The feet of those who bring good news

Breslau congregation attempts to 'walk across Canada'

Sept. 21 was a beautiful day for a walk. The Breslau Mennonite Church sanctuary buzzed with noise as people clipped pedometers to their belts. Parish nurse Karen Good had hers on already.

"How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, 'Your God reigns!'" Good quoted from Isaiah 52:7 to the congregation before listing many of the benefits of walking. The goal of the church's health cabinet and parish nurse ministry was to get the congregation to cumulatively walk across Canada-more than 8,500 kilometres-from Sept. 21 to Oct. 12.

People walk to slow down and enjoy a more relaxed pace while talking with a friend, Good said. Families and friends hike together, exploring the nature of the great outdoors. People walk for pleasure, or to get in shape or stay in shape. Some use walking as therapy for injured muscles or troubled feelings. All-in-all, walking has lots of health benefits, including reducing elevated blood fats and blood pressure, improving digestion and strengthening bones. People's carbon footprints are reduced when they walk to the grocery store instead of driving.

Ten thousand steps a day is considered necessary for a healthy life style. With 1,300 average stops to the kilometre, the congregation had a lot of stepping ahead on that first Sunday. But with lovely weather outside and a soup fundraiser lunch in the offing, the congregation stepped out to get a head start.

In the end, Breslau congregants walked a total of 4,850 kilometres, a little short of their goal, but Good's real hope is that they will develop patterns of walking that they can keep up in the months and years to come.

[Author Affiliation]

BY DAVE ROGALSKY

Eastern Canada Correspondent

BRESLAU, ONT.