I Climbed Mountains to Learn These

In my previous blog, I mentioned how hiking has been very helpful in terms of distilling the barrage of thoughts that constantly plague my overthinking brain.

These are some of the things that are not rocket science, not profound and not even new; but I, literally, had to climb mountains to learn and truly grasp what they meant.

• Start  and end with a prayer.  Make sure to pray for good weather! (San Rafael comes in very handy here).
• Prepare.  Find out what you can about the trail; check weather conditions; bring what you will need.
• You'll get there.
• Take the first step.  Then, the next.  One step at a time.
• Know your capabilities and your limits.
• Take risks, but safety first.
• Take breaks, as frequently as you need them. ("Let's take 5!").  Breathe deeply.
•  Enjoy the view.  Enjoy the journey. Don't focus too much on the trail.  Look up every now and then. Look back, too.  Some of the nicest views I've seen are from looking back.
• Hydrate and eat smartly.
• Pack light.  The hike is so much easier without excess baggage.
• It is not a competition. Respect your own speed and others'.
• Choose your company well. Ideally, someone (individuals) --
• headed in the same direction
• who makes you comfortable in your own skin (read: someone you can be totally honest with and vice versa)
• who understands and respects you (note: not necessarily someone who thinks exactly like you do)
• you have similar interests with, but also different enough to expand you
• who energizes you (a.k.a. NOT toxic)
• Interact.  You will not always meet these individuals again.  Learn from them.  Share what you can.
• Respect differences.  Remember that we are all looking at the world through different lenses.
• Lend a hand to those who need it.
• Ask for help, when you need it. 
• Stretch your limits. You can always do more than you thought you could.
• When you feel like giving up, weigh your options.  Check how far you've gone vs. how far you are from the summit.  And, sometimes, giving up is not an option.  (We don't have helicopters to pick you up and fly you back to the jump off point).
• When you're lost, stay put, call for help and wait for help to come.
• Trust and follow your guides.

In a nutshell:  It is the journey, not the destination.

Do not focus too much on getting to the summit or the destination.  It is often in the trails where I find the most interesting things and views.  This is one of my regrets from a recent hike I took with a friend (especially since it's a place I will likely not have a chance to go back to).  He (and other friends who have been there) said that the farthest lagoon and another trail are unremarkable, and the trek itself would be challenging because it's muddy. Now I am wondering if  I missed out on something beautiful along the way, just because I didn't even give it a chance. 

 

Take the time to fully experience the hike.  Sit on that rock. Lean on a tree. See, smell, touch and feel your surroundings.  

Stop and chat with the people in the communities you pass by.  Ask about their life.  In these conversations, I marvel at how simple and happy their lives are. Yes, there is a lot of difficult manual labor.  But they do not have the kind of worries or stress that keep them awake through the night.  Sometimes I want to live like them. 

Start that conversation and get to know the other hikers.  This is a challenge for me.  The thing is, I find small talk tiresome and a tad useless, so I don't often engage.  I'm amazed at how some people can stretch small talk for hours, but then you walk away not really knowing the other person at all.  So, strike up a real conversation! The truth is, I'm not a stellar conversation starter either.  It is much easier for me to listen to people or answer questions.   I guess it comes from sometimes feeling uncomfortable with direct/too-personal-for-comfort questions from people I hardly know. I don't want to put people in the same uncomfortable situation, so I just wait for them to share whatever they are comfortable sharing.  You can imagine how this becomes quite a problem when I'm stuck with a fellow introvert.  Thus, I have resolved to be brave and start real conversations with fellow hikers I want to get to know better.  

The summit will be there when you get there.  True.  It is a different high reaching the summit.  But it's only as fulfilling as the effort it took to get there.  Some summits are worth it.  Some summits are not.  But the journey itself, the sights we see, the conversations and stories of fellow hikers and the experiences we go through together --- these are ALWAYS worth it.  These are the ones that we relive and retell to others after the hike.  So, just relax , slow down a bit and enjoy the trek.  

(Photos from our Mt. Manalmon hike with #TrailAdventours #ShareLifeOutdoors )