A wise man was walking from one town to another with a few of his followers, and they happened to pass a lake. So they stopped there to rest for a while, and the wise man said to one of his followers, "Could you please get me some water from the lake? One of the followers walked to the lake. Some people were washing clothes in the water, and right at that moment, several carts(手推车) started crossing the lake. As a result, the water became very muddy(泥泞的).

Then he went back. and told the wise man that the water was very muddy and not good to drink. After they had rested for about half an hour, the wise man again asked the same follower to go back to the lake and get him some water to drink. And the follower went to the lake. This time he found that all the mud had settled to the bottom. The water was very clear and looked good to drink. So he filled his water bottle and took it to the wise man.

The wise man took the water bottle and drank, then looked up at the follower. “See what you did to make the water clean?" he said. "You let it be for a while and the mud settled down on its own, so that you could get some clear drinking water. Your mind can also be like that lake when it is disturbed by something. If you just let it be and give it a little time, it will most likely settle down on its own without you having to put in any effort at all to calm it.”

I’m a walker, happiest when I’m moving, especially somewhere with a view. I like the feeling when reaching the top of a mountain and looking out over the world. I like being filled with the sense that I am small and the world is big.

Like many of us, I’ve been caught inside the city limits（范围） through the pandemic（疫情）. The world has felt much too small for a long time.

Still, I’ve put in a lot of steps over the last year. I’ve walked through streets and parks and thought about nothing but the endless, never-changing road in front of me.

But finding the wild in the city has been the best walking discovery. Walking up hills, I’ve discovered the views of Don River running its way southward. I’ve met people setting up camping tents not far from the highway. I’ve found lots of wooden huts（小屋）, passed by washed-out roads and singing birds in the trees.

Before the pandemic, I found these wild places too urban（城市化） to be a choice for walking. Only when I couldn’t find time to visit the real wild lands, did I consider them as a replacement. And yet, I realize that I’ve changed.

These wild lands seem exactly right for me at this moment. Walking on the wild side seems like our new normal life. The pandemic has changed our lives. We are stuck in the same place, feeling bored and small, but also hopeful, trying hard to see the beauty in unexpected places.