Scott Stillman has written a few excellent books and if you haven’t heard of him or read any of his words then I highly recommend checking him out. This email he sent out came at an interesting time and I figured I would share it here, as a new topic.. I say an interesting time since Mathew K had recently posted a topic about being alone and plenty of members posted thoughts and ideas about it.. so here is the email… I hope it makes someone’s day a better day, as it has mine…
Alone again… with wilderness!
“We are social creatures. Surrounding ourselves with constant relationships, we often neglect the one of the most importance. The relationship with ourselves. The first realization on a solo trek is the most obvious. You are alone. This can be scary. Especially if you share each and every day with a significant other. But patience is a virtue. Just wait, give it a little time, soon you’ll start to rekindle that quiet relationship with yourself, the one you began long ago, when you ventured out into a completely new world, full of wonder and possibility.
Like magic, you’ll feel a twitch—that same sparkle you had as a child. The one you see in an infant’s eyes, the one you had before you were born, and the one you’ll take with you when you die. It’s still there. It never goes away.
Wilderness can do this. But you must go it alone. It’s a journey, and not an easy one at first, but if you can tap into your true essence, even if for a moment, it is worth it. You start to feel a new sense of freedom, the playfulness of a child. The day is yours. Yours alone. You can do anything! What a joy it is to simply be alive, healthy, human, here.
With a deep breath of pure mountain air, you smile in gratitude, heading out into your day of adventure. You’ve stepped out of your routine, out of your story. Now you are creating. Your book is unwritten; you create the story, minute-by-minute, frame-by-frame, second-by-second.
The best part? Returning back home after your trek is over. Walking through the door with that crazed look of pure ecstasy on your face as your spouse says, “What the hell did you do out there?” You smile and laugh it off, giving them a big hug because you are back. YOU are back.”
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