Journeys of a flight attendant who got married and added my husband to my flight benefits. After traveling the world together one open seat at a time for 3 years we had a baby girl named Charlotte. Now we have a whole new world of adventure to explore together......
Summer, in Colorado, usually kicks off with my birthday in May. When I lived in Alabama summer usually crept in around March and lingered until September or sometimes even October. Unlike the south Colorado doesn't have a long stretch of hot summer days and it's not unusual for us to have snow here in May or September. When you love hiking 14ers like I do then the season seems even shorter so I always feel pressed to get in as much Colorado outdoors as I can while the weather is sweet. Last year Charlotte was only 6 weeks old when May rolled around so I felt cheated out of my usual summertime activities. I loved having all my time off with Charlotte but wasn't about to get out as much due to her being so little and breast feeding. This was my year of redemption, my summer of family, friends and fun. Adventures were to be had and I aimed to travel and explore as much as I could.
Well friends, I believe I succeeded in this task. I could write you a blog ten years long about all the amazing people I met, the experiences I had and the miles traveled. Or I could show you in photos because I believe these photos truly capture the heart of what my summer was. Fall has officially arrived so I feel it's the perfect opportunity to reflect back on these past few months...say good-bye to the hot summer days and welcome a new season of change.
Kicking off the summer...was my birthday celebrated with a surprise trip to Jackson Hole, Wyoming:
With a side trip to Yellowstone National Park and seeing Old Faithful.
There were many concerts at Red Rocks including my mom's first show there seeing One Republic
A trip to Michigan where my camera met it's fate in the lake
And two attempts before finally summiting Mt. of the Holy Cross 14,009ft
Many 4:14am wake-up calls to teach booty bootcamp, to climb the incline and run a 5k
And relaxing times in Monterey to visit my sister and brother in-law
But mostly there were a lot of weekends I spent driving and getting up at 3am to do this:
kit carson and challenger
pyramid peak
Mt. Harvard
Mt. Bierstadt
Five 14ers in one summer plus one repeat summit equals about 83 miles in mountain hiking on foot
Of course there was my yoga + hiking retreat in Telluride which pretty much capped off my Summer
This was the summer of sunrises, sunsets, mountains, traveling and adventure. Most and best of all I didn't let having a baby slow me down I let her strengthen me by joining us. She enjoyed plane rides, camping trips and oceans. Charlotte is the reason I get outdoors and enjoy my life so she in turn can enjoy hers and all this earth has to offer.
I've journeyed all over the world and I have to say there's nothing like coming home to Colorado. You don't have to go far for beautiful scenery, new experiences or making new friends. Every year I live here I feel it just keeps getting better and better and as I say good-bye to summer I welcome fall and the rest 2014 has to offer
Retreats. We all deserve one. Imagine a space where you can completely unwind and relax. A spot on earth where you can not only focus on yourself but also your yoga practice. Imagine combining 4 nights in the jungle filled with Mayan ruins and jaguars with 3 nights on a private island spent snorkeling the second largest barrier reef in the world and watching the sunrise and set. Wouldn't it be nice to get away to a place where your airfare, transfers and food are taken care of for you? A place where you didn't have to worry about anything because everything is taken care of for you. A place you don't even have to travel to with a friend because you'll make new ones on the adventure of a lifetime. Well I'm here to tell you that such an journey exists and all you have to be willing to do is step into the wild and join us....
My friend Erin Wimert and are thrilled to be hosting a yoga retreat in Belize in April 2015. From the 11-18 we will practice yoga twice a day, snorkel, zipline, explore caves via river tubing, and hike to Mayan ruins. $195 reserves your spot, of which we only have 16 and the total cost is $2995 if you sign up before December 11th 2014. All you have to worry about is your packing and yoga mat as once you sign up everything else is taken care of for you. Although this is a yoga retreat you don't even have to be good at or participate in any of the yoga if you choose not to. After all this is your retreat, your time to focus on yourself and your personal journey and so you make it your own!
