About to set out to start research on my camping guide and it seems I have found myself at a crossroads. I wasn’t really expecting it. I was just rambling along driven forward by a dream that wanted fulfilling.
My urge to get out and go camping has been consuming me. I pitched the tent in the back yard on damp grass under gloomy foggy skies; I checked the camping supply box, swapped items, poked around, took a nap in the pitched tent, sighed.
My dear sweet Paul, who has been standing by watching me, listening to my ideas (for months), finally asked, “Why this book, why now”? Screech…,”say what?” I thought, well, he just doesn’t understand. Then I realized do I understand? Why do I need to/want to write this guide book?
So I find myself standing at the intersection of Why and Why Not to.
Peering down the road of Why looks so exciting, and so pretty, and so relaxing all at the same time! I see a restless hunger, a hunger I have felt for a long time, being satiated. I see an excuse to “play hokey”, to throw my To-Do list into the wind, to experience the thrill of the unknown and taste the elixir of the explorer. I see a challenge; I want to get cold, hot, and hungry, loose a night’s sleep, get out of my comfort zone. I need to know that I am capable. I see myself embracing our beautiful wild planet, pulling her in deeply for a really big bear hug. I miss her truly wild places. I see my appetite for solitude nourished away from street lights, engine noise, and digital screens. Mostly, I see my record of these travels as a gift to others; an invitation to go out in to the wild of our beautiful little part of the planet!
Then I gaze down the road of Why Not To and it is maddeningly taunting. I mean do I really need this challenge (isn’t Geocaching enough?). There are plenty of wild places I can day trip to. Why risk aches and pains when my home is perfectly comfy. Then of course there’s FEAR looming LARGE around the corner. I could get hurt; I could stress my body causing my chronic illness to spiral out of control. What about weirdo’s and wacko’s, is one afternoon self-defense class enough? I’m sure to encounter a snake. Staying home is safe and tame. After all, am I really prepared for this?
Maybe I am, maybe I’m not.
What I do know is I need to try. I need to honor this dream. This is my most authentic self, a wanderer, an advocate for our wild mother. Ignorance is the parent of fear. So I am going to find out about these wild mountains around us and put it down in writing. My somewhat breakable Tom Boy self will be heading out solo, this weekend! I’ll be heading down the road of Why and turning at the intersection of Why Not!
Wild Escape Guides 