Wednesday, February 21, 2018

I want to live.

How many times have I told myself that I need to get back to this blog?

Well, I'm back, for now. And I'll just get into it!

Lately I have been longing to feel alive.

This feeling came about one morning when I was out running on the canyon trail, here in Cedar. It's a beautiful trail that winds from the baseball fields to the edge of town, through a park and up the canyon. I love running this trail. On this particular day, I was running 6 miles, and I was dying because I hadn't been training like I should, but I was determined to stay on schedule. (even if that meant the longest I had run to date was only 4 miles.)

Anyway, I was running and I became acutely aware of my body and how it was moving and how incredibly proud I was of it for doing this. My body was putting one foot in front of the other and moving forward. I was so in awe that I was capable of this, because just a year earlier, I wouldn't have even dreamed of running more than a mile. (I completed my first half marathon last September!)

I was in awe of my body, and I felt the sun on my skin, and I was in awe of nature and my place in it. How crazy is it that I am alive at this point in time? And I get to be here and do things that I enjoy because my body can take me places.

Maybe this isn't making a lot of sense, but it was a revelation to me in that moment.

The next day, I went hiking in Zion and I felt the same elation to be out in nature and to experience the beauty all around me. The next weekend, I went to Zion again, and I promised myself I would do as many things as I can fit into my schedule this year, because I'm here and I might not ever be here again, and I want to live while I can.

The second weekend in Zion, Katie and I hiked Observation Point. It's an 8 mile roundtrip with 2,000+ ft elevation gain. (This means it's a 4 mile uphill climb.) It was strenuous and I wanted to curl up in a ball after we were done, but it was the most incredible view at the top. There wasn't a single part of the hike that wasn't amazing. There were no boring stretches, because you never knew what was coming around the next bend. It's filled with sheer drops, slot canyons, and a nice stroll on the rim of the canyon. I can't wait to do it again!

Also, this may come as a surprise, but as I write this, I have just come home from my first Improv class. What?! I know. I'm still in shock. But it was so much fun! (And I'm low-key looking forward to class next Wednesday.) My friend Heather asked me if I would join her in the class, right before we sat through a 2 hr musical, and the only thing I was thinking about was the class and whether or not I should do it. The next day she asked again, and I got on the website to sign up before I could think too hard about it! On my way to class (and most of today), I was SO scared, but I did it. And I'm so proud of myself right now!

So that's what this blog is going to be. A journal of the hikes/festival/events/activities I partake in this year. Hopefully there will be so many!

What an adventure this will be!

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