[ujicountdown id=”IDIOTS AWAY!” expire=”2014/03/20 07:00″ hide = “true”]
I look at that countdown and think both … “WOW it is getting close! ” and “Are we there yet?” Right now the “Are we there yet?” is definitely taking a strong lead. The last few weeks have been … well I guess the best way I can describe it is wearing on the soul. I am truly longing for the simplicity of just moving along a trail with good friends and companions, the only worry being the next step, and fully feeling the embrace of nature around me. The last few weeks have been a barrage of soullessness, and it has totally penetrated my defenses. I truly LONG for the woods.
It saddens me that so-called “modern” society has totally lost touch with our basic humanity. This is not just reflected in how we treat each OTHER, but in how we treat the very planet we live on. We have done our best to hide ourselves from the Earth Mother, the “being” that conceived us. We constantly complain about the weather, and do our best to keep it from actually touching us. We rail at the sun for its potential harm, never thanking it for its life-giving warmth. We moan about how buggy it is, never thanking the bugs for actually doing their job … which is ultimately keeping the pattern of life alive around us. No bugs, no flowers … a barren world indeed. Yet to some this would be a blessing … for barren also means profit. We have lost the simple skill off appreciating natural beauty. Nature has become an inconvenience; a hindrance to profit and/or comfort. Those of us who truly appreciate it are at best hard to understand, at worst tree hugging hippies.
Frankly as I see what the “civilized” human, who does their best to HIDE from nature has become … the more I long to escape BACK to nature. I am almost envious of Mark right now, as he gets to test his mettle in a proper encounter with the natural world this week. But I am also very glad he is, both so I can live vicariously through his exploits, and because I know it brings us one step closer to our coming journey.
Few actually get WHY I am doing this. Most don’t even believe the reality of the plan, thinking that ultimately it won’t happen. Some have said why not do it in pieces? Others just shudder at the thought. A few express excitement, but still treat it as some exotic dream. It is more than just challenging my own limits. It is more than helping friends challenge theirs. It is more than trying to raise a few dollars for charity. All of these play a role, but they are only aspects. This is a spiritual journey for me, something akin to the concept of Walk-about. I see this as the beginning of not just a new chapter of my life … but a whole new novel. This is not just an adventure but a fresh start. As far as I am concerned, when we step off the trail, I will just seek the next trail to follow, and not get back to an old life that I have not been living anyway. If there were a way I could, I would simply start walking now, and just keep going in Forrest Gumpish splendor. But sadly that is not to be, so in the mean time …
… Are we there yet?
