#LoveStories celebrates the good people who make a difference. Tell a story about someone who has made your life a little lighter. Better yet, share that story with them.
Today on our last day of #LoveStories, we celebrate the ground we walk on. If not for the air we breathe, the earth we walk on, and the water we drink, we would not exist. This planet feeds us, figuratively and literally.
Share your story. #sharethelove
Mountain Medicine
Hiking brings me joy, usually. One on trip, I woke up at the foot of Mount Robson looking to hike 20 kilometers (12.5 miles) and 800 meters to the next campsite. I rolled out of my sleeping bag with a horrible migraine. My head was pounding, my eyes were fuzzy and my brain was not working.
Two things I never want to do when I have a migraine: exercise or carry heavy things. That day I knew I had to hike for hours with my 40-pound pack on my back. I was dreading the day. I took some Advil at breakfast and sat quietly with a cup of tea trying to steel myself for the hike.
Many times that day, I thought about giving up, crumbling to the ground and hoping a bear would come to eat me. Each time, I sat for a moment while my partner hovered over me concerned but unable to do anything to make it better. At one point he considered calling rescue. He didn’t think I was going to make it any further.
Then, I got myself up and carried on. I didn’t have a choice. I couldn’t pass out on the side of the mountain no matter how much I wanted to collapse and never get up again.
Finally, many hours past when we should have arrived, we found our next campsite at the side of a lake. The side we were on had a bit of a rocky beach. During dinner, I sat staring at the glacier on the other side of the lake, and the glaciers that sat on the top of Mount Robson so far above my head.
After dinner, I took another Advil and crawled into my sleeping bag in our tent. I asked my partner not to put on the rain guard so I could lie there and stare at the sky as night fell and the stars came out.
Somehow, while on my back staring at the sky as the day ended and night fell, my migraine eased. The reward for a hike is always a beautiful landscape but, on that evening, as the day melted away, my whole body relaxed. I was in a place where all my troubles melted away and were replaced by the wonder of the universe.
I fell asleep under the stars at the side of a lake with a glacier on the other side. I felt both proud of my accomplishment and I felt at peace. I awoke with a renewed body and mind. It is amazing what nature can do for us beyond our daily needs or food and oxygen.
Tell Better Stories
Would you like to tell better stories? Or maybe you would like a safe place to share your story?
Join me at an online story workshop or one of my story coaching circles.