You = Impact

I am always astonished by how desolate the trails are in SoCal.  People, what are you doing?  GET ON A MOUNTAIN!

With that being said, the quiet and sweet silence on my hike today with my trusty dog, Bear was absolutely perfect and so eye-opening.

We hiked up the dog-friendly trail in Temescal Canyon late afternoon today.  We took a new route, trail ran a bit, and encountered a total of 4 humans, 2 dogs, 5 chipmunk style rodents, 7 desert-looking lizards, and an assortment of birds.  We were pretty much solo the entire 2 hour hike.

What I realized today was the ripple effect in our movements.  Bear would run ahead of me and move a tree branch sticking out that would shake the tree, make some noise, perhaps shake another tree, more noise and settle back.  Or, I would accidentally kick a rock forward in the ground that would cause something to scurry off into the brush nearby, make my heart beat faster and Bear jump forward.  There is this massive ripple effect of movement, that I could really only experience audibly and visually.  Who really knows what else is going on out there (nor do I want to, snakes?).

Once you get far enough into the hike, beyond the cars noisy engine and the hustle and bustle that is our lives both externally and internally; this is where quiet and space to listen intersect.  You can actually hear everything and realize how alive the Earth is, how very alive you are.  In one tiny movement, you causes a ripple effect of sound into the atmosphere, amongst the plant life, the wildlife and then back to your life.

It’s a rush to feel so powerful and large, and yet so small and puzzle-piece-like in the grand scheme.

So, what if we all were aware of this epic ripple effect?  At all?  More often?

Reminder:  you = impact.

What if you knew that a smile to that stranger today could shift a mood, to enhance an encounter, to some how inspire 57 people to passionate action?  Possible.

What if we realized the impact of one bottle cap dropped on the ground, picked up by the wind, broken down by the Ocean, consumed by a fish, consumed by a bigger fish, then consumed by you?  Truth.

What if we truly, truly, truly realized the radical impact of ourselves?

What would we really get up to?

What is your ripple effect?  Own it.  Every.  Single.  Day.  #impact

Wow.  Beautiful.  Be Powerful.  You.

Adventure: Get to a National Park. As Fast as you Can.

Sometimes you have to pack up the back of your best friend’s Prius with sleeping bags, backpacks and Camelbaks, snacks and beer to get to a National Park as fast as you can!

My best friend, Chris New, my boyfriend, Chris Hynes and myself made it to Yosemite this past weekend.  We took off Thursday morning early to have a long weekend in the park to hike, explore and breathe in that fresh mountain air.

There is something about the elevation, the sunsets and the fact that my Blackberry got barely a bar of service that really allows the National Parks to take a tight grip on the heart, embrace you in the amazing environment that is Mother Nature and push you to limits you and your legs had no idea were possible. 

Yosemite’s expansive valley and tall peaks make you feel small, in the best way.  There is a level of R-E-S-P-E-C-T that these National Park demand.  The power of glaciers, the mental game the wind can play at the hight point of a trek, and the moment when the sun starts to push out the night during your third hour of your first hike.  Or the coming together of friends over a breakfast buffet, that first sip of beer/red wine after that 12 hour hike and the moment you smile and realize that the mountains really do call for the best conversation.

It is magic.

Get to a National Park.  As fast as you can.  Feel small.  Breathe it in.  Connect.  And have that R-E-S-P-E-C-T.

Sunset from Glacier Point

Explore!

Chris Sandwich