Day 81 LOVE

Day 81

August 9th

25 miles

PCT mile 1562

Early on in my hike, back when I was climbing Mt Balden-Powell I had gotten a message from a very near and dear friend asking to write her a letter with the question at hand: what do you think about when you're hiking? Since then I've reflected a lot on that question and the answer is "love" I think a lot about love. To that friend I still owe you that letter and you will get it, I am good on my word for that one.

Today is the perfect day to write about love, two of my friends are getting married today. She is one of my best friends and he is everything she deserves. I love both of them and know they will have eternal happiness together. I was able to talk to them a few weeks ago while I was in Mammoth wishing them all the best for this beautiful and momentous day in their lives. They knew I would be there in spirit and understood that I was following a dream and with good reason was unable to attend today.

Love...what is it about love I think about and why is it I think about love? I feel surrounded by love on the trail, my heart is full and happy and this love is threefold. It comes in the way of the love I receive from my family and friends, the love I have for myself and the love I have for the trail and my thru-hike.

From day one on the trail I've had so much support and love from family and friends back home. Although I've had many days and nights alone on the trail, I never feel lonely. I carry all the love with me in my heart and soul, it keeps me happy, makes my heart full and motivates me everyday to continue on in my journey. 

To love yourself and embrace your uniqueness is an essential key to live a joyous life. It's what makes all of us special and memorable. I am happy to be different then my friends and family. Even more so it's what makes me feel so comfortable being alone hours, days, and nights on end in the wilderness. It takes a lot of work to get to this point and at times facing some ugly character defects that we all have, but I strive everyday to be the best person I can be for myself and those involved in my life.

Everyday I wake up loving what I am doing. I love that I get to be outside. I love that I get to sleep in a different place every night. I love the people I meet and the places I get to see. I love the experiences Mother Nature hands me. I love that I get to do much physical exercise my body can handle in one day. I love pushing myself to the limit. I love the challenges I face. Not once have I woken up and not wanted to hike, I am excited for each new day.

Someone (this person was not a thru-hiker) once said to me not long ago, "I don't need to thru-hike the PCT to find myself." Well neither do I, I did that long before I started my hike. I'm thru-hiking for my love and passion of living my own life and how it feels right to me.