4/10/20
San Diego, Indiana.?
Mix in a little sunshine, warmth, and a pandemic in Central Indiana and what do you get….San Diego. Have you ever been to San Diego..? I have, a few times. When visiting San Diego for the first time, I quickly noticed a distinct difference between Central Indiana when it came to the way they do life….outside. They walk, they run, they bike, they hike, they swim, they surf, and walk their dogs. They are almost always outside…everywhere you go. It’s refreshing to see and experience when you visit San Diego. The first time my wife and I visited San Diego, she loved it so much, she called her parents, who were watching our children, and requested she pack up all of our belongings, and the children, and send them out. We were staying..!!
With the country and the world shutdown during this pandemic, certainly you have noticed. Central Indiana has become …San Diego. People are outside….everywhere….in Central Indiana. They are walking, running, biking, rollerblading, hiking, walking their dogs, etc. It’s really quite nice to see and experience here at home. Feels a lot like visiting ….well, San Diego. I hope the difference I am seeing in Central Indiana sticks around a lot longer than the pandemic.
In Central Indiana, we Hoosiers are well aware of how much better we feel, both PHYSICALLY and MENTALLY, when we exercise and simply get outside and move. It cannot be denied when we do it, and we know it. Our bodies, minds, and endorphins tell us it is so. Yet, we do not do these activities nearly as much as we should. Like they do in San Diego. Does it take a pandemic for us to reacquaint ourselves with this truth and stick to it…? Maybe.
I hope, for the physical and mental well-being of all those in Central Indiana and throughout the United States, we re-visit the need to get outside and move as an easy, healthy way to feel better. We need it both physically and mentally every day, every week. I hope long after the pandemic, we continue to get outside and do these activities, kicking in the much needed endorphins we have reacquainted ourselves with.
I hope we continue to look a bit more like …San Diego.