"Paddling Towards Stillness..."

The friendship of winds,

White waves keeping company,

All of motion, momentum, and pace...

Directions without, becoming navigation's within,

Towards horizons of feelings,

Secret islands of wonder,

Journeys of being and place...

Moments above ocean,

Depths of calmness below,

While beneath sky's of mirrored beauty,

Among reflections we wish to become...

Such movement without time,

Paddling now so very slowly,

Towards our own special stillness.....

DSD

My thanks to B. Hatcher for the top image above and to S. Brown for the lower image.

"Our Position In The Raft..."

It was mostly class three, but a few amazing class four also, to really get our attention and focus out among those river rapids... Such cold waters, such a beautiful warm day... It was going to be an adventure experience of contrasts I thought as we loaded, tied down, reviewed roles, dry practiced, then launched out upon the welcoming river.

We often ponder our position along this meandering journey of life, and time out there, and I do as well when a person chooses their spot in our raft...

This young one decided to get their position in the middle of things, both hands holding so tightly upon the rope that encircles our small craft for safety. Often this arises from the novices' level of experience, and just as often from the shyness, and likely yet developed confidences.

Then we embarked upon just what each of us needed out on those fast moving waters - some to refresh themselves, others to practice skills, a few to get the rust off, and the spirited ones to discover themselves...

Such waters share wisdom, provide teachings, show ways and means to create and develop ourselves. We journey through our own passages and positions, just as the rivers do themselves. From turbulence, to calmness, from shallow to very certain depths, from unknowns to excitements...

As the sun began to cross overhead, and as the day evolved even further, so did this young one, from a position in the middle, then to further up where more can be seen, where more can be done - then later to the very bow, the very front edge of it all...

It is at this point where initial anxiousness becomes confidence, where nothing is now between us and the churning waters, where we can then reach out and grasp, and experience, and find something that was always there inside of us...

Such fluid elemental growth, such connection with others, all while sharing an adventure out upon wild place waters. And then I noticed what was surely to develop, what I had hoped for to see... That young one's face, such a great grin, looking over a shoulder, wanting a try at my guiding position away in the very back now too.....

DSD

"Hiking Among Ancients..."

To have such a hiking trail, with nearby rocky peaks to scramble upon, while being surrounded by Ice Fields and glaciers so very, very old, is simply wonderful and amazingly beautiful...

It's almost as if the elements have agreed that because so much of this area is so high, so extreme, and so far away, that one small point on this part of the map should be accessible to us. If for no other reason than to bear witness to what can most often may be only seen, never touched...

That seems to be true for the many who come to view the glaciers from far down before us on the highway below. Many cannot, or choose not to hike or scramble in this way, yet they are still afforded moments among such majesty of long ago...

Way up here though, as we gaze across at the distant Ice Fields, we can sense times long past, moments belonging to the Olden Ones and their ways. Everything here has existed, has lived, for so long that any kind of measure of their time lines becomes indistinct. These ancient peaks, these great glaciers, even the oldest windswept trees, among lichens of so many colors and ageless rocks of such different kinds surely holds the secrets of the eternities...

There are old stories to be discovered here, and told, of what existed back then, of the precursor's of today, of these beautiful monuments belonging to antiquity. They are so well preserved, and all so very prepared to pause for each of us - their former selves still in their continuing greatness in all its splendour, waiting patiently for we adventurers to venture forth and hike there among these ancients.....

DSD

My thanks to Adam for the lower image above.

"The Map Upon One's Face..."

Do we not all carry and display a type of map upon our faces... Are the lines, the contours, the images not unlike the symbols we find on the maps we use out there...

Our adventure experiences and the challenges & successes, trials & lessons, enjoyment & wonder of it all would seem to create many types of impressions upon one's face. When looking at each other during our journeys, we can see where we have been, can envision where we will now be going, almost as clearly as when we spread our maps out upon the ground. The title of a 'map' for any day of wandering may be of a hiker, a climber, then a kayaker, later a canyoneer, or river rafter, among so many other wondrous adventure pursuits. The legend of these maps - their keys, helps us to understand what is actually being represented there. We read it closely to envision what is being told to us... Again as we do when reading each others faces as we weather the elements, as we make our way among the wilds, when we look into that mirrored reflection upon those mountain lakes...

