Walking was an activity my friend of 40 years and I had done in many places. Two years before her death, I asked her what she would like to do during one of my visits. She chose to walk the Hudson River Pedestrian Bridge in New York State. 

We drove to the Hudson River Valley and enjoyed the beautiful, green countryside. Another blog post recalls that visit. Upon our arrival, we walked a local park trail. While she was limited in her amount of energy needed for walking per day, my friend put one foot in front of another and moved on. I saw the tremendous effort she put forth. Her body had been ravaged by chemotherapy, etc. in the previous year. She was not one to complain. But it was imperative I read her body language by the day we decided to walk the pedestrian bridge.

The Hudson River Pedestrian Bridge is the longest elevated bridge in the world; 1.28 miles in length. I am walking the bridge once again now, but alone. My friend died 2 years ago today. In memory of her, I chose to walk this bridge, out and back.

As I walked the bridge, memories flooded my brain. Numerous fun times my friend and I had during our long friendship. Moments of joy, then sadness swept over me since it was also a recollection of our walk 2 years ago. This day I was not physically 100% . I had a couple of antibiotics newly prescribed to me by the ER doctor the day before. But I knew I would complete this entire walk. 

When my friend and I walked here 2 years ago, we walked from one end of the bridge to the middle. The next day, I drove us to the other end of the bridge to walk once again to the middle. Her footsteps walked the entire bridge within the 2 days. Here I was to walk the bridge and recall our time in the Hudson River Valley. She also exemplified the tenacity of completing a goal no matter not being 100%. I too knew I would walk the entire bridge on this day in her honor. I am so thankful for the years of friendship and the wonderful memories we created. She is missed by me so often; however, I do know we impacted each other’s lives. To give oneself so whole-heartedly into a friendship is wonderful and memorable.