[Imagine it's the weekend of Halloween!]
This weekend I was off adventuring in The Pocono Mountains with Kels, Nicole, and Nicole’s friend (and now my friend too!), Jane. We arrived Friday night and quickly got ourselves settled in by the fireplace, enjoying hot tea and playing Scrabble. We went to bed to the sound of the fireplace crackling and popping, snuggled in to our blankets and sleeping bags.
Saturday morning we awoke to a light dusting of snow across the mountains. It was a beautiful sight, to see the colors of fall and the first signs of winter colliding together. We ate breakfast and eventually bundled up to go on a hike to some of the falls. Snow had started falling steadily by then, and it just became more and more beautiful as the snow clung to the pines and to the ground beneath our feet.
As we got closer to the falls, the trail got a bit trickier. Large slick rocks replaced small rocks covered in snow, and flat ground turned into a hill here or there. At one particular point, we had to go down a small hill to get to the falls. This hill had a lot of those large slick rocks. Now, let me just tell you…I am not the most coordinated person and I just don’t trust my balance in general. So, I took my sweet time going down this decline, putting great thought into where I made my next step, for fear of falling and sliding down the rest of the way. I suppose that could have been an adventure in itself, but I didn’t want to try it. I was behind everyone else, which I found helpful because I could look to see where the other three had stepped to get down. I got to the bottom and continued to follow the footsteps left behind by my friends. I joined Nicole again, who had stopped to wait for me, and we continued walking, the sound of the falls filling the woods around us. We got to a part where you could tell there was mud, due to the fact that either Kels or Jane had come close to stepping in it themselves. We followed the path they took on the side of the trail, and it was mud free. At one point I thought I needed to cross to the other side, and as I started to do that I quickly found my foot sunk in cold wet mud. It wasn’t too bad, though.
We got to the falls and it was beautiful. We took pictures, and just really admired everything around us. The snow had picked up and by then we were all pretty cold, so we turned and headed back to Aircastle.
Once again, I was at the back. Nicole and I walked together and just ahead of us were Kels and Jane. The snow had covered a majority of our footsteps from our way down to the falls. The hill I had hesitantly descended was a lot easier to walk up, and it seemed odd that this was the same hill I had taken so long to walk down.
As we continued walking, the snow became so thick that we could no longer see Kelsey and Jane ahead of us, nor could we see their footprints. And it made me think.
Sometimes, the path is laid out for us…footprints have been left behind by those gone before us, footprints to help us find our way. But other times, the footprints have been covered or they just don’t exist and we have to find our own way. Not necessarily by ourselves, but we can’t look down and say “Hey, so and so went this way, I think I’ll follow!” It’s a time for us to make our own footprints, instead of putting our feet in other people’s footprints.
I think there are a variety of emotions that you can feel about something like that. You can feel alone or you can feel frustrated or confused. Your confidence can waiver… wondering if you can make the right steps along the way.
On the other hand, you can also feel excitement for something new, something fresh. You can take it as an opportunity to just get yourself out there. You can run with it and just see where it takes you.
This weekend I was off adventuring in The Pocono Mountains with Kels, Nicole, and Nicole’s friend (and now my friend too!), Jane. We arrived Friday night and quickly got ourselves settled in by the fireplace, enjoying hot tea and playing Scrabble. We went to bed to the sound of the fireplace crackling and popping, snuggled in to our blankets and sleeping bags.
Saturday morning we awoke to a light dusting of snow across the mountains. It was a beautiful sight, to see the colors of fall and the first signs of winter colliding together. We ate breakfast and eventually bundled up to go on a hike to some of the falls. Snow had started falling steadily by then, and it just became more and more beautiful as the snow clung to the pines and to the ground beneath our feet.
As we got closer to the falls, the trail got a bit trickier. Large slick rocks replaced small rocks covered in snow, and flat ground turned into a hill here or there. At one particular point, we had to go down a small hill to get to the falls. This hill had a lot of those large slick rocks. Now, let me just tell you…I am not the most coordinated person and I just don’t trust my balance in general. So, I took my sweet time going down this decline, putting great thought into where I made my next step, for fear of falling and sliding down the rest of the way. I suppose that could have been an adventure in itself, but I didn’t want to try it. I was behind everyone else, which I found helpful because I could look to see where the other three had stepped to get down. I got to the bottom and continued to follow the footsteps left behind by my friends. I joined Nicole again, who had stopped to wait for me, and we continued walking, the sound of the falls filling the woods around us. We got to a part where you could tell there was mud, due to the fact that either Kels or Jane had come close to stepping in it themselves. We followed the path they took on the side of the trail, and it was mud free. At one point I thought I needed to cross to the other side, and as I started to do that I quickly found my foot sunk in cold wet mud. It wasn’t too bad, though.
We got to the falls and it was beautiful. We took pictures, and just really admired everything around us. The snow had picked up and by then we were all pretty cold, so we turned and headed back to Aircastle.
Once again, I was at the back. Nicole and I walked together and just ahead of us were Kels and Jane. The snow had covered a majority of our footsteps from our way down to the falls. The hill I had hesitantly descended was a lot easier to walk up, and it seemed odd that this was the same hill I had taken so long to walk down.
As we continued walking, the snow became so thick that we could no longer see Kelsey and Jane ahead of us, nor could we see their footprints. And it made me think.
Sometimes, the path is laid out for us…footprints have been left behind by those gone before us, footprints to help us find our way. But other times, the footprints have been covered or they just don’t exist and we have to find our own way. Not necessarily by ourselves, but we can’t look down and say “Hey, so and so went this way, I think I’ll follow!” It’s a time for us to make our own footprints, instead of putting our feet in other people’s footprints.
I think there are a variety of emotions that you can feel about something like that. You can feel alone or you can feel frustrated or confused. Your confidence can waiver… wondering if you can make the right steps along the way.
On the other hand, you can also feel excitement for something new, something fresh. You can take it as an opportunity to just get yourself out there. You can run with it and just see where it takes you.
I think for me right now, I’m finding myself on both types of paths…those with steps laid out and those without. And maybe that’s everyone. I mean…we are all on our own personal journey that is unique to us. Even if it’s our own journey, we still have help along the way. I think that’s beautiful. More beautiful than the snow on the pines, and the fireplace glowing.
Anywho. That is my Pocono ramble. I hope you’re doing well, whatever type of path you are on right now.
With love,
Emily
Anywho. That is my Pocono ramble. I hope you’re doing well, whatever type of path you are on right now.
With love,
Emily
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