Night Walks & Old Roads

Written By Coach Vida

I was walking the Santa Monica Pier at night,just the sound of the water, the lights reflecting off the ocean, people passing by without really seeing each other. One of those quiet, in-between moments where you’re not performing, not explaining… just moving.

And then I learned something that stopped me. This is where U.S. Route 66 ends. Not somewhere far away. Not in a textbook. Right here. In my own backyard.

A road that carried people across the country, dreams, desperation, second chances, ends at the same place I was casually walking through at night.

And then another layer: E. C. Segar, the creator of Popeye, built his characters from people he observed near places like this, real faces, real personalities, turned into something lasting.

It made me pause. Because history isn’t just something we visit. It’s something we leave behind. And if that’s true… then I have a history too.

Not all of it clean. Not all of it something I’d proudly display on a sign. There are moments I’d redo if I could. People I may have hurt before I knew better. Versions of myself that didn’t understand what I understand now.

But standing there, at the end of a road that carried so many lives forward, I realized something:

You don’t get to go back and reroute the beginning. But you do get to decide what your road looks like from here.

We can’t erase what we’ve done. But we can build something new on top of it, something honest, something stronger, something worthy of being remembered differently.

Maybe even worthy of earning back the respect of the people we once stepped on. That’s the work. Not pretending the past didn’t happen… but choosing to become someone who wouldn’t make those same choices again.

If Route 66 can carry a story across decades and still mean something at the very end, then maybe our lives can too.

Maybe the goal isn’t perfection. Maybe it’s building a story that, when someone traces it back, they can see the growth. And say, they learned.

I want to be able to say the same, that I learned.

This is what it looked like… but the real walk was happening inside. Watch below.

Journal Prompt: The Road Behind Me, The Road Ahead

Think about your personal “Route 66”, the path that brought you to where you are today.

  • What moments or decisions shaped the person you’ve become?

  • Are there parts of your past you wish you could redo or understand differently?

  • Who were you then… and who are you now?

Now shift your focus forward:

  • What kind of story do you want to build from this point on?

  • What would it look like to live in a way that earns your own respect?

  • If someone followed your journey from here, what would you want them to say about your growth?

Close with this:

Write a few lines beginning with:
“I can’t go back, but I can…”

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Coach Vida

Coach Vida is the voice behind FormaFit Active a movement journal rooted in mindful motion, real gear, cultural pride, and showing up without apology.
She believes in slow mornings, walking when it hurts, and building strength that feels like freedom.

Her motto: You don’t have to look like an athlete to move like one.

She writes from Los Angeles, with a speaker clipped on and sunscreen always in the bag. This journal is for anyone reclaiming energy, stretch by stretch.

Coach Vida es la voz detrás de FormaFit Active, un diario de movimiento con raíces en el cuerpo, la cultura y la intención.
Cree en moverse con calma, en estirarse cuando duele, y en la fuerza como libertad.

Su lema: No tienes que parecer atleta para moverte como uno.

Escribe desde Los Ángeles, con su bocina a un lado y bloqueador en la mochila.
Este espacio es para quienes se están reclamando, paso a paso.

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