One can’t deny that fall is in the air. Somewhere in the
beginning of September it begins to creep in whether that’s through pumpkin
spice latte’s at Starbuck’s or the cooler nights. Colorado’s Aspen trees change
from green to a brilliant yellowish gold seemingly overnight and people flock
from all over to see them. I went hiking this weekend and at, 12,000 feet was
greeted with flakes of snow as a reminder winter is on its way. Some of the
willow bushes we hiked through had already lost their leaves and the alpine
grass was beginning to turn brown. Nature is not hurried in its transition and
the leaves know when it’s time to fall from their branches. This is my favorite
time of year because the colors outdoors are so vibrant and the chill in the
air makes me turn inward. It’s a time for hot coffee, hot yoga and
introspection. Fall is also the perfect time to begin letting go of what no
longer serves us.
Nature does a great job of letting go. As humans we’re not
so great at this. Imagine if trees clung to their leaves like we cling to
people and things we think we need. If the old leaves, flowers or fruit never
fell off, new ones wouldn’t take their place and there’d be no room for the
growth. Eventually decay would set in and the tree would die. The beauty is in
the changing and the growth. People wouldn’t travel across Colorado to see a
grove of trees that remained the same.
For my personal growth I’m learning to let go of the people
in my life who no longer serve me. As a mom and wife I’m realizing my circle of
friends has to become smaller. I confess that I just don’t have time for
everything and everyone. Between my job as a yoga teacher and fitness
instructor, flying, promotions for Pressery juice and running my own expedition
business I just do not have the energy for what doesn’t add to my life. Lately
I have found myself constantly stressed with worry about what other people
think about me and it had me questioning who I am. I’ve thought a lot about the
mother and wife and friend I want to be and who can add to this growth. I am unapologetically
“ME” and as I journey through life I realize this often doesn’t sit well with
everyone. People have tried to change me, to mold me, to influence me, to ruin
me, to gossip about me and to hurt me over the years and it’s hurt my growth. Why
do we get so bent on changing others and wanting them to live up to our
standards?
Imagine if you went into your garden and started taping
apples into your spruce tree hoping it would become an apple tree. No matter
how much you yell at the tree, no matter how many apples you tape to its
branches, no matter what you put in the soil or cut off that spruce it will
still remain what it has been since it was a seed. That particular tree serves
its purpose in your yard however and you just have to appreciate what you have
for what it is. Your friends, family and loved ones are just in the same.
While we cannot change one another we can move on from the
past. We can cut the dead leaves off and continue forward with growth for the
future. If you came to my house you’d see I have a tendency to be a hoarder of
greeting cards and cannot help but keep every sentiment given to me. I tend to
treat people in the same way, and even if I know someone shouldn’t take up that
space in my life I have a hard time letting go. I tend to be so
non-confrontational that I’d rather let other people empty themselves from my
life rather than clear the clutter myself. However, having a daughter now has
taught me that I need to live by a different set of standards. Imagine if I
filled her room with all of my stuff so she didn’t even have a place of her
own. That’s how I feel about my free time and my heart….I cannot keep so much
in there that there’s no room for her or my husband or the friends that really
matter. By carving out space for the people I love there’s more room for them
and less for drama.
I read a great article in a decorating magazine about a
minimalist decorator. He lived in a 900 square foot house and didn’t have room
for anything unnecessary and he loved this way of living. He said that by
having such a small space he could display the items he found from his travels
that were the most special and important. These items on display became the
focal point in his tiny space. When people came to visit they could clearly see
what was important to him because there wasn’t a bunch of clutter to take away
from what was special.
Redecorating your life and the walls of your heart isn’t a
terrible thing. As the seasons change it’s a wonderful time to clear the
clutter from your personal life. Think about what and who matter to you and
start with this. Build your life around those that make you happy and forget
the rest. After all, you’re the one who has to live in the space…make sure what
you’re looking at is what’s most important.
