Life: A Walk in the Park?
We all know the answer to that one.
Whether it's our work, our partner, our family, our physical health, mental health...life. No matter what, sometimes it's a walk in the park and other times it's a walk in the park during a tornado.
But we do live in a spectacular park — our planet Earth within our infinite universe. We also have been given a life that at times touches pure ecstasy but also can descend into unbearable misery, with every shade of feeling in between. Many of these life shades are created by the external world, but many others, and I would argue most, are created by our internal world. It's another way of saying, "We see what we focus on."
Lace up your boots.
My title comes from a recent selection by my book group, a gathering of some cool old dudes who have been meeting for over 20 years. Most of the time we actually discuss the book, but invariably, many other topics both personal and beyond are dug into. This month's book title, if you haven't already guessed, is "A Walk in the Park" written by Kevin Fedarko. It's a story about a walk in the incomparably spectacular and treacherous Grand Canyon National Park.
Fifty-four years ago, I moved to Flagstaff, Arizona, for only two reasons. There was a graduate school in educational psychology and also a ski area a few miles north of town. Everything I was looking for...I thought. What I didn't realize when I sent my application to Northern Arizona University was the Grand Canyon was just a little more than an hour's drive to the north. But less than a year after arriving, the Grand Canyon became my second home. I hiked, climbed, rafted, made lifetime friends...and soaked in its beauty whenever I could. Paradise was in our back yard.
Well, not always paradise.
Fedarko, a well-known writer and adventurer and the author of "A Walk in the Park," hiked with his best buddy Pete McBride, an adventure photographer and filmmaker. The subtitle of his book reads: "The true story of a spectacular misadventure in the Grand Canyon." Like everything else in life, it's only when we spend time up close do we begin to comprehend the complexities of what we're viewing. Fedarko is a master at viewing things up close.
"Up close" is an understatement when it comes to their trek through the full length of the Canyon. One can hardly believe it, but they hiked 800 miles over the course of 14 months through some of the most treacherous terrain on the planet.
Over 250 people are rescued from the canyon every year. In the past 150 years over 800 people took their last breath below the rim. In the summer months, temperatures can reach over 120 degrees in the shade. On the average, 17 people die in the Canyon every year from heat stroke, starvation, freezing, dehydration, drowning and falls of every kind.
Even Fedarko and McBride, on their first attempt, had to be rescued because death got closer than they even knew. Exhausted, wobbling legs, cramping spasms, confused, delirious, Fedarko was done in, and a rescue team made it possible to get them up to the rim. The park doctor told Fedarko, "You were extremely lucky. You could have easily died from a brain herniation."
They vowed never to return and let go of their crazy plan.
But, as life happens, they recouped, learned, prepared better and determinedly placed one foot in front of the other for the entire length of the Grand Canyon.
Back to the book group. One of our members knows Fedarko and asked him to attend our gathering. I posed this question to him: "So, you accomplished your goal. What's the gem of wisdom you took away from all this?"
He paused and spoke softly, "Humility."
Isn't humility the most important lesson we all need to learn on our walk in the park?
Walk on.
—Burt Gershater is a local counselor, leadership trainer, speaker and writer. He can be reached at [email protected].