Maps need a compass too for knowing how to orient oneself to it, for clearly establishing north, and then understanding which way to turn and carry on. We enjoy mentally picturing such distances and heights, size and scales, depths and elements, both personal and of the wild places.

The maps upon our faces were not purchased though, but earned... They are as valuable as any ancient mariners chart, and have been sculpted not by ink, but by the elements themselves and through our efforts.

I so enjoy learning to read, to understand, to envision and embrace, the many challenges and discoveries that the maps on our faces and in our lives present for us.....

DSD

"Unnamed....."

There are so many high points out there, pieces and sections of meandering summits, less majestic peaks, that are not often visited - ones that on most maps are simply unnamed...

I am drawn to these summits. They seem to call to me...

It may be because that they are not the usual objectives. This may reflect my affinity with going out solo as many times as I head out with others. It could be that they are hidden high point treasures that just might never have had a tread set upon them. As I sit here on this Unnamed summit, and journal the initial scribblings for this post, the passages of clouds and light and dark flow over me and the mountains surrounding this unspectacular point. There is a blue within dark blue in the vista before me. It is this lighting that brings to mind again one of my favorite quotes by M. Clark, "The acid test of a true adventurer, if presented with certain anonymity, is whether each of us would still have made the journey beyond the last blue mountain".
As I muse further during the eternity of these moments, I think too how soon I shall also visit an unnamed small island on a distant ocean chart for another adventure... They too are such special common places...
When such ponderings raise their awareness in my mind I never believe it to be simple coincidence. It strikes me that in this quote I may discover yet another answer to why unnamed places and anonymous wanderings are of such interest and always hold such meanings...
They have no name, their unassuming, anonymous presence simply is. There are few pictures of such mountains ( or islands ), no summit register is present, nor even a cairn raised. Climbing and paddling to unnamed elementals like this can never be about ego, for other than the safety of telling where we are going and when we will return, no one even knows of each of our journeys. Why you are there is only between you and the mountain, you and the island, you and that wild place...
I do so love sharing a day with the Unnamed ones.....
DSD

"A Story About An Old Paddle..."

I'm going to share with you a story of a very old paddle found on a distant secluded island...

That small campsite out there was tucked closely away among even older trees, with only the smallest cobbled beach upon which to first land and later launch again from. It is an older paddle that I found, an all wooden paddle, that was placed in such a way that surely it could not have been just forgotten there. Such beautiful wood, even while nicked and rubbed raw with use in the places one would expect. What was unusual, special though, was when picking it up one could feel, even know - certain sensations...

This was a paddle that had a life of its' own, a paddle that came alive in your hand, that would be there with you and for you among the biggest waves and through the strongest currents. A paddle that was as familiar as any very good adventurous friend, whose vibrant nature could be felt when close by. It did indeed come alive when it touched the water, indescribably so, but with a reality of renewed energy and enthusiasm. Whatever spirit that paddle held deep within it was shared with you once it was picked up and made ready for the waters.

Now this is a tale that I know first hand as I held that paddle then too, for a very long time, learned of the life it contained within, and the way it would possess any who shared fluid timeless moments on the waters with it. It so wanted to be used, to move with and against the water elements. Its' source may have been unknown but it was still so very familiar. An essence of something so powerful, ephemeral, yet very real. Where had it originated, I have often wondered... With no markings of the usual mass produced type, yet clearly made by caring hands. Who could craft such flexibility, strength, beauty, and longevity all in one I've pondered. There was truly an energy there too...

When braced in just the right way one could feel those gentle vibrations transmitting from some source, through this wooden elemental, to our human hands. Many stories are born from legends like these which are then shared out around campfires on islands of our northern lakes...

And at this moment, the flicker and reflection of the flames are gleaming back at me, from upon that paddle, as it rests just over there...

Waiting.......  DSD

"Wilderness Heals....."

For many who wander and especially for those tend to long linger out among the wild places, the concepts around experiences of healings of sorts almost always seem to emerge...