One of the reasons I enjoy blogging is that I can look back
on my past thoughts and see just how far I’ve come. In 2010, when I first
started my journey hiking Colorado’s 14ers I wrote this blog on the hardest
peaks in the state. My blog then was full of doubt that I could ever accomplish
something as lofty as reaching the summit of one of these peaks because they
were too hard, too dangerous, too challenging for my abilities. There were six
summits I wrote off as never being able to touch because I wasn’t somehow
worthy enough. Yet, four years later on the 4th of September…I
proved myself wrong.
I had my first glimpse of Pyramid Peak a few years ago when
my husband Chad and I hiked to the top of Crested Butte Mountain. From the
12,000ft summit you could see Pyramid and Chad remarked how he’d always wanted to
hike that mountain. Chad went to school in Gunnison and spent many years skiing
Crested Butte and the unique shape of Pyramid always intrigued him. I told him
it just wasn’t possible to summit that mountain, that as a class 4 it was too
steep and the rock was too rotten making it unlikely we’d ever be on top. “Maybe
if we hired a guide,” I told him. As the years progressed however, my hiking
skills increased. My first class 3 mountain was Wetterhorn then I moved on to
summit Long’s then did a brief class 4 section on Mount Lindsey to reach the
summit. When your goal is to climb all the 14ers, eventually you start to run
out of class 1 and 2 peaks and so it’s inevitable you will have to face your
fears one day. I fretted over many of these harder peaks because photos and
trip reports made them sound scary yet once I found myself touching the rock
and moving towards my goal my worries decreased. Each summit I grew stronger,
braver and more confident in myself and my abilities. Pyramid Peak had been on
my horizon awhile and after years of talk I had to confront my fear head on.
Grandparents were lined up to come in town and my friend Randy, who had
summited the mountain years earlier was game to lead the way. We had to try…if
not now…when?
view from mt. crested butte
So I told myself I could bail out at any time. I told myself
that I didn’t have to make it to the top and I could turn around if I wanted.
We left Idaho Springs where we were staying at 2am and made the 3 hour drive to
Aspen to meet Randy at the trail at 5am. Being September I knew we were pushing
it with the weather as the week before a few of the peaks had gotten snow. I
prepared for cold and was greeted with surprisingly warm temperature given the
time of year. Pyramid is 8 miles roundtrip and the first mile was a great trail
on nice solid ground and rock that the CFI painstakingly put together. Once you
enter the amphitheater though it’s a totally different ball game. From here
there is a well defined trail on the right hand side but we ended up boulder
hopping most of the way until we reached the base of the mountain. It was here
where I got my first look at goliath. There are two huge cairns marking the entrance
to the north face of Pyramid and it felt as though I was entering an arena. I
felt very small in the shadow of the towering Pyramid but again I told myself
that all I had to do was try. I could bail out at any time I felt necessary so
why not give it a go?
Although Pyramid may be about 4 miles one way you gain about
4,500 feet in those four miles. It didn’t take us long to ascend the 1,000
vertical feet and reach the saddle of the Northeast Ridge but the trail was
steep and loose. From the saddle portions of the remaining climb were visible,
including the terrain near the summit. We took a brief moment to assess, let
two hikers pass us and we were on our way towards our goal since the weather
was holding and we all felt good.
From the ridge the trail is easy enough to follow for
awhile. The standard route actually takes one over the ridge proper and we
followed cairns over a few small rock ribs towards the leap of faith. The “Leap
of Faith” consists of a 3 to 4 foot jump over a gulley from one ledge to
another. I’d guess the fall would be about 30 feet although it’s such an
extreme slope that you probably wouldn’t stop for hundreds of additional feet.
This was an area that initially made me nervous reading about but didn’t give
me too much pause in person. I kept the mantra, “On the other side of fear lies
freedom” going in a loop in my head and it guided me through the leap and
across the cliff traverse where my heels felt air underneath. Whenever my world
is overwhelming I make it small by concentrating on each hand and foot
placement and not looking down or too far up. This mountain caused a lot of
mental pep talk to be going on in my head and I kept myself sandwiched between
my husband and friend for guidance. In my day to day life I tend to be stubborn
and often talk negative to myself…here was the complete opposite. I could only
think positive thoughts and listen to the guidance of others to ensure my
safety.
