People used to cut through fields, or walk alongside their borders, and children used to play in them, long ago. At least, that's what we read in books and see in period movies.
Try this: next time you're taking a walk on a country road, during a camping trip or a stay at a cottage, step off the path and walk into a field. When you get far from the road, crouch down and watch the tall stalks sway gently around you.
"But isn't the farmer going to come after me, yelling curses and brandishing his scythe, for daring to trespass on his property?" you may ask.
Probably not. Because he's most likely busy with things like running his farm and won't even notice you there. Anyway, it's not like you're going to ruin a field full of sturdy corn stalks. The worst thing that will probably happen is you'll get your shoes extremely wet and muddy.
Of course, if there's a sign that says "no trespassing," please respect it.
I was in Tuscany not long ago, and I loved to walk along the empty roads leading to the small, isolated hamlet where I was staying. These roads were bordered by miles of vineyards that were just too beautiful to resist. One evening, as the sun was setting and the clouds turned pink, I walked off the road and down a hill covered in rows of vines. When I got to the bottom, I closed my eyes, fought the unreasonable fear that someone would come and yell at me that I did not belong there, suburbanite that I am, and just listened to the sounds of nature around me. Tree branches of a nearby wood creaked in the wind, small animals scurried in the thicket, and night birds began to sing. I felt like I had traveled centuries back in time.
It didn't even matter to me that my shoes were caked in mud.
When is the last time you strayed off a paved road? Please leave a comment.
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