Be it from the unique contrasts to the many distractions back here, from the exercise itself, within the mysteriously curative elements out there, or the companionship and connections - among so many other restorative experiences... There is truly a wonderful healing mixing in of all that is physical, psychological, social, and of the spirit too within our journeys out there...

Adventures present for us such amazing opportunities to re-energize ourselves, while being a potent remedy for much of what might distress us. I have often wondered too, is such mending of oneself also from the wild fun, the fulfilling freedoms, the challenges, the boundless new ways of seeing and feeling, the catharsis of adventures, or maybe too the development of amazing skills and the subsequent self-esteem. It seems that all of these elements almost always combine themselves into a synergy of healing and individual energy, where paths taken among the wild places echo of the soundness of mind, body, and spirit we all inherently seek...

This last season we have been following along on so many wonderful adventurous quests, that give back and pass forward to others, in very unique ways of instilling such vigorous vitality. One of these that strikes a resounding cord and often reflects the musings I write about here, from within their purposeful and restorative intentions, is the Wilderness Heals endeavour. Which is serendipitously undertaken as a support for the Elizabeth Stone House.

The accounts of their wanderings, and the amazing experiences of their participants, mused on within their site linked below reflect so very much about healings... Their focus is on the powerfully therapeutic relationship to the natural world we can have, the healing elements of the wilderness experience itself, and the essential lasting connections made among those who wander out there...

The steps that the Wilderness Heals Adventurers take, and the high points they reach for, are not just of geography, but of the heart and the spirit too...

Through their journeys, they find among their adventures the ways and means to discover what is healthy and very 'right' within a person, and not just what may not be working in their lives. What an elusive but a life changing distinctly important tenet...

Please have a visit with them, share in, and support the wonderful journeys of the participants of Wilderness Heals...

DSD

The above images are also found at the Wilderness Heals site of:

http://wildernessheals.elizabethstone.org/

"It Shifted....."

I actually am not sure how many times we have climbed and scrambled this amazing Tower which overlooks Moraine Lake in Banff. But I do know we have enjoyed sharing the rock there in all four of the seasons. I particularly was enchanted during a winter climb with the mountains and valleys before us painted as beautifully as any classic black and white work of art. The views across up to Larch Valley, over Consolation Lakes, gazing over at the Ten Peaks, at the majesty of Mt. Temple, and across that wonderful expanse of Moraine Lake itself are unparalleled...

The one technical climb where we traced our route upon the Tower Of Babel's rock face was an exceptional day out. One of blue upon blue sky, no whisper of any wind, and crisp cool air where the echoes of climbing calls seemed to carry forever...

The route was full of the cracks, loose rock, and large blocks of stone common to our northern Rockies. This Tower though seems to hold its stone longer than many mountains... Some of the blocks are so very loose, yet so huge... I was seconding a section that has imprinted a moment in my mind, one where while moving upward I placed my hand deep into a crack, only to find that something very big moved a bit... "It shifted", were the two words I said out loud in surprise as I froze in place...

I just couldn't believe something that large could be moved, by what seemed to be a subtle placement of something as small as my hand and a bit of pressure. But shifted it had, as likely I had braced and pulled more out than down. Every second can be recalled of how we then backed off, traversed across slowly, and moved past that immense block of rock. My partner kept the lead and only smiled at me as I kept mumbling, 'It Shifted', in renewed surprise again and again...

Adventures are experienced within the moment, while the lessons from them, we often become more aware of later... I replayed the movements and placements over and over to see what might be grasped and learned from this. There was lots to ponder as we sat amongst the many huge cairns built by successive climbers atop this Tower of Babel... Like that rock, our perspectives may shift greatly at times too out there... All part of what keeps us aware, focused, having great experiences and fun within those moments of amazingly cautious enjoyment in the wild places...

I still wonder today about how that huge block of stone shifted.....

DSD

"Such Poets And Bards Are We....."

Such Poets and Bards are we...

All those who adventure and ponder,

Sharing in all that we see.

Within the beauty of experience and motion,

Such summits of visions and dreams,

The songs of spirit and emotion,

For those who wonder and wander,

Such Poets and Bards are we.....

DSD

"A Scar To Be Proud Of....."

