the last time i tried to climb the mountain my dog got scared and refused to go a step further. i insisted that this weekend was mine to summit huron peak. and as i sat and munched down my pb&j focusing on the top, i made the call to turn back. in all honesty, i was only a little disappointed. you know you're not going to summit when the alpine meadow and a good book seem more appealing. up is one thing, but for me, down is another painful story. we began to descend. i lost sight of my hiking buddy in front. every once in awhile i would hear my brother's poles behind me. every step my foot ached and then my knee screamed in pain. more than once i stopped at a large rock and wondered how i would step down from it. i was alone in my thoughts. at one switch back i stopped to wait for my brother. that's when the entire mountain opened up for me. i could see it all right through the trees. it was massive. and i was humbled. i found overwhelming gratitude. just to be standing there in that amazing valley amidst the collegiate peaks. to have the choice to climb or not. to witness total silence. the most brilliant butterfly flew across my path. so close it may have landed on me of all things...in a giant forest growing on a 14,000 foot mountain. i'm sure that moment of clarity and stillness was created especially for me. at just the second the weight of my thoughts lifted and my heart opened, i reached a much more important summit.
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