With a 5:30 wake up, we got going pretty quickly, though I am still slower than most at putting myself together in the morning. It was a classic road walking day. Lots of opportunity for tedium that was wonderfully filled with witty banter, snarky sass, heart to heart conversations, debates, and morally heavy topics. We also had the privilege of Spoon Man's TED podcasts. They really rocked my world.
(Spoon Man accentuating the strangeness of this sign)
We did about 26 or 27 miles today. It was pretty straightforward walking, and it looks like it will be until we get closer to Grants. Straightforward does not mean easy, mind you. Road walking is hard on the legs. You'd think that flat terrain would be the best, but it is not.
Some little highlights today were getting water at trail angel's house in the morning. Really cool spot. They weren't home, so we didn't get to meet them or enjoy their cooking, which other hikers raved about.
We also met a man just before we finished for the day who gave us water and the weather report.
One of the segments on Spoon Man's Podcasts that we listened to was about living on the Edge. So it had interviews and clips from TED talks of explorers and those who push the limits of what is sane or reasonable. There was the woman who rowed across the Atlantic Ocean, the man who self-supported his trip to the North Pole, the man who explores the world's deepest caves, and the man who walked across a tight wire attached to the tops of the World Trade Centers in New York. The question was always, "Why?" Why do you want to row across an ocean? Why do you want to go through the fear and pain of exploring new places. The answer, aside from "because it is there,"was because overcoming adversity leads to growth.
When I was thinking about my "why" I didn't really have an answer, but these explorers explained it better than I could. We need discomfort to understand our potential. By inspiring ourselves, we inspire others. The power of these ideas is indescribable and the benefits of pursuing something like thru hiking or adventuring is beyond description. I feel like I earn the comforts of life outside of trail when I work this hard to become a better version of myself. It puts life into perspective, not just because you are so much closer to your mortality, but because the synthesized challenges of society cannot be taken seriously after you really connect with Life.
Being more in tune with the rhythms of my body, the wind and air, the ground and all its variations, the sky in its harshness and comfort, these are the powerful reasons why we come out here again and again and how we can continue to learn and grow by the simple act of putting one foot in front of the other over thousands of miles.
One of the segments on Spoon Man's Podcasts that we listened to was about living on the Edge. So it had interviews and clips from TED talks of explorers and those who push the limits of what is sane or reasonable. There was the woman who rowed across the Atlantic Ocean, the man who self-supported his trip to the North Pole, the man who explores the world's deepest caves, and the man who walked across a tight wire attached to the tops of the World Trade Centers in New York. The question was always, "Why?" Why do you want to row across an ocean? Why do you want to go through the fear and pain of exploring new places. The answer, aside from "because it is there,"was because overcoming adversity leads to growth.
When I was thinking about my "why" I didn't really have an answer, but these explorers explained it better than I could. We need discomfort to understand our potential. By inspiring ourselves, we inspire others. The power of these ideas is indescribable and the benefits of pursuing something like thru hiking or adventuring is beyond description. I feel like I earn the comforts of life outside of trail when I work this hard to become a better version of myself. It puts life into perspective, not just because you are so much closer to your mortality, but because the synthesized challenges of society cannot be taken seriously after you really connect with Life.
Being more in tune with the rhythms of my body, the wind and air, the ground and all its variations, the sky in its harshness and comfort, these are the powerful reasons why we come out here again and again and how we can continue to learn and grow by the simple act of putting one foot in front of the other over thousands of miles.
Beautiful ending! Keep it up sister.
ReplyDeleteThanks Khaled!!
Delete