There are many kinds of scars we bear. Some cannot be seen and heal so slowly. Others adorn the body and are worn proudly as any award or medal for our efforts...

There is one northern Rockies mountain, that has not one, but three unique and separate summits. each of which holds out its own challenges in style and their difficulty for climbing. While scrambling all three is possible, each also has their own technical routes that have been developed slowly over the years. Those who first ascended these summits, usually carry scars of various types as memento's... Some are upon fingers, even elbows, a few written upon legs, even faces... There seems to be an old tradition of sorts, in the bonding of blood and sweat and rock at altitude in our journeys up there...

On this particular summit, out on a day of a past summer solstice, I was finding the nature of that exposed rock to be quite unique, with its sharp and pointed edges, with a mix of fossils among them. I remember them well when I feel for the scar on my leg where that jagged edge tore through my pants...

I didn't feel nor notice exactly when the gash occurred and there was no time to stop anyway. It opened and closed a number of times throughout the day, as I added a bit of myself to the colors of that bright rock face. It was a challenging, rewarding, very long summit solstice day...

I fondly recall gathering and placing a few selected stones at the summit cairn, yet my more personal memento was the scar which was to later form on my lower leg. I'm not sure exactly why I cherish it so, especially as it was likely caused by inattention, yet it reminds me of so many things... Of friendship, being out under the sun, of rock and warm breezes, about losing oneself within effort, and those feelings we all have out there don't we Dear Friends, of emotions so intense and heightened that they can make us smile so many years later...

Over a simple scar.....

DSD

"When Dreams Take Flight..."

There is a very old legend, an ancient positive omen, that tells of a flying Eagle and the mysterious huge shadow it makes upon the waters they often journey over...

The legend says that if you are timely enough, likely even skilled enough too, you may become part of that special moment when an Eagle takes flight over water. If you indeed lucky enough, this positive omen also suggests that then your own dreams, the things you hold most dear, will also take flight as well...

Adventures are all about dreams...

Adventurers are inherently dreamers...

We live our dreams out there as we wander and trek, scramble and climb, paddle and raft, among the mysteries and wonders of the wild places.

It's as if we have all at one time been embraced by the Eagle's shadow over the waters.

On my latest sea kayak trip, in order to fulfill some distant island longings, I was drifting closer to a rocky shoreline with many old growth trees reaching far up and out over the waters. The shadows I drifted among shimmered with the occasional ray of golden sunlight and reflected sea bottom. I then noticed that very large, darkly shaped shadow on the water, which could only be a very certain unique nest up so high in these old trees. When my kayak touched that shadow, it moved and grew in size and shape, and when I gazed up those huge living wings could now also be seen.

To drift for such a long time in the shadow of an Eagle over water...

What wonderful, elusive moments...

Now I am pondering, and especially dreaming even more, as I very much believe in such ancient omens and timeless legends.....

DSD

My thanks to N. Rosing for the top image above and to K. Daniel for the lower image.

"Embracing Motives....."

"But if adventure has a final and all embracing motive it is surely this: We go out because it is in our nature to go out and climb mountains and to sail the seas, to fly the planets and plummet into the depths of the oceans. By doing these things we may touch with something outside or behind, which strangely seems to approve our doing them. We extend our horizon, we expand our being, we revel in the mastery of ourselves." W. Noyce

Embracing why... we embrace our selves...
DSD

My thanks to S. Alvarez for the top image above and to B. Hatcher for the lower image.

"Become....."

On that high mountain side...

Become the adventurer, become that person, you've always wanted to be when out there.

When overcoming those white water rapids, take on the form of that courage, you've always envisioned in yourself.

Deep in those canyons...

Or out upon that distant trek, face into those risks and trials, you've chosen to be part of your journey.

While out with your kayak, riding upon those immense waves,

Embrace the changes in yourself as the wind embraces you...

When out in such wild places, my Friends, we each may become the adventurers, the individuals, we've always wanted to be.

The wild places and our adventures are such wonderful, powerful, means...

We each are the medium...

Becoming something...

Do you hear your new self calling.....

DSD

My appreciation to G. McCormack for the top image above and to K. Thompson for the lower image.

