Standing still doesn't really appeal to me. I need to be constantly moving in order to feel alive. But since my road trip ended this summer I've been feeling pretty stagnant.
I need to get back on the road somehow. That road has changed from a 4 lane highway to a gravel path.
For the last two months I've been sitting at an office desk in front of my computer. I've been stifled of creativity and just haven't really felt involved in anything. It's been pretty lonely. I realized its because I don't have any adventure in my life right now.
I don't have the luxury to hop in my car and drive cross country again, or run away to a foreign country. Not yet. So instead I have to think local.
Little did I know, but there are a bunch of hiking trails near me. Some a few miles away, some a few hours. But all close enough for me to feel like I'm somewhere new.
I bought a pair of hiking boots this week. I've been trying to break them in, but they're tearing the skin off the back of my ankle. It's too late to return them so I'm hoping that in time it will get better. Because I need this. I need this escape from the everyday monotony into the introspective zone that I can only get from nature.
But as my boots show, it's not easy. It takes time. If I just throw myself into it, I will only have pain and blisters to show for it. But if I take it a little bit at a time, take it slow and appreciate the moment, then the breaking in period will be less painful.
Maybe I've been sucking all your creativity, because I've been going through a crazy creative time lately. But that's the benefit of classes and assignments too.
ReplyDeleteAbout the boots, our friends swear by this method (and one is a firefighter who has to break in new boots all the time, so I trust him). Vaseline on back of heel, sock, vaseline again (yes, on top of the sock!), and then another pair of socks. Apparently the lubrication is the key (take that where you will!). If you try it, let me know if it works!