christopherjboyce

The final night?

And here I am tucked up in my tent for what should be the final night of this journey…

I’m about 20kms away from Croydon. That’s just one more day of walking. All the way from Edinburgh.

I’m not sure what tomorrow will bring, but today has been a day that’s had so much of what I’ve experienced throughout this journey. Many miles, hot sun, rivers and fields, clear paths and overgrown paths, connection and solitude, anxiety and joy. Once again I’ve felt the blessedness of life in my bones and my breath.

But the sadness of a journeys end has been building. Especially after I managed to let go of needing to reach Croydon last week, slowed down yet again, and the journey has opened up. I have been enjoying myself more than ever.

There is the relief too. That I won’t have to deal with the challenges of the road anymore. Now I can get home and distill the wisdom and put it all into daily practice.

Thank you to all those that came with me. And also to those that met me along the way xx

*** This blog post is part of series of blog posts for my Journey About Home in which I walked from Edinburgh to where I grew up in south London. For an overview of the journey and links to other blog posts I wrote whilst I journeyed go to this page.

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Published by christopherjboyce

Christopher is a happiness and wellbeing expert with over 15 years professional experience. He currently works as a consultant, is an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Stirling, a Wellbeing Economy Alliance Research Fellow, and a member of the World Wellbeing Panel. As an academic from 2005 to 2017 he explored how the economy contributes to individual and national happiness and wellbeing. However, in 2017 he left academia to go on a cycling pilgrimage to Bhutan and wrote a book about his journey titled, ‘A Journey for Happiness: The Man Who Cycled to Bhutan’. The book is available on his blog.

4 comments

  1. Final steps on a long journey home, filled with e-motions…I am just remembering those early morning East Croydon walks after moving feet to the sounds of the Underground…cheese & coleslaw sarnies and a cup of tea, was blissful…treat yaself to one, bro, on the Duppas hillside, Zoe racing to us on the bottom, get them squizzers…and the road that barely stops for a crossing…so many memorie coming up, sledding down the hill…😅 Remember when Uncle John brought some skies, or has my mind just made that up 😂 What a Home, the Croft in the Hill, where young Princes were raised, together, bonding in the howling winds of ’87, was it? Oh that poor tree that touched Dad’s car, or was it a van…the yellow van 😆 The smell of it…a tear in my eye, to hold cast depths with you, has been the upmost blessing in my life 🧬 Go boldly, son, the dream is yet to end xXx

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  2. Bless you my son I hope the journey fulfils your need ,but it has changed a lot down there ,treasure the memories ,ah the end of the quest ,well down ,love always Dad xx

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  3. Enjoy being home !

    I get a fairly good idea what it means to you to be out and about or as the indigenous people in Australia would say, on ” walkabout ” …… but I wonder what arriving or being at home means to you?

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