Cross the glacier,
And probe the surface ahead
With a pole.
Reach below,
And feel for hidden holes,
Filled with emptiness.
It’s a profound place
Of majestic vistas and open spaces.
Crisscrossed by mysterious cracks of darkness
Known as crevasses.
Which lie in wait–
Hoping to swallow you up,
And drink you into,
Their endless world of ice and cold.
Some are open for all the world to see.
Others are hidden under a thin shield of snow
And the sea you walk,
Is constantly changing.
The shape of each crevasse,
And where they are,
At any given moment in time,
May never be known.
But can be better understood.
Feel the edges underneath,
Where the breaches end,
And the solid glacier extends.
And follow the path of most resistance.
If you do,
The going is slow-
Circuitous and wobbly.
But perhaps you won’t fall in,
And will get where you’re going.
Head west and follow the sunsets,
Toward horizons always yonder.
Keep the distance in your sights,
As you hike the trail to infinitense.
Beyond the edge of what you see,
Countless moments wait to be.
And once you’re there,
You’ll set them free.
Distant magic waits to happen,
Out of sight, but not of mind.
Wake it with your presence.
So, cross the valley,
Ford the river,
Climb the ridge,
And engage the magnificence that awaits,
Infinitense beckons.
When you get there,
Drink in every drop of what you find.
See the
Thundering waters and towering waterfalls,
Huge forests teeming with life.
Desert mountains full of quandary,
Rolling prairies of waving grass.
But don’t just saturate your heart with awe.
Embrace the treasure,
Join the moment,
Replenish, refresh, reload,
And remember…
When you reach one horizon,
Another is born.
So, keep hiking.
Infinitense never leaves,
It’s forever just ahead.
And there’s always a trail that’ll take you there,
To the place beyond compare.
Ryan had never bonked before, at least in the metabolic shock/ overexertion sense of the word. When he started to bumble around and lose more and more of his edge, I knew that something was up and figured that’s what had happened. Not realizing what was going on, he kept on trying to mountain bike further up the Colorado Trail, although with diminishing returns. The big patches of snow that remained on the trail, even though it was June, were probably a good thing since they ultimately turned us all around. His disrupted mental and physical state likely made the retreat more palatable to the 13-year-old, since he wasn’t one to be prone to turn around before his goal was reached.
The wilderness welcomes with whispers and wind,
Vast deserts, huge mountains,
And forests unthinned.
A place where rainstorms, blizzards, and droughts,
Coexist with the fog,
The clear skies, and mist.
It beckons and hides,
Lures and derides.
It comes and goes,
Just like the tides.
It conceals vast treasures,
But opens its arms,
To all who would seek them
And sounds no alarms.
Constantly changing.
Extreme to serene.
From wildfire and thunder,
To calm and wonder.
It comes in all shapes
And in many sizes.
Its horizons expansive
And full of surprises.
Even though
Many folks never go
To lands faraway and wild.
It’s good to know
They still exist.
That frontiers yet persist.
Whether you hike into such places
With your body or your mind,
Rejoice in the magic that there you’ll surely find.
As you immerse yourself in its wonder,
Take a moment to relish and ponder.
And don’t try to make it better,
Nature’s working on those tasks.
Just leave it like it is,
That’s all it ever asks.
No matter how big the face,
Or how full your plate,
When you climb onto the rock,
A new realm you’ll unlock.
The world suddenly shrinks,
To nine square feet.
Living in the moment,
Is truly a treat.
No worries about what tomorrow will bring,
Cause your future rests solely on what you can cling.
The past is a jumble,
Most problems have gone.
What most concerns you,
Is what to step on.
The cracks are for the hands and feet,
And jams are mostly for arms and fists.
A pocketed face looks mighty good,
And a chimney’s for climbing and not for wood.
While getting to the top may be the goal,
Even the holds within reach could be beyond your control.
If you can’t make the next move,
And are stuck in one place,
The top no longer matters,
And a new goal you’ll then chase.
If you try while you’re climbing to think worldly thoughts,
The vision you conjure may be of knots.
But when you make a move forward and stand up on a nub,
The moment will win,
And you’ll understand then.
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