A View from the Top

by Lindsey Roy

This week I was on vacation with my family. We went on a hike to a peak that was almost 12,000 feet in elevation. I wanted my family to experience hiking together, so I decided to go for it.

The quick summary is I got in over my head. The hike was very difficult for me and the higher we climbed, the more I was mentally conflicted. Should I keep going? I've gone this far, let's finish! Or, should I turn around? Downhill is harder for me with my particular muscle situation (or lack thereof) so every step up will also be a challenging step down...

In the end, the need to complete the goal won out. My son kept cheering me on and I couldn't let him down. So I made it to the top and it was exhilarating! But the descent was full of even more challenges and at that point, I had no choices anymore. I simply had to keep going.

Arriving at the end of the trail and sitting down in the car was the oasis at the end of the day. I pondered several lessons, here are a few. Choose whichever one is most useful for you!

- Never give up!

- Never underestimate the power of a few encouraging words (I would have turned around if it wasn't for my son)

- Consider doing easier things on vacation! (Ha!...but I didn't want to miss out on having this experience with my family!)

- Remember - even if it takes you longer to get there, the result is the same

A view from 12,000 feet above sea level