"Standing Before..."

It seemed a significant unfolding epiphany as we rested there that adventure day...

There we were, now standing quietly before our chosen objective. Having made great time on the trail with one of our earliest starts yet, we now had some moments to pause and gaze up at what we were journeying towards. Off came the packs, then the hats and headlamps too, as first light was now just upon us. Then the fleece, gloves, and even a few peeled off their boots for a restful airing of tired feet.

Our conversations then were open, and respectful of what was to come. We seemed to realize the enormity of the chosen challenges, and the implications of such commitment was exhilarating yet humbling...

The muted tones were still of enthusiasm though, as while still holding on to our dreams and goals, we seemed to be letting go of trying to predict and control the outcome yet to be experienced... There was a softening, within our expectations that blended well with the determination there; less of ego if you will and more of intentional allowings... A peeling away down to the basics of why we were out there...

To meet this goal, we each would likely have to modify, maybe even set aside our own personal objectives, so that the group could attain a shared success. It seemed a process, however brief, of 'standing before', of distilling our gear, ourselves, and our desires to a core of something essentially else...

It felt more pure in a sense, more relaxed yet more focused, and with a different kind of energy - as all that was left was now spirit, shared spirit as we stood there before going onward and upward.....

DSD

My appreciation to G. Wiltsie for the above wonderful images.

"Outward Bound... Out Beyond..."

Each and every spring I set aside some special time, to again read over my Outward Bound journals, and then to gaze over those precious images from years long past... Such reflections have become important moments of meaning and memories that have set direction for myself and so many others. A gift from Outward Bound and 'out beyond', which is a reference I noted in my journal from my first course. It was said by an Instructor who used it often to reflect the wonders of the wild places and the mysteries of the experiences we were about to have out there... I now know that such amazing journeys do not simply happen without much preparation, planning, and the development of unique vision and program perspectives - all of which takes great efforts to put in place.

When recently visiting Outward Bound Canada's website I could see how, yet once more, they are setting course for 'out beyond' on some very exciting new adventures.

They say again: "In sailing lore, Outward Bound refers to a vessel departing the safety and comfort of the harbour to venture into unknown, unpredictable waters. In educational terms it has come to mean resiliently adapting to the unexpected, embracing a path of skill and mastery and leading with compassion". I do so love this metaphor...

They write: "In response to a changing world, we've simplified our delivery model and expanded our focus on partnerships with national organizations that, along with us, are committed to building community assets and community strengths at all levels of society".

Some of these new experiences for out beyond include the Outward Bound Veterans Program, where "Sometimes this is the first time Veterans have had the opportunity to share impressions of their experiences in a completely supportive and like-minded forum with other Veterans surrounded by the beauty of the rich Canadian wilderness landscape. Your home".

Then there is the Women Of Courage Program which, "Brings women together to share a powerful experience of discovery, while immersed in the beauty and serenity of the natural world". The Aboriginal Youth Asset Building adventure is so very unique as well, and is seen as a 'Mountain Spirit Program', combining culture with adventure into ageless, timeless, priceless experiences.

Such wonderfully potent new opportunities for musings and meanings for those who choose to participate. Please have a look and pass this information forward to anyone who may benefit from these journeys.

Outward Bound, out beyond, yet again... Setting out upon unique courses and exciting new directions where so many will be able to create a spirit and life of adventure from wandering among the wonders of the wild places.....

DSD

"Of One's....."

One little piece,

One small portion,

One step, one thing,

One day, one night...

We don't really climb a high mountain all at once.

We more truly reach just for the next bit of rock...

We don't actually hike those long valleys endlessly.

We more simply take just that next step...

It's not about the distance it seems,

It's more about the focus we take and the spirit we bring.

The task of the whole,

Then becomes the wonder of the one's...

So on that day, during that moment,

When taking just the next step,

We are then on our way,

To being present.....

DSD

"Somethings Different....."

