09/30/2024
I recently posted this photograph, along with a few others, to highlight another backpacking trip I completed. This photo actually has a lot of meaning for me, which I did not mention in the post- but thought was appropriate commentary for this page.
I often go on backcountry backpacking trips, sometimes with others, often solo. I generally love being out in nature- this is one of my “happy places”. I usually hike 30-60 miles at a time over 3-5 days.
On this trip, though, on the second day, things were beginning to turn. I discovered severe weather was approaching. I was 20 miles from my car, and wasn’t thrilled about the idea of camping and hiking in torrential downpours.
So I began to hike with determination to make it to my car by nightfall. That’s a long hike for me- and 10 miles in I was beginning to feel it. My body ached, a misty rain was starting to fall, and on every mountain I summited the wind seemed to blow that much stronger through the hemlocks.
I started to get in my head. Thinking about my pain. Worried about my predicament. Wondering if I should put more clothes on. Hoping my headlamp still worked. Blah Blah blah the inner dialogue continued…. Until…
.Until I lifted my foot up to take my next step and saw this beautiful, petite orange newt crawling along exactly where my foot was about to go.
If a newt could speak, he was screaming at me.
“Hi! Look at me! Please don’t step on me! Aren’t I beautiful?! And by the way there is a lot of beauty all around you that you are missing because YOU ARE IN YOUR HEAD!”
I stopped. I looked around. The mist seeping through the mountains was no longer a threat- it was magical. The wonderful smells of the wet hemlocks and the bright splashes of newly fallen leaves were gifts for me to graciously accept all to myself.
I can’t lie- the next 10 miles were still hard -but far more full of grace, powered by wonder and appreciation, that made every step an adventure and opportunity.
That little newt jolted me out of my self-imposed tunnel back into the present moment, so full of beauty and awe, where our authentic self so loves to reside.
Sometimes, when my clients are experiencing a lot of anxiety and are “in their heads”- I suggest that they look outside the window of my counseling center and describe what they see. As they recognize the beauty of the nature surrounding us, often the anxiety begins to subside as their heads and bodies recognize the miracle of the present moment.
And if you don’t have a therapist, sometimes a little newt will do the job better than I ever could.
