She Treks

I crave the outdoors.  Every cell in my body is excited by a trek outside, whether it be a morning walk or a vacation hike in the mountains.  We intentionally swapped more space in the 'burbs for a smaller apartment so we could live across the street from the beach on Lake Michigan.  I anticipate all that is new, an opportunity to explore.  I can be intimidated by the unknown and the unfamiliar, but it still makes my senses tingle in anticipation.  I savor the natural high from the energy coursing through my veins as I climb an incline to get to the top, or push through the obstacles to the end of the journey. 

Perhaps I'm a frustrated west-coaster living a life in the Midwest.  As much I would love for every day to hold a new trail to run or hike upon, the reality is that my husband and I live in an urban area with a toddler.  I hate to say what constitutes "downhill" skiing for us here in the Midwest.  These days my treks are much more bound to what I can do with a carrier or a jogger. 

Still, I'm more and more aware all the time that my own daily choices largely dictate my attitude.  There are many areas that I trek through in my life.  Sometimes they are physical in nature, other times emotional, spiritual, career-oriented, or involve the new world of parenting.  Sometimes the daily trek is mundane, quite frankly.  Diaper rash, temper tantrums, cooking dinner, cleaning the toilet, snapping at my husband instead of being patient. Sometimes the daily trek is refreshing...seeing my son grow and hearing him babble, a good study, working with my hands, decorating, experimenting in the kitchen, listening to my husband and laughing together.  Sometimes the trek is ongoing over years, and it's hard to see where the end of the trail will be.  It's plodding one foot in front of the other, through each mile and then the next through tough relationships and painful seasons in our lives.  Other times it's the awesome mountaintop view or the satisfying, screaming rush down the Canadian Rockies. Whatever it is, I'm striving to trek onward with a perspective that is both authentic and God-honoring, knowing I stumble A LOT along the trail.  That's life, right?

Trek on.