Adventures in Blissland

Done with work!!

            I am done with my last shift at work in the Oregon desert! Now all that's left is to CELEBRATE! I am going to miss working with all my amazing friends at Second Nature Cascades; Second Nature employs some of the most incredible, supportive people with the biggest hearts I could imagine. I love all of my Wilderness Therapy family and I hope to see you all over the summer or in the fall! I am so grateful to have a job where most of the time I am excited to go to work and I am continuously challenged to not only support others as best I can, but also work on myself in a very profound way every day......and its in the wilderness! Thank You Second Nature for the opportunity for growth and LOVE!

#STANDWITHME

                  Amy and I got the opportunity to go to the premier of the inspiring documentary called #STANDWITHME! If you get the chance to see this film I would recommend it. It is moving, encouraging, empowering, enraging, and beautifully done. Watching this documentary just further justifies all of the money and time we have put into planning this thru-hike as local, organic, and sustainable as was feasible. I only wish that we would have done more now; e.g. less plastic, more fair trade, and more local companies that care for our planet and the people that inhabit it. 

             
               The premise of the film is of a 9 year old girl, Vivienne (who was at the premiere!) who wanted to take a stand against slavery around the world by selling lemon-aid at a lemon-aid stand. It started as a huge goal of raising $150,000 usd to free 500 child slaves and evolved into a social movement and the creation of a social-progress lemon-aid company. The film also introduces an artist whose art sparked the movement and the founder of Fair-Trade who has connected us directly to the people who grow our coffee and chocolate and given then a fair price for their hard work. The film paints a picture of how the darkness can be transformed into light just by the actions of one little girl and that there is still a very long road that we can all have a part in building if we just take that first step towards a brighter future. 

Watch the trailer here:

http://www.standwithmemovie.com/

SHAFTY!!

              Two of my best friends, Brett and Alex, play in an AMAZING Phish tribute band, SHAFTY! They were very nice and let me write the setlist for my last show that I will be able to attend for the next 6 months. The set was amazing and some of the shafty crew women put together a choreographed dance that we spontaneously broke into during the song Split Open and Melt. 

              They have been playing out a residency at The Goodfoot for the past few months where they play every Wednesday! Their shows are complete with high screaming peaks, chaotic improvisations, heavy laid funk, low soaring bass bombs, heady fractalized space jams, a most fire light show, and an incredibly supportive and loving phan base that gets DOWN every Wednesday in the middle of a work week. My love for Phish is indescribable and I feel so blessed to be friends with these incredible musicians that have the ability to SLAY the music of Phish and get people out to celebrate the world's greatest band with dance and good cheer. Thank you guys so much for an awesome last show, it was one of the best! Let's do FALL TOUR!!!!

I AM GRATEFUL!!

Hike With Care

Some Thoughts on the Thru-Hiking Community

                I am shocked at how many thru-hikers eat poorly and seem to have little regard towards their impact on the world at large. What we buy and use on the trail has a direct impact on our environment that we cherish and the lives of people all over the world. From the minerals mined for our electronics to the foods we shop for and where we shop for them,  all impact the earth and the lives of others in some way, sometimes a very big way. Unfortunately, the world we live in now is run by money and capitalism, so where we spend our dollar has become our loudest voice and vehicle for social change. 

              I think Amy and I fell short of doing everything we possibly could to make our thru-hike a sustainable adventure with as little impact on the environment as we could. We also could have put more effort into the research of the products we buy to make sure the materials and labor used were from a caring and sustainable place. Though I recognize that we didn't do everything in a sustainable manner, I do think what we have done thus far is important and is making a difference. We can use our money to propel positive actions around the world by buying local, fair trade, organic, and sustainable products. Also looking into the companies that we buy from to see where they source their materials and what their values are. 

              

              All these things matter so much and I would think that the people who love the wilderness so much that they want to walk through it for 6 moths would want to be a part of this extremely important movement. I am only writing these thoughts as a concern for the greater community and to possibly raise the awareness around what we support with our dollar as we hike the trail. I am in no way trying to pass judgment on anyone for the choices they have made to make their hike possible, I am simply encouraging us all to take an honest look at how we are impacting the world and raise our awareness of how we can make a difference. I love this community of people and I believe we all really care.....Buy right ya'll! WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!!

