Most of us are fully aware that walking is good for us. We listened politely while our parents or grandparents told apocryphal stories about walking miles to school or to visit neighbors or to buy groceries or to attend church. But for the most part, we simply shrug off their old-timey tales and crank up the car when we need to run a few errands.

Several months ago, my husband and I agreed that we would try to walk a mile together every day. No excuses.

Actually, it has been a very mild winter, with (unfortunately) very few rainy days and no snow or ice to contend with. There have not been many days when being outdoors could be considered a serious challenge.

However, I have an aversion to walking outdoors when the wind is particularly frisky. Wearing a scarf or pulling up a hood just isn’t to my liking.

So, since the fabled winds of March began at least several weeks earlier than usual this year, we have opted quite a few days recently to do our walking in the indoor comfort of the Medical Mall that is located across Bright Leaf Boulevard from Johnston Memorial Hospital.

The Medical Mall was for many decades the site of Burlington Industries, where hundreds of workers operated the complex machinery of a once-vibrant and seemingly permanent textile industry. The parking lots were full, the snack room was filled with chatty workers, and the steady thrum of heavy machinery seemed indigenous to that part of town. The cluster of mill village homes, occupied by the mill’s workers, was as much a part of the town as the Post Office or the Courthouse.

But for several years now, the textile elements of the old Burlington plant have vanished. The sturdy brick building still looks much the same from the outside, and there are still a lot of cars parked out front. Inside, however, the machines that made fabrics were long ago shipped away to places where the costs of doing business were lower. Local Burlington employees, once so loyal and vigorous, gradually dispersed to other ways of life.

The highly polished wood floors where the heavy machinery once stood have become a favored place for people seeking exercise to stride or walk or limp or hobble as they are able. Around and around the walkers go, nodding to one another and giving smiles of encouragement. Some move slowly, painfully trying to recover from injuries. Others stride along swiftly. The temperature inside is comfortable, Muzak plays in the background, benches are available for those who must rest or opt to chat with friends, and the Cyber Café is a pleasant spot to grab lunch or to enjoy a cup of coffee. HealthQuest, the fitness club where serious (and not so serious) fitness buffs can exercise, swim, play handball and use the equipment, draws the largest group of clientele to the Medical Mall. They trickle in all day long, jauntily carrying gym bags that contain swimsuits or other equipment their choice of sport might require.

Once inside the old industrial site, many other services are easily accessible, including a QuickMed office, a day-care center for children, Johnston Medical & Surgical Supply, Johnston Cancer Center, the Johnston Therapeutic Wound Clinic, an outpatient radiology office, a physical rehab center, Beltone, Caring Hands at Home (a division of the hospital’s Home Care & Hospice agency) and a number of other agencies.

Smithfield’s favorite place for doing a few laps (walking only — no jogging or running permitted) is a comfortable, friendly atmosphere for those of us who occasionally prefer to walk indoors.

Burlington Industries already seems like ancient history — almost as if it never happened. But as a place to walk and as a place to seek healing, the old plant is still doing its part.