In the middle of Feb., Michiganders often experience a phenomenon called “false spring.” In between the melancholy, gray days of slush and incessant cloud cover, a few select days reach balmy 55 degrees and sunshine.
These days—as spring and summer approach—are senior Adriana Abreu’s favorite time of year.
“I think that ‘peak spring’ into summer is the best time ever on Earth, especially in Michigan,” Adriana said. “My neighborhood is very wooded. I feel like it’s just really pretty during that time of the year.”
The weather encourages Adriana’s biggest passion: walking. She tries to maintain a persistent streak of taking a mile to a mile-and-a-half walk each day, whether it be rain or shine. If the weather doesn’t cooperate, she chooses to go to the gym; however, the best experience results from a walk on her neighborhood trail.
“[My neighborhood trail] is very narrow to get into, and it’s heavily wooded for the first two minutes,” Adriana said. “But once you get out of that, then it’s completely clear, like people made it for walking. All the trees hang over [the trail], so there’s not a lot of light, but it looks really pretty when the sun’s shining in. And, there are flowers in the spring.”
Adriana began consistently taking walks when she moved into her neighborhood a few years ago. When she discovered the path behind her house, she invited her family to explore with her, beginning a tradition that has yet to cease.
Although she enjoys the company of her family and friends immensely, Adriana will sometimes choose to walk alone, immersed in the calm tedium of footsteps and the beauty of the scenery.
“It kind of feels like an escape,” Adriana said. “I can just put headphones on and think about all the things I have to do that day or reflect on what I’ve already done.”
These walks also provide Adriana with a chance to recharge her social battery, which is usually drained at the end of a school day. As an introvert, Adriana finds that perceiving one’s setting, particularly when watching other people, provides a singular peace of mind.
“I feel like I people-watch all the time,” Adriana said. “Especially because I’m introverted—I guess that’s more of a common trait with introverts. You sit and watch and observe your surroundings first, and then you talk.”
The greatest opportunity to people-watch comes with travel, which Adriana does as much as she can. Last April, she traveled to Mexico, and the summer before that, she ventured around Europe to Turkey, Greece, and Italy.
With each new location she visited, it was easy to pick up snippets of the culture and busy herself discovering new things.
“When you’re walking, you have so many things to look at,” Adriana said. “You look in the stores, read all the signs, and observe the locals. That’s fun to do as a tourist. It’s the whole point [of traveling].”
As Adriana looks to college, she hopes to find a campus that feels as walkable as Rome or Athens. Currently, her top choice is Indiana University Bloomington.
“I haven’t toured any colleges yet, but I know what they look like,” Adriana said. “My biggest one is IU [Indiana University], and I’ve heard that they have a lot of nice designated walking paths to walk around on campus.”
For Adriana, walking is efficient: it gives her tranquility and exercise while also raising her spirits. In the few years Adriana has been walking not only as a habit, but as an essential part of her life, she’s learned that having something to differentiate from the monotone everyday is paramount.
“Just find things that make you happy,” Adriana said. “Little things that you can incorporate in your day that don’t take very long. It makes a big difference.”