Our second major obstacle was the Green Wall. It’s a steep
gulley made up of greenish rock that has plenty of solid hand and foot holds
but can be a dangerous place with climbers above. We waited to make sure no one
was above us before ascending as any rock fall here would take you out and send
you down the mountain. We stayed left in the gulley as we made our way up and
then exited left once the rock started to turn redish.
Here is where the real
climbing and route finding began. While Randy had climbed Pyramid before, his
memory wasn’t fresh on the entire route and often we end up following one cairn
only to cliff out and turn around and follow another. I will say the “trail”
winds its way back and forth past the gulley and eventually leads right up some
very steep loose ledges towards the summit. Here is where the majority of our
class 4 climbing was- areas where we had to use good solid footing to get up
and over obstacles. When you see photos of this area it doesn’t look possible
that one could find the summit from all the rotten confusing rock. This area
was exposed and incredibly loose and we all stuck close together and took turns
assessing which way up was best. Often we took a harder class 4 move because
the rock was more solid than a class 3 area. Near 13,900 the slope eased and we
could see other climbers on the summit and we knew half of the worst of it was
over (we still had to come down of course).
“Congratulations today is your day, your mountain is waiting
you’re off and away.”
It’s hard to describe how I felt on the summit. To see the
views I’d only read about and to stand on top of this mountain where so many
before had passed felt incredible. I had slayed my goliath and reached my goal.
While I knew I wasn’t safe until I was below tree line, for all intents and
purposes I had made it to peak 35. On the opposite side of my fear there truly
was freedom. If I could stand on top of what is arguably one of the toughest
14ers in the state then why would I let anything smaller stand in my way? While
this mountain was tough, I had all the strength and courage inside me to make
the summit but it wasn’t until I believed in myself that this dream became a
reality. This was a peak that I knew I’d never be satisfied until I summited
and I’m so happy I had my husband and Randy to help me achieve my goal. They
never wavered, questioned my ability or let me turn around although in my head
I wanted too. My husband looked at me halfway into the climb and said, “get
your game face on” and that’s exactly what I did. Many times when I climb I am
the faster, more experienced and impatient one and I am eternally grateful that
I have someone who can stand on the other side and be that for me.
I could say Pyramid Peak was my Everest but that would only
be partially true. People say events that they overcome are their Everest
because Everest is the tallest mountain in the world and there’s nothing
greater. In life, I believe however, that there are many Everest’s. I reached
the summit of Pyramid Peak but that’s not the last challenging mountain I’ll
ever climb. Physically and mentally, Pyramid was demanding but that’s not the
last time I’ll ever be mentally and physically challenged in life. What is true
is that I know what’s behind me and what I have accomplished and now I know I
can achieve so much more.
I was scared of Pyramid Peak and rightfully so. That
mountain has everything a mountaineer could want in a challenging climb-
exposure, loose rock, difficult route finding, gulley’s, a leap of faith and
even mountain goats kicking rocks down. Yet, had I let this mountain define my
abilities then I would have never even attempted to climb its walls. If I had
continued to think the summit was out of my reach then it would always be out
of my reach because I’d have never had the courage to try.
I was reminded of my yoga practice in a lot of ways when I
hiked this peak. I thought about how when I first started yoga I couldn’t do
crow or headstand or any other hard pose for that matter. I’d watch others do
these poses in class yet they eluded me and mostly I wouldn’t even try.
However, with a little encouragement from some very patient teachers I did
begin to try to see what would happen. My reward for my dedication was
eventually being able to “stick” the harder postures and in turn teach others
how to do so. While the harder poses don’t make up my whole practice, they are
a reward for my continuous effort. I feel the mountains have rewarded me in the
same manner after years of slogging up and down easier climbs and working my
way towards the more challenging peaks. The view from Pyramid was unlike any
other mountain I’ve experienced and that was my reward for years of dedication
and hours upon hours of effort.
That’s the thing in life- if you want the best views you’ve
got to be willing to work hard, cross some lines, scare yourself and be willing
to stand on the edge….
