Learning to Stop

One of the hardest lessons I've been learning over the past 20 years of living is that sometimes I need a break. For most of us here, the term break becomes synonymous with going outside, but if we get too caught up in the go-go-go of modern life we risk tricking ourselves into thinking we need to bring that hustle and bustle outdoors with us - always checking off all of the hardest and most strenuous outdoor adventures all of the time.

Last week I went out to Texas for my thanksgiving break.

Leading up to that point I was pretty burnt out from college. Essays, exams, rugby tournaments, and a birthday weekend full of late night bonfires all started adding up. As soon as I stopped to slow down with family it all caught up to me. I even got a cold by the first morning in Texas. 

I said that I would try and catch up on sleep. I told myself this over and over again.

Unfortunately, this wisdom hadn't moved anywhere beyond an abstract idea. I continued to operate in the go-go-go mindset. I simply adjusted my focus from school work to leisure - including hiking.

On Black Friday my family left McKinney Texas and drove to Chickasaw National Recreation Area in Oklahoma for the day. It is a gorgeous little park and I am grateful that we went.

At one point, however, I found myself brewing over the idea that I wasn't using my thanksgiving break to conquer some big peak or trek across some long winding trail. It wasn't much. I wasn't angry. I just kept thinking about some imaginary adventure check list and this recreation area not being on it.

Then, luckily, it all hit me. 

I was overwhelmed by the beauty of the gorgeous trees all around me. I reminded myself: hiking isn't just about checking something off some to do list.

For me, hiking has a lot to do with being where you are. 

At that moment I was blessed to be in Chickasaw National Recreation Area. I decided I would take full advantage of being exactly where I was. Trying to be anywhere else is running away from the great gift that is all around me.

Maybe I longed for those times that I was on this mountain or that, but that wasn't what I was given at this moment. I was given a gentle walk through the beautiful autumn trees of southern Oklahoma. I was given the opportunity to unplug from everything, to leave all of that college stuff behind and rest. 

I was given the opportunity to spend time with family I hadn't seen in months and to explore a place I had never been before.

These gifts were far better than anything I could ever think up in my head, and I am grateful for that.

(To read more about this specific nature preserve, and to see more of these great pictures, check out the post I wrote during my time at Chickasaw National Recreation Area)