It had been such a long, trying, stormy day out I remember... Many of us on that Outward Bound course had not experienced such sustained rough weather before. Yet, not only did we endure, but we bonded and were to experience the potency of humour and playfulness in the midst of the winds, sleet, and rain. The next morning we were up early before our Instructors, had cleaned up and prepared breakfast even before they got moving, all amidst even more joking and good natured teasing. They gave us much space and time that stormy day, night, and next morning to become 'something more'. When they joined us for our meal they simply smiled and said, "Somethings different about you crew", and then let us find our own meanings within that message...

I could not have been more pleasantly surprised when, many years later, a close companion and Mountain Guide, said as we reached a very elusive summit, "Somethings different about how you climbed today...". The memory of our Outward Bound course, the smiles and strong feelings, echoed from both of these moments even though they were decades apart...

Here, now I write, having returned from a solo summit, where I had climbed for time to muse and wonder while scratching out some ponderings. I had been up there before, yet this time it felt, it seemed, so surely that somethings different now. The rocky terrain may have been the same, but the emotional vistas were not, and the older eyes now looking out were very different as well...

On special occasions I find myself, in a very particular way, looking into the faces of younger adventurers and then passing on these two words during some high wanderings. "Somethings different", I quietly say... and watch as they smile, now each of us knowing, that within such adventures, something very elementally is truly, wonderfully, different.....

DSD

"The Pack Goes On... And The Realities Shift..."

So much preparation, so much enjoyable anticipation, and then it is here...

What comes next is a very particular moment when the pack goes on...

A point in time where everything before falls away.

A point in space where the elements all now join.

At that brief, yet profound pause, when the pack goes on - the realities shift...

Each of us knows it. Each of us has felt this.

It had all come to that very special point of awareness.

When the pack goes on... The realities shift... And we are on our way.....

DSD

My appreciation to R.Reid for the top image above, and to J & M Monkman for the lower image.

"Paradox Sports - The Way Of Inspiration By Example"

There is a great deal within adventures and so much out among the elements that we may feel to be paradoxical... Paradoxes within the beauty of effort, of spirit and wonder, of embracing the seemingly impossible... So what is this mystery of paradox to be discovered within our wanderings; who are these inspiring adventurers of such Paradox Sports?

Old wise references say that paradoxes may first be perceived as beliefs of seemingly self-contradictory statements, and yet hidden within are amazing explicable truths. Persons, things, or actions can all exhibit apparently elusive but true contradictions it would seem. Quinn & Cameron said that most, "Fundamentally, paradox embraces clashes of ideas", and that this meeting, "involves contradictory, mutually exclusive elements", that are most interestingly, "present and operate equally at the same time". Fletcher & Olwyler point out that the way towards understanding such paradox is to grasp that these "seeming impossibilities have to do with a person's own limited frame of reference", and most importantly that, "when a way is found to make both concepts real simultaneously, a deeper truth is revealed".

Paradox Sports have found a way to reveal such truths... A way of inspiration, a way of example, and a way of embracing all sides of ourselves and all the many unique challenges we each face, be they physical, emotional, or of the psyche and spirit too...

Their vision is one where, "Paradox Sports envisions a world where people of all backgrounds and abilities can pursue a life of excellence through human-powered outdoor sports, regardless of physical disability or limb-count".

Empowerment is their method, inspiration is their means, especially by way of setting adventurous examples for so many. They believe their journey is indeed the destination and make their way notwithstanding seemingly impossible barriers of circumstance or perception. Like they say when, "A paraplegic scaled the 3000 foot walls of El Capitan and a blind man climbed to the top of Mount Everest we were all forced to recalibrate our perceptions of the possible". One of their callings is to grasp for more clear 'perceptions of the possible' - four words that resonate for anyone who adventures, almost all who wander out there, and that we each eventually embrace closely as we create our own path, our own trails through the trials of our lives...

'Authenticity' is one of the ways which they put their beliefs into motion; as written on their website: "You won't find too many wallflowers in our group, but you will find wounded vets, climbers who lost limbs, people with congenital amputations and paraplegics. Right alongside of them, you'll bump into world-class climbers, riders and cyclists, business owners, bookkeepers, musicians, inventors, and university professors filling out the ranks. What brings us together? It's the desire to give back to a community that has given us so many memories, lifelong friends, and rich rewards". Such genuine connections are often much of what we seek when we venture out in the wild places with other kindred spirits as ourselves... They say further that, "Whether we're climbing, paddling, biking, surfing, or hiking, the physical challenge in a natural environment brings us together", "The desire to live a life of excellence, to pursue our dreams and reach our goals while helping others reach theirs".

Read over DJ Skelton's story who in the midst of his own recovery from injuries as a Veteran, found himself asking, "Does one really need arms to climb? How about legs to ski?", and how such reframed reflections speak to "The phenomenal power of the human spirit"... Timmy O'Neill's story too shares these shifts of paradigms about the hidden potential that usually lays quietly within all of us and describes how to find, "The truly indomitable and irrepressible human spirit that is fostered through exploration of wild places both internally, in our minds and hearts and, externally, in our rivers and mountains"...

I find it difficult to put into words the connection I sense and the inspiration I feel when pondering the potency of such experiences... There is much here we could all muse by the campfire about and then so hopefully embrace in the ways we choose to see the world and then lead the adventures of our lives...

Look over their Glossary too, reflect on the words and meanings found there, that are not often encountered on an outdoor adventure site, like: "Disability Paradox, Quad, Renegade Spontaneity, Stump" among others...

Paradox Sports is a community where such shared paths may be created, in so many unique adventure ways, and wild place means. I have always believed, have experienced myself, and seen in so many others, that there is more within us than we often know, so many hidden elusive strengths than we may ever realize, and Paradox Sports shows us how to discover these by a 'way of example'... Please visit their site, read the stories there of inspiration by example, and pass forward their resourceful and spirited message to anyone who may need it!

DSD

My thanks to Paradox Sports' Gallery for the above images.

"The Quietest Voices Calling..."

"We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals."

I. Kant

There are very few of us adventurers who have not had desires and dreams about, and then actual experiences in sharing the wild places with, our family of wild ones out there. Our experiences become so very special when this happens, when we see them, especially when we share a moment among them, and so we hope though while elusive that this will happen again and again for us... Most of us cherish these moments almost as none other, they are so unique, so touching. Then we also often want to reflect upon our own lives through totems and symbols of what these special creatures of the earth represent to each of us...

I have forever longed for such connection with the wild ones, the quiet ones, and have been so grateful when it occurs. We admire their courage, their tenacity & endurance, their strength, their energy, the very spirit with which they live their lives out there. Without asking for anything in return they share with us their wisdom, and the mystery & memories of ageless wonders... Yet we also know, as ones who wander out there, the risks they too face. We have seen the realities and the impacts of changes and clashes of territory, species, and cultures. We feel it deeply when their hurt voices are raised. The truth of it is, even with their wild ways and powers we may envy, that they are really the most vulnerable ones, these quiet ones who call to us...

Within their callings they point us towards ways of fulfilling our own longings. We adventure as we can, they must venture always... We wander wild places to enhance our lives, they journey wild places because it is their lives... We are an integral part within both of each others history and future. They are our most precious ones. They are an essential part of our family, can be our teachers, our guides, our healers. They are the most vulnerable ones. They need us, yet we need them just as much, do we not my friends...

What would the wild places be without our family of wild ones? We often hear their voices when they call in the dark, when dawn begins, and they can be heard too as we stop and listen and still ourselves when we wander out there. They are the quietest voices, strong but often scared voices, they call as much to us as they do to each other to listen, to hear, to know, to feel...

Strong as they are they are vulnerable too. We know of such vulnerabilities, as we have touched it through our human frailties and with the risks we experience as we adventure. We are as vulnerable as well for in losing these quiet ones, in not hearing their voices, in not taking those paths that might mean some extra efforts on our part - will most certainly result in the loss of experiences shared with them and horizons only dreamed of...

We can do this, we who wander and adventure. We have strengths that can be theirs, and these quiet ones will then in turn share their wisdom with us, which may a saving grace for all...

On this 40th anniversary of a Day for the Earth, please listen with me for a while as the quietest voices are calling... They are calling for us. They are quiet voices reaching out to each of us. Let us each respond, in our own way, even in some small way, and then go out there again, to see them, to embrace them, because we really are on one and the same path.....

DSD