Earlier this year, I was hiking with my daughters at our favorite mountain preserve and my middle child told me that she wanted to get to the top of a particular part of the mountain that day. She is one determined tiny human, so I told her sure we could make that happen and we started off on a trail that would get us there.
At the beginning of the hike, she was raring to go and showed so much excitement as we got closer and closer to the mountain. As we continued up the trail and things got steeper, that enthusiasm started to wane. I was not surprised by that, it was hard work and I have definitely done hikes where my enthusiasm is zapped by physical exertion, but I thought we could probably use a snack break. We stopped and took out our water bottles and apples and it was during this break that my daughter turned to me and asked, very concerned, “Mom, where’s the mountain? I
This brave girl scrambled up slippery sandstone to reach these awesome caves and inspired several adults trying to do the same to keep going!
can’t see it anymore.” I smiled and told her “we’re ON the mountain? It’s right here.” and she
replied “no this is the trail and I could see the mountain from it before but I can’t see it now.” I pointed out to her the cactus we had seen when we were further down the trail and talked about how it looks bigger now because we are closer and I promised her we were going to the mountain peak she’d asked about. She seemed suspicious but agreed to continue on and was very excited by the views from the top and how she could see the mountain again once we headed down.
And because I can’t help but feel like the mountains are constantly teaching me life lessons- I had to reflect on how often we can forget to be thankful for how far we’ve come and how we can lose sight of that or forget what our goal even is right when we are closest to the summit. Sometimes, after you’ve put so much energy in getting up the mountain, it may not feel like you are on the mountain at a all. You might get distracted by the other trails around you and can feel totally lost
One day maybe I’ll be confident enough to hike in a fancy dress instead of workout clothes or jeans…
for a bit. It helps to have a trusted outside metric or a fellow hiker along to reassure you you are still on the right path to reach that peak. I am lucky to have that with the journaling work I do in my Powersheets as well as with my closest relationships with some amazing friends and family. But sometimes I am just like my daughter and still skeptical even when these outside voices are reassuring me I’m on the right path, that I haven’t lost ground, that the world isn’t as dark as it feels. Sometimes I just have to keep putting one foot in front of the other, to do in the dark what I know how to do in the light, and to remember to enjoy the views as they come before I get back down the mountain and look back at the bigger picture to see what I actually accomplished.
As we head into thanksgiving weekend, I hope you take a second to realize the mountains you’ve climbed, the progress you continue to make, and the gorgeous views around you. And if you live in a place where opting outside over the long weekend is possible and safe- I hope you get a chance to do so! I know that is part of our plan 🙂
(PS: Powersheets are on sale now through Monday as part of the Cultivate What Matters holiday deals! This has never happened before so I’m shocked but if you’ve ever been curious about my goal setting system and all the tending lists I post month to month, this is a great opportunity to try it all out at a price that is less steep- you can get them HERE 🙂 They also have my favorite notebooks on sale- trying to be happy for everyone who will get it at this great price instead of sad that I bought so many as Christmas gifts before this sale started lol.)
Alphabet Resolutions 
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