Anxiety, Excitement, Love, Gratitude, Spirit

                 Every shift is getting longer and longer. It is getting to be very challenging to stay present at work and not stuck in a PCT daydream all day. My job is very emotionally demanding and I am doing my best to give as much of my intention and attention to my clients as I can. At Second Nature Cascades we use a wonderful tool called the "I feel statement", which is a tool to help understand our emotions and our beliefs surrounding them. In practice we call the "I fell statement" a "check-in" and recently I realized that a lot of my check-ins in the last couple shifts have been of anxiety.

                When I am not actively focusing on remaining in the present moment, my thoughts wonder to places of worry. I worry about the 'what ifs' on the trail and the fact that I am a broke ass mother fucker! I worry about my partner or myself getting hurt on the trail and not being able to complete our thru-hike. I worry about fatigue and boredom. I worry about the after math of all the debt I am most likely going to acquire from hiking the trail with very little money in my bank. I worry about my fitness level and what others are doing to prepare that I am not. I worry about all my gadgets that I'm bringing and the reliability of my gear. I WORRY!

             Then I stop....I breathe...................In...............Out! Oh thats better. I let go of the 'what ifs' and the money concerns. I let go of it all and breathe. One of the sustained truths I have come to realize about life is that the less present you are right now and the more you worry about past and future events, the more likely you are to create those events or repeat the past. When we are thinking of the past or future we are mindlessly going through motions here in the present. When we mindlessly go through motions we are more likely to act upon impulse and habit. we are more likely to act upon that which has been troubling our thoughts. We are more likely to be guided by the ego instead of the heart. Although in the scope of eternity, the ego is a part of our ultimate awakening, it is still another tool to be shed before absolute realization. 

             It might sound simple, but it is a profound and challenging practice to remain in the present moment. Challenging only to let go of old habits, completely effortless once you are HERE! Billions upon billions of people have been trying to describe and refine this practice since the dawn of time....Meditation!...in all its forms, has an end goal of raising our awareness of now. Focusing our lens through which we perceive the world to a finer and finer scope until complete stillness in the present moment is achieved. Complete effortless action propelled by love! Free from ego! Complete awareness of the absolute miracle of NOW, the absolute beauty and magnificence of our current spiritual state and place in our physical and spiritual existence. 

            So, money concerns? It's all ok. I will do my best right now in the moment to save and create opportunities for myself, but whatever the outcome, I will not allow my financial standing to determine my happiness. I will find happiness and fulfillment in the irrational and remain detached from expectations as best as I can. The best way to find happiness is to be happy for no reason, for if there is a reason, it can be taken away. Also, a healthy practice of gratitude will create abundance in our lives. 

As for our physical safety and fitness....Take it as it comes. Stay present and accept pain as a beloved friend and teacher. 

            Boredom? "Everything is ceremony in the wild garden of childhood." - neruda. Live each moment with the awe of a child. We get so used to looking at the world as something we've seen already or something ordinary. Been there, done that. I am putting forth the intention of appreciation and fascination with this magical and mysterious world we have dreamed for ourselves. I truly am fascinated by the seemingly magical ways in which reality unfolds in front of our eyes. 

              My gear will fail....or it won't! Again, I will prepare as best as I can now and accept that I might have to deal with some things failing. I don't know how everything is going to work with my style and flow on the trail and I am open to figuring it out once I am out there. It's all a part of the adventure! 

I believe that a healthy spirit results in a healthy body, a healthy mind, and a healthy and fulfilling life. 

So what are some of the ways that Amy and I do prepare for the trail?

 Soaks, Floats, And Saunas!

The Sauna at the Everett Healing House is incredible! It feels like a hot sacred little hobbit hole. 

We did an hour float in a deprivation tank! They have 10 inches of water and hundreds of pounds of salt. The water is body temperature and is so salty that you float effortlessly. It is completely silent and completely dark. It was one of the most incredible meditations I have ever experienced. I lost myself completely. Time lost its meaning and my body faded away into a dream. All I was left with was the ocean's swell of my breath. Bliss!

Sunsets, Pie, And Smiles!

The Oregon desert and Sweedeedee Dessert!
Taking the moment to appreciate where I am at and stay present is what helps me prepare for the trail. My wonderful partner, Amy, is the perfect mirror that reflects the blessings in my life every day! She is encouraging, motivated, thoughtful, organized, and so so so inspiring. I am so incredibly grateful to have her by my side with each adventurous moment of this life!