Vanille

I began my journey on Kenmore Ave by renting an electric divvy bike to visit one of my favorite stores in all of Lincoln Park, Vanille Patisserie. I glide swiftly down Fullerton Ave, feeling the tug of air against my side as passing cars accelerate past me. I reach an intersection on Fullerton directly next to DePaul’s music and theatre school. I know to continue straight to reach my destination but the city is bustling with cars today. I patiently wait for the roar of passing cars to cease and then continue on my journey as the red hand switches to the walking man.

I begin pedaling and instantly feel the pedal assist of the electric bike switch on, I accelerate while barely pedaling and see the once clear road markings turn into blurs of white and yellow as I speed up. I turn onto a much more secluded and residential road where the bakery resides. I park my electric bike on a nearby bike rack and proceed to enter the shop. I’m greeted by pleasant sights and aromas as soon as I enter. My eyes carry me towards my favorite sweet treat, fruit cheesecake. The incredibly friendly employee greets me with a wonderful attitude and asks if it’s my first time visiting. I reply that I love this pace and come often, they still offer me samples, the customer service is unmatched. I step outside after making my purchase and eat it at a nearby table. I begin to watch as I eat, to scope out who looks interesting to trail for my walk today. I chose a mother and son who entered the shop a few minutes after I did, once they finished eating I waited for a minute and then began to follow.

They head to Cummings playground right down the street from the bakery. I decide to observe from a bench inside the park, my eyes wander from family to family and I notice myself smiling as I see what I haven’t in so long, childhood innocence and joy. I see a child dressed as Spider-Man climbing and jumping from the different elements of the playground. I see a twin brother and sister in incredibly cute coordinating outfits with matching masks. I’m reminded of my childhood, much of which was spent on the playground in my hometown. I see children climbing on top of the play-set and am reminded of when I fell off a similar one as a child and broke my elbow. I wonder how I will be as a parent. Will I be scared for my child’s health or let them learn their own lessons and make their own choices within reasonable bounds. The family I followed begins to leave the park so I follow at a reasonable distance. The streets seem happy and full of new life.

I see many new young families and I get excited for them. I continue down the street and the family turns and walks up the stairs of a red brick apartment building where I have to assume they live. I reflect on my observations from my walk as I walk down the rest of the street. I loved my walk today. (536)

Lists are a necessity, and an undervalued part of life in my opinion. Lists make sense of what is a constantly confusing and tricky world, they bring order and structure to the chaos of life. If we are able to break down our complex issues in our lives, in our jobs, in our transportation, then we begin to be able to take on larger challenges more easily, we become much more prepared. Walking inspires ideas, a walker sees a grocery store or someone wearing a piece of clothing and becomes inspired in one of many ways. The more we walk, the more we experience, and large cities provide great incentive to walk. The more we experience, the more we have to break down and analyze by creating lists to solve our problems one at a time. Cities bring people, people crave to wander, wandering inspires the people, the people begin to list their wants, needs, tasks, and all sorts of other things.