Powerlessness and Pedestrianism

This summer while at home in Kalamazoo, MI, I tried to avoid driving a car as often as possible. For me this meant that I rode my bike quite a bit, and walked on several occasions. Why?

There are several advantages to walking or biking:
1) You don't pollute your local air with exhaust from an automobile that runs on gasoline.
2) The exercise is excellent overall for your health.
3) You are more in touch with your surroundings. You take better notice of whatever you pass and get a sense that "this is your town," instead of just the insignificant route to your destination.
4) You breathe fresh (well, sometimes) air.
5) You realize that your legs are good for something, and very useful!

One excursion this summer, however, proved to be very enlightening for me.

I had an eye appointment 2.4 miles from my house, and I decided to take the bus. It was necessary to walk a short distance from my house to the bus stop at which I boarded, and from the bus stop at which I got off to the eye doctor's office. The majority of my route was along the busiest, most commercial road in Kalamazoo and Portage (Westnedge Avenue). Thus, I walked beside 4 lanes of 35mph traffic - the first reminder of my powerlessness. Almost everybody else on the road was going 31mph faster than I, so they would get to their destinations sooner than I. If one of them for any reason had turned the wheel a bit too far in my direction, I would have been toast; they had more momentum than I.

The bus stop was farther from my house than I had imagined, so once I realized this I hussled to make it their on time. Second reminder of my powerlessness - I could miss the bus, and (if there were not a drivable vehicle in my nearby driveway) easily be late for my appointment.

As I neared my destination, and especially as I got off the bus, it occured to me how far away I was from home (in terms of both distance and time). [Okay, in reality 2.4 miles is not that far; but I didn't know the distance at the time (it felt like 4 miles), and the scenery (commercial highway) was very different from that of my neighborhood.] What if something bad happened to me? What if (for some reason) I "needed" to get home immediately? My third reminder of powerlessness - there was no "immediately." I could not drive myself anywhere quickly if desired or necessary. Since I had a cell phone with me, I suppose I could have called home if I had to. But what if I were without a phone? I would just have to wait for the bus to come, or start walking homeward.

As I rode the bus, I recognized none of my fellow passengers, and tried to delight in watching them interact with one another. But a twisted voice within me asked, "Why are you riding the bus? You don't have to. You can afford to drive a car; you deserve to." I tried to reason against this voice: "No, I cannot afford to drive a car, and driving a car does not make me a better human being. As an asset it only gets me places farther and faster, carrying more, making my life easier and more comfortable. But it does not make my life any richer. As a liability it only costs me bundles of money, puts me at a greater risk of participation in an auto accident, increases my contribution to local pollution, and fosters a false sense of power, self-confidence, wealth and freedom." And so in a fourth and final sense I realized that my current inability to afford a car of my own gave me a sense of powerlessness.

My point is this: I wonder if always driving an automobile to get to our destinations does not give us unnecessary power, and rob us of a humble sense of our own humanity. When we walk, we cannot traverse great distances in a short amount of time; we cannot move lots of people or weight at the press of a pedal and at the cost of clean air; we cannot keep ourselves insulated from the world around us to be ignored. Rather, when we walk we are reminded of what it is to be without power and advantage; we are reminded of one way in which most humans are alike - that God has given us two legs with which to walk, to go only so fast, and to take up only so much space on this earth for so little time.

I don't hate automobiles - to a certain extent they are necessary and helpful. But as Americans we will consume oil until it runs out, and we have filled our atmosphere with more carbon dioxide than ever before. We can get to more places faster, but we have forgotten how to enjoy the outdoors, our communities, a walk around the neighborhood, and our neighbors.

As for me, I'm waiting to be convinced that I need an automobile. As for you and me, let's be human and go for a walk.

Any thoughts?
- Have you ever felt powerless without an automobile or some other modern convenience?
- How does technology influence your life for good or bad?
- When was the last time you were reminded of your humanness?