking what I feel inside and putting it on display for the world and hoping they will understand...  Well, that is the daunting part!

I will be putting a button in the sidebar shortly, but for now, please use this link to go see the campaign!