Telluride, Colorado. Ever since I saw pictures of this town
in a wedding magazine 5 years ago I’ve been drawn to this town. It’s where I
wanted to get married but couldn’t due to logistics and cost. The first time I
ever stepped foot in the town in fact was about two years after I’d first been
drawn to the place. We had gone to Ouray for the annual ice climbing festival
and decided to take a side trip to Telluride to cross country ski and have
lunch. I remember being enchanted by the unpretentious houses, the endless
piles of snow and the cross country ski trail that ran along the river. My
friends had a dog with them which we were able to take up the free gondola into
mountain village and we walked around the base of the mountain while I sipped a
chai from the steaming bean. I wouldn’t be back to Telluride until a year ago
when again, we visited as a side trip from the Black Canyons of Gunnison
National Forest. Telluride was in the off season so a lot of shops were closed
and the gondola wasn’t running. It was almost a ghost town but I was still in
love with the place. Seeing the mountains at the end of town, blocking it in
and making it the box canyon it is just makes the town feel safe to me. I know
Black Bear pass runs down the mountain from Silverton but it’s a very difficult
one way only road and it feels as if Telluride is the end of the line there. The
town ends at Bridal Veil and Ingram Falls and there’s nowhere to go but up. A
little piece of my heart has always been here and somehow it feels like home.
first time in the T-ride
a few years later with miss charlotte
Seven months ago an idea came to me. The yoga studio I teach
at has run several retreats, a few of which I have been on but I’ve never had
the opportunity to teach at one. Somehow I had it in my head that because I’d
never been asked as a teacher on any of their retreats that I wasn’t good
enough. I watched as other teachers had their turn in the spotlights and I
waited hoping my turn would be next. I realized I placed a lot of stock in my
value as a teacher on not being asked to join in and I felt like perhaps my
turn would never come. So I decided I needed to put myself out there and see
what would happen. Why couldn’t I lead my own retreat?
Anyone that knows me
knows I have a passion for hiking. I’ve summited 34 of Colorado’s 58 14,000
foot peaks and I consider hiking one of my greatest strengths. I’ve taken
people up their first 14ers, I’ve organized camping trips for myself and large
groups of my friends. I wanted to combine my passion for teaching yoga with
hiking in a way that was affordable and accessible to a smaller group of
people. This retreat I had in mind would challenge people’s minds as well as
their bodies and it wouldn’t be for someone who wasn’t adventurous in heart. This
retreat would be about everyone staying in one spot with me, their guide and
mentor…someone who was accessible and who could be trusted. I didn’t want a
disconnect from the group from one another or from me I wanted us to all be in
this together. Seven months ago I dreamed a vision of what this retreat would
be and all roads led to Telluride. Telluride had to be the place…the home…the
beginning and the end.
Honestly I had no idea if my plan was crazy or not. To take
a friend on a hike was one thing, to teach a yoga class was another. To take
strangers on a journey on and off their mat was a new challenge entirely and
how could I be sure I was ready? I had a lot of interest at first but no
definite commitments. So I promoted and I networked, I bought ads on social
media and I talked about the retreat to anyone who would listen. I had one
person sign up…then two. I rented a space for 14 so I needed at least 3 just to
put a deposit down. There were moments where I thought perhaps I’d have to
cancel because I didn’t have enough out of pocket to cover the rest of the
house in case no one else signed up.
But, like the famous quote from Field of Dreams says, if you
build it they will come.
August 21st 2014 marked the launch of Yogi Magee
Expeditions Retreat in Telluride. Having 12 women arrive from all over Colorado
and cities outside our state was a huge moment for me. The day before everyone
arrived I sat at the Floradora, the same restaurant I’d visited on my first
trip to Telluride, and marveled at what I had created. Women were coming to my
retreat to explore, be inspired, practice yoga and challenge themselves
physically and mentally. I honestly could not have asked for a better group of
women. From my assistant Stephanie to the 12 personalities…it seemed everyone
got along like they had always known one another. There was rain and cold and
the weather forced us inside for yoga more than I would have liked and yet they
all kept smiling. Some had injuries and others suffered from the altitude on
the first hike but they all persevered. We had moments of meditation and quiet
and we had moments of laughter in the hot tub with glasses of wine after a long
day. None had been to Telluride and I saw them witness the magic of the small
former mining town just as I had many years ago. They were in awe of the
mountains and the Via Ferrata. They took pictures of the wildflowers and played
in the waterfalls. I saw these women meditate, journal, make connections with
new people, try new restaurants, be by themselves and explore and grow strong
in their practice and hiking. I know the hikes we did were not easy for some of
them but all of them made it to Blue Lake which was the apex of our journey. I
took a wrong turn on the trail and got us off track about 15 minutes but they
never lost their faith in me or the journey. In fact one of the girls turned to
me and said in that moment, “Even if we don’t make it to the lake…it’s OK.” And
at that moment I realized it really was because I was, and we were all, exactly
where we were supposed to be.
Most times after a trip is over I am sad to leave. I have
depression when a vacation comes to an end because I want to live in that
moment of happiness forever. This trip was different. It was so fulfilling in
so many ways that when it ended I wasn’t sad to say good-bye. We ended our trip
with yoga on top of Telluride Mountain after taking the gondola I had first
taken so many years ago and the moment was perfect. The clouds were starting to
part, the sun was shining and there wasn’t a breeze in the sky while we
practiced yoga. When we meditated at the end I could hear the buzz of the bees,
the chirping of birds and the quiet breathing of those 12 women around me. Our time
together had come to an end but it didn’t really feel like the end to me. When
we opened our eyes it felt like a new beginning in which anything from there on
out was possible. Just as the clouds and fog lifted from the mountains, so too
it lifted from each of us and there was nothing but blue skies to come. I know
in that moment I felt stronger, lighter and happier than I had in a long time.
There was no sadness in my heart…only happiness for the next chapter.
In hindsight the universe provided exactly what I had
needed. Had I been asked to teach at another retreat I don’t know if I would
have ever thought to put something like this together. I wouldn’t have had the
courage to go out on my own and design a retreat that was truly a labor of love
from my heart. To share my passion and teachings of yoga is a gift but to be
able to guide people on a trail in the great wide open is my dharma. I loved
being the guide and leader for the weekend and having people trust me so they
could enjoy the beauty of Colorado around them. Telluride is now a piece of
their story and hearts as much as it is in mine and that makes it all worth it
to me.
A few years ago I said I would never hike the same 14er
twice. I firmly believed that once you hiked a mountain once there was no point
in doing it again. Last year I hiked Bierstadt in the winter with my husband
and it was a totally different experience than hiking it in the summer alone.
The mountain that I had known had changed because I had changed. The terrain
was the same yet different with every step as I approached each switchback with
new eyes and a different stronger body. Some people might be content with doing
things only once and never again because in reality they don’t want to admit
that the only constant in life is change. I will be back to Telluride and it
will be different because I’ll be different. The hikes will be different
because the land and weather will change. We’ll climb new heights, practice new
asanas and meet new friends in one of the most amazing towns I’ve ever known.
I cannot wait to return to Telluride for a retreat in 2015.
*follow me on facebook or instagram at Yogi Magee!
A few weeks ago my husband and I celebrated our five year
anniversary. When I measure the time in years it doesn’t seem like that much
has passed. If I measured it in months, weeks or minutes it might seem a lot
longer. What I remember of our time being married however, isn’t the days
themselves it’s the way we’ve filled them. We’ve traveled across the world from
Thailand to ride elephants to snorkel with sting rays in Belize. We’ve rented,
we’ve bought and we’ve sold houses and acquired and thrown away belongings
in-between. We’ve had a cat die and adopted a new one, quit jobs and started
new ones. Our friends have come and gone and we’ve gained almost as much as
we’ve lost over the past years. We had a daughter named Charlotte and it
changed everything from how early we go to bed to how we spend our weekends.
Life is the same as it ever was and yet different. Everything and nothing has
changed in the same time.
I was asked to write a blog on what makes a marriage last
five years. I thought on this for a few weeks. I’m not perfect so my marriage
will never be and I believe marriage is a choice you make every day. When I
thought about my marriage and my husband and about the reoccurring theme that’s
popped up in my life lately the only word that comes to mind is patience.
Patience, to me, is the key to a sustainable relationship.
The same weekend of our anniversary a few friends and I went
back to hike Mt. of the Holy Cross. It was a 14er I had previously written
about not being able to summit due to weather and time constraints. One of my
hiking companions was attempting this as her first 14er and it was not an easy
beginner climb for her. None of the 14ers are easy mountains to hike but this
one was 12 miles roundtrip in length, had swarms of mosquitos everywhere and
5,600 feet of elevation gain. Her struggle became my struggle as I guided her
to the top and back down. It’s hard to watch someone have difficulty with
something that has become so second nature to yourself. I feel the same way
when I have beginners in my yoga class. I want them to enjoy the asanas and the
message and the feeling they get from pushing themselves beyond what they think
is their limit. Yet beginners require patience from me and from themselves in
order to continue to learn and grow. It’s a relationship of trust and
understanding. There’s a lot of give and take to teaching anyone a skill that
you are still mastering yourself. I can tell you that the three of us hiking
learned a lot about patience that day and how it extends beyond yourself and to
those around you. There were times when I am sure we all wanted to give up on
ourselves and each other but we never considered that an option. You can’t just
quit hiking a mountain because it gets hard especially once you’re so far into
it that turning around isn’t really any better an option than marching ahead.
To cultivate patience in a situation that challenges every fiber of your being
is to allow the ego to step aside and lead with your heart.
My friends and I ultimately summited Mt. of the Holy Cross
that Saturday much in the same way my husband and I reached our five year
milestone. There was struggle, there was excitement, and there was hard word
and ultimately reward for continuing on the path. Patience for each other as we
walked the same path together yet experiencing different emotions along the
way. When I reach the summit of a mountain it’s reaching a goal and a milestone
for me and I’m temporarily happy yet I know the journey isn’t over yet. There
are still many more mountains to climb and much more to learn along the way.
Patience is what allows me to continue to bring new people to the wilderness
and open their eyes to the beauty of the mountains and it’s what’s reinforced
the journey that is marriage.
Ultimately Chad is my ideal partner on and off the mountain.
There are times when he’s ahead and he has to have the patience to wait for me
to catch up and there are times when I’m in the lead. There have been obstacles
in the path and both of us have gotten the other lost thinking the direction we
were headed was best. Sometimes on our journey we’ve taken breaks when the
struggle proves to be too much; other times we move so quickly we barely take
in the outside world. Unfortunately in marriage there is no map of where you
are supposed to go or any reports on how the terrain will be along the way.
It’s mostly, what we call in mountain speak – bush wacking which is a fancy
name for creating your own path when there is none. Patience is how we survive
when we think we are otherwise lost. Chad and I don’t need to see any people on
our path to know we’re heading the way that’s right for us because in the end
that is all that really matters. Like any companion we have our share of
arguments as well as times of love. We cheer each other on and we know when to
give tough love. Chad is the partner who keeps me safe while allowing me to
find my own way. There’s a freedom that comes with being patient with one
another. You surrender the ego and to the journey and really just hope for the
best that all this effort will eventually lead you to where you want to be.
Ultimately a good marriage is like a good hiking partner
(and if you are lucky like me they are one in the same). It’s a relationship
with someone you trust, someone you can spend large amounts of time alone with
and someone who pushes you to be the best version of yourself. Marriage is
sometimes letting the other person take the lead even if they aren’t the expert
and allowing them to struggle and grow alongside you. Just when you think the
journey is over you find out it’s really just beginning and there are many more
adventures and experiences you have yet to discover. Marriage isn’t for
everyone…after all some people enjoy walking the path alone. Yet I can say from
my experience its far better knowing someone is waiting ahead for me, than
wandering the forest alone.
