Active Adults Have Time To Perfect Their Saunters

Anyone who has ever visited Mackinac Island in Michigan’s Lake Huron knows that the 3.8-square-mile resort is one of the few places left untouched by automobiles. Travel is limited to horse and buggy, bicycle, or foot-power, which is why in the 1970s, W.T. Rabe, who served as public relations director for the island’s Grand Hotel, created “World Sauntering Day,” to encourage people to slow down to Mackinac Time. 

“Sauntering” is not just any mode of walking. No, Rabe described it as “to walk slowly, preferably with a joyful disposition.” According to experts on the art of sauntering, it is a style of walking that is casual, slow and aimless, yet stylish, and it has been practiced by some well-known historical figures in the art of slowing down, most notably naturalist writers Henry David Thoreau and John Burroughs. 

Celebrated every year on the 19th of June, World Sauntering Day reminds us to slow down and enjoy life, rather than rushing through it with little thought and many distractions. In fact, it is one “holiday” that seems tailor-made for Active Adults. 

Despite the misleading moniker, Active Adults have earned their right to slow down, take time to smell the roses, pursue lifelong dreams of travel, learn a creative skill, visit old friends (and meet new ones), or perhaps simply sleep late and enjoy the richness every moment brings. 

Windsong communities are designed for those who seek to saunter, with wide sidewalks along private streets, and front porches that invite saunterers to stop and visit with their neighbors. Unlike Mackinac, Windsong communities are easily accessible by automobile, and boast two-car garages with plenty of space to store bicycles, sauntering shoes, even motorcycles or a golf cart, in addition to vehicles. (There’s probably space for a horse and buggy, too, although community covenants don’t allow for livestock!) 

We invite you to come and perfect your saunter, stroll, or stride at Windsong – Where Life’s A Breeze!