Neighborhood Notes: Walking to school energizes neighborhood

By PAUL WIEMAN

Every morning, at least every day when school is in session, a renewable energy source in the form of children walking to school happens in front of my house. Kids heading up the hill to Katonah Elementary School are almost bursting with energy; it’s as if they are little atoms with a few too many electrons, barely able to contain themselves.  

And what’s great about this little scene is that it somehow adds kinetic energy to the neighborhood. It’s as if those extra electrons spin off the children and find me. I know that I feel a little bit younger, a little bit more energized, and a little bit more active with every student passing by. Kids appear excited to go to school, are seeking their friends for the walk up the hill, and eager to see their teachers. 

They call across the street, run to catch up, wait for a friend … all of it is organic and dynamic, and it is a daily wonder to see and experience. 

Some are walking alone, some with siblings and friends, some with a parent, some walking alongside a stroller.  Often, a dog accompanies the daily routine. For those so inclined, they run, and scooters are common. It’s just a great way to start the day, for the children and for me.

From my living room window, I can look up a long side street, a cul-de-sac of about 15 houses on each side of the road. Traffic up this street is rare, and drivers that do travel it tend to live on the street. It is a very safe road, completely straight with full vision of the entire stretch of the road for drivers and pedestrians.

A couple of years ago, the following vignette happened on a regular basis. As I looked up this side street, somewhere around 8:45 a.m., two girls, probably fifth graders, would emerge at the top of the street, meet in the middle, and start their walk to school down the road. A couple of houses later, a younger child would sprint out of a driveway and greet the two girls. After a few more houses, another child would join. The little ones did not maintain the straight, direct line of the older girls. They bounded about like puppies, running to greet the next addition to this parade, jumping into puddles, scurrying about, always coming back to the leaders who maintained their line in the middle of the street. Constant and steady, they anchored the group.

If a rare car turned to go up the street, it is the car who made room for the continuing parade, knowing who ruled the road at this time of day.

At the end of the street, the two older girls gathered everyone together, for now was the one true danger zone of the walk; they had to cross Huntville Road, not a busy street, but morning drop off traffic is traffic nonetheless, and attention must be paid. From where they stood, they could easily see over a hundred yards in either direction, and if no moving cars were in sight, they could execute a very safe passage. As a group, they looked to the left, then to the right, and when the older girls shouted “GO!” all five of them ran across the road as fast as they could. Once safely on the other side, they regrouped on the sidewalk, hustled up to the crossing guard, and headed off to the final leg to Katonah Elementary School.

In a world of helicopter and snowplow parenting, when it is rare to see young kids walking with their friends down a street, I enjoy these scenes and draw strength and energy and hope from them. Yes, tragedies happen, but they are truly rare. Enough parents are on the street at this time of day that the children walking without parents are not truly alone, even though they think they are. What I get to witness are young boys and girls flexing their muscles, physical and otherwise, and I like to think they are the better for it. The older girls got to lead a cluster of younger ones, modeling for them something adults can’t do nearly as well. Children on their own found friends, everybody got the exercise of an uphill walk, confidence abounds, and I start the day with a smile and feeling that something is right in this crazy world of ours.

Paul Wieman is a retired educator. His “Neighborhood Notes” column will offer occasional observations about the Katonah neighborhood he has lived in for 35 years.