"More Similar Than Different..."

"I believe that we are all climbing our own mountains, that every striving individual or organization is climbing its own mountain in pursuit of its own goal." S. Wood

"We are all climbers. We all have impossible dreams. We all have the potential to stand proudly on the summit of our lives." J. Amatt

There is so much within the metaphors of climbing and summits... In so many ways we are all more similar than different through such life adventures...
DSD

My thanks again to Dru for the above inspiring images: http://flickr.com/photos/druclimb/

"A Simple Bow....."

We were not sure what we were watching, but were certain it was important... when a fellow climber had stayed back some during our descent. And when finally alone, she quietly turned and slowly gave a simple bow in the direction of the mountain...

We needed no explanation at that point... A mountain upon this Earth is an elemental entity like rivers, canyons, and oceans that as adventurers we learn to respect...

Adventures are experiences that may instill such reverence too for these elements, the challenges, and the wild places themselves out there...

Well known among our Eastern Family - the nature of the bow; when we incline our head or body; when we bend or kneel - is an acknowledgment and appreciation for something we find very important to us... Something that is often perceived as greater than ourselves... In bowing down before or to something in such salutation, we are saying much without words...

What seemed to be a simple action by our fellow climber has resonated with us now in a profound and powerful way. Experiences are often ushered in or out with a bow; a moment of distinct pause; where we wish to express our respect and thanks together for what has been passed to us... Something I intend to practice more of each sunrise in my wanderings... and especially on this Day for our Earth.....

DSD

"A Passing Year......."

"While seeking the secrets of nature I have watched the salutary effects of stillness and peace on human hearts and minds. I have seen the overpowering beauty of dawns and sunsets reach into troubled breasts and heal hurts that were thought beyond medicine and philosophy. And I have seen those burdened with grief take on the silence of forests aisles until they could hear that still, small voice which lifts hope and faith with wordless assurance." S. Campbell

Time passing..... A year of days and nights flowing by...
Your presence so loved... so loved... no longer there...
Yet only in the most physical sense...
Ashes taken to the mountains, and to the ocean waves...
Spread with tears... Yet too with smiles and many memories...
In our hearts and through our spirit, your presence is always with us... Always...
Among the trees and rivers... Over the waves and winds...
With our tiny one... Our little one... Within our wild places...
DSD

In Loving Memory: http://summitstonesadventuremusings.blogspot.com/2008/04/our-little-oneour-tiny-one.html

"Thank You Again Stephen....."

"The glories of a mountain campfire are far greater than may be guessed. One can make a day of any size and regulate the rising and setting of his own sun and the brightness of its shining. You gaze around at the illuminated trees as if you'd never seen them before... Sparks stream off like comets or in round, star-like whirls from a sun. They fly into space like Milky Ways of lavishness and fall like white flakes, feathery and pure as snow..." J. Muir

Thank you again Stephen, for your endless inspiration... DSD

In Tribute to: http://summitstonesadventuremusings.blogspot.com/2008/04/tribute-to-stephen-lyman.html

"Wild Place Karma....."

"Our experiences strike us, like the stick hitting the bell, and we learn about ourselves".
Deng Ming-Dao
What resonates within each of us, what we seem to already know, and that which we each deeply sense... all have been related to karmic understandings. The sum of a persons actions, the impact of one's life, and the ripple effects upon others and our world... are also sometimes thought of as being karmic. There is much within adventures that echoes the meanings we may discover about karma. A real theme of my Summit Stone intentions, and the many musings on this blog, reflect ideas about giving back and passing forward out there... Such a theme is a very personal one for each of us. Any choices we make about giving back and any 'karma' we each create also in passing forward is as unique as we are... We each are both cause and effect; and that seems to ring true in understanding the nature of wild place karma.
Karma also seems to be about mystery... of things before, during, and after. It resides on that mystical plane that flows through time, the elements, and the moments of our lives. The wild places inherently have the optimal mix of these elements for us to sense the importance of our own mystery's. Can we really be an influence upon such things is a question often asked... Maybe an answer of sorts is that we might each just simply choose to act as if this is indeed true. Then the question has answered itself.
Some define karma as a fate of sorts... many clarify that accepting karma as part of life does not mean being helpless and as having no choices. Like all of life and just as inherent for adventures, karma seems to be mostly about understanding that such experiences are a dynamic process where we each play a very active role in both instigation and outcome... There is nothing fatalistic or passive about this; just as there shouldn't be about our influence upon the natural world.
It is said that the most powerful karmic connections are those which we distinctly sense but never really see... Have you ever felt that out there... It is written as well that a very potent source for karma are those experiences which are unexpected, that surprise us, with their presence. When there is little to gain, really nothing of material benefits to be found in an action - that is a karma that sustains itself... And much of what we each choose to do in our adventures and wild place journeys is done for the simple enjoyment within the activity itself.
Can you sense how your own karma is created during your adventures out in the wild place Dear Finders.....
DSD