The Beauty of the Journey

I love hiking. I’ve hiked Masada, the ATM cave in Belize, and numerous trails around Virginia. Always with someone by my side. Someone to watch my footing and make sure I don’t miss a step. Someone to look at the dangers ahead. Someone to catch me when I fall.

But today, I hiked a 4.5 mile trail by myself. And tomorrow, I officially start graduate school.

As I was hiking, I couldn't help but see parallels between the two.

You’ve set out on this beautiful trail. You’ve been told it’s challenging.

You know it ends, even though you can’t see it.

The trail is not just a way to get to the destination. There is beauty all around; you just have to look up and around every once and awhile.

The trail is scary, but this is psychological. You’re going to be okay. You’re going to survive.

There are harder parts and easier parts on the trail.

You only have as much control as the ground beneath you. It’s uneven. It’s going to shake. 

There’s always going to be road blocks. The unexpected tragedies that trip you up. They are there and they're not moving. So you must find a way to get through them.

Although it may not seem like it now, people have hiked this trail before. And they survived.

You’re going to get lost. But don’t be afraid to veer of course. You might end up somewhere beautiful, somewhