The M.O. of Arizona thus far: ABC (Always Be Climbing).
But these past few days, although we have been making our way up in elevation on a lot of our hikes, the real joy has been in the exploration AROUND versus making it to the peak. Some of my favorite views were from half way up the hike, on the way back down, or around a corner that required some extra scrambling around on rocks to find.
Too often I get so caught up in what I’m working towards, I forget to observe what’s around me, and see what could be on the other side of a little bit of wonder.
Case in point: we hiked/trail ran around one specific trail on Sunday afternoon, but after seeing these massive rolling rocks and decided to climb & boulder around them, we ran into a man who was waiting on his girlfriend. He was going to surprise her and propose to her in just a few moments. We got to hear his story (briefly, before getting the heck out of his way), and got to soak in some of his giddy energy. It made for such a joyous rest of our Sunday evening to bring that happy energy with us on the rest of the run.
On another hike, we got caught in the rain about two miles away from our car. At first, I felt like cursing our timing for being just slightly off and leaving us stuck in the storm. But then, I looked around. People were walking, not running. Some were still heading OUT on the hike, versus turning around. A lot of folks just walked bare foot in the earth. All of a sudden, it felt perfect to be caught in the storm at that moment. The rain made everything feel quieter, calmer, more peaceful.
I’d like to remind myself of moments like this when I’m feeling rushed to make a deadline I impose on myself. Or when I fall into comparison mode and decide I’m not doing enough. If you read this and relate in any way, I hope you know, you are doing enough. You are enough simply because you’re you. It’s taking me spending quite some time away from cell phone service, with one thought in mind, to see what there is to see, to really start to feel this from the inside.
