Restoration and Rejuvenation

Over committed and double booked seemed to be a revolving theme of my life the past couple months. But I managed to say NO to someone finally, and take off a week early to get a week in the Adirondacks in before the summer begins to get some of my own hiking in. I ended up finding two sherpa friends to join me for the week and one of my climbing friends that had never been on a real backpacking trip before.

A goal for me was to be restored and rejuvenated by this trip - to give me time to process the past year, and prepare myself for my summer. It was such a blessing to have time with great friends that understand and know me very well and always inspire me, and also having time returning to the wilderness of the ADK's that I have loved for so long.

It is sometimes hard to put into words how this place always seems to center me back to the person that I really want to be and inspires me pursue with an even greater passion the things that I love. Somewhere between the vegetation and plant life at a different stage than I'm used to seeing, the mountain trails with no participants complaining, the depth and variety of conversations with the sherpas, the opportunity of getting to decide that morning what we felt like doing that day, the feeling of using your legs after what seems like and eternity, the burn of being out of breath trying to keep up with marathon running sherpas, the nights where the stars looked like sparkling rain coming down on us, the peaceful moments where I heard God whispering, the energetic birds singing their songs and Whitney and I trying to ID them all, the peace of watching the rain\ from your lean-to, the smell s of the Adirondacks bring back memories of trips and good friends and how much I have grown and changed since my first time of coming to the Adirondacks to work at La Vida; somewhere between all of these things I was restored and rejuvenated, and am feeling refilled and ready to pour myself out at La Vida this summer to my participants and staff members.

Back Again

So, its been a year since I last posted.

A synopsis of what has happened?

I've spent a summer in the ADK's learning how to be Gear Manager and saw La Vida from a different side, not just as a trip leader. I realized just how much I LOVE to organize, even though there are large parts of my life that are completely unorganized and will forever be that way.

I spent the fall working at Everest Gear(an outdoor retailer store in Ohio) and a Rock Climbing coach for my gym's youth team(this ended up carrying throughout the entire school year) found out I'm not a sales girl, and that middle schoolers are CRAZY most of the time.

I spent 3 months working as a freelance Graphic designer in an office building that was a 7 story tall Longaberger Basket and felt very much like Alice in Wonderland any time I was walking into work.

I spent the Christmas/the holidays cracking the whip at any chance I could get to clean/de-clutter my parents house because I've realized I really do like clean spaces and surfaces, but unfortunately, the only family member I had on my side on this mission was my mom.

January till May, I worked as a Soft-goods specialists/prototyper at a well renowned Industrial Design Consultancy firm called Priority Designs in Columbus Ohio. I learned that I love problem solving above all, love working with my hands, and will always try to organize things better no matter what the situation is. I've tried to shut off the organizing tendencies but, alas, they cannot be contained.

After months of getting sick on a daily basis, many doctor apt, visits to the specialist at the hospital, and many tests, and visits to an alternative doctor that doubles as a chiropractor that sent me home with a bucket load of supplements, I've learned that I have developed an allergy to all dairy and gluten. So I had to learn how to say goodbye to my favorite comfort foods of bread and cheese, and my diet got even weirder than it already was previously.

During the winter months a couple of christian climbers from my home gym would stay after hours on Tuesdays and share what was on our hearts and prayer requests. It was great to realize that there are other Christians out there. I realized that I need to find a deeper christian community that will study with me and push me even more if I return to Ohio next year.

In a couple of days I will be leading another May trip for La Vida, doing a brand new Canoe Itinerary modified kayak itin) and will be Gear Manager again and La Vida's 'Mountaineer' for the summer. Then I will spend another August doing a Kayaking trip, and after La Vida it is a wide open door. There is talk of returning to Priority the design firm I was working for most recently, but not is official. Another exercise in trust and patience for God to reveal his wonderful and majestic plan for my life. It is hard to not get too carried away with the possibilities. Do I give design a wholehearted chance to pay off my school loans right away, or do I pursue other passions for a couple of years while I still can live without my own health insurance, and get by with an unstable paycheck? these questions will work out in time, and the lakes, rivers, and mountains of the Adirondacks are always the best medicine for questions/times like these.

Overall theme for the year: 

Trust.

trust in the moment

trust for the future

trust in long suffering

trust in trials

trust in time of uncertainty 

trust in the gifts/skills/talents God has given me

trust in my drive/motivation to push myself further