I am a hiker. I hike. And I stop to breathe. And then I hike some more. And then the ambulance arrives. Well, no ambulance (this time anyway) but I did hike a steeply graded rock trail on the moab rim and I did have to stop like every 5 minutes to pretend I was soaking in the view instead of desperately trying to stop myself from passing out from lack of oxygen. Eventually I caught up with everyone and the view really was spectacular!
C and M and I went to the land of redrock this weekend and it was the most fun get-away I've had in forever...I work for an environmental organization and still I forget, sitting behind my desk in the flourescent lights for weeks at a time, that I need to be recharged by the outdoors. We hiked and restored biking trails and removed old trail markers and hauled stuff down from the mountain and got lost on the barren side of the old Moab Adventure Park and I felt just for a moment like one of the Von Trapp children on top of the swiss alps, wandering as C and M lead me to the beaten path that equals safety to a non-adventurer such as myself. We made friends, ate at the local brewery, played pool with some locals and woke up sore and kind of happy the next morning. Church was even more fun in moab...probably because I only felt obligated to sit through sacrament and then we could leave with no fear of shirking our duties. WE HAD NO DUTIES!
I've been wondering if being away from home lets you be just a little less yourself...or maybe it's MORE yourself???? I mean, I was wild just like moab for two days. I slept little, I ate whatever I wanted, I didn't shower until I wanted to and I didn't even use a blow dryer ONCE. I let go of my prescribed ways of living life and just was. M said as we were leaving town that we were heading back to "reality" and anyone who's been to moab in the winter with the wind whipping silently on dead streets can tell you, it's not reality. But what if it's SUPPOSED to be reality? What if I want to come back to moab tomorrow? Could I live in moab or would I go insane???? Maybe if I could always take people like M and C with me, I could live in moab, for sure. Long Live Moab.
1 comment:
How fun! I have done some trail clean up here on Mt Hood along the Pacific Crest Trail. It always feels go good to get out there but also to make it more user friendly. Plus the other people I was with were always so interesting and great.
I know what you mean about the breaks from reality (that sounds like a psych diagnosis). I spent the weekend at the beach recently and stayed in the same comfy clothes the whole time except fot the hot tub. No hair-doing, no makeup, it was liberating! And yes, I think those people who were there saw a more real, uninhibited side of me than a lot of people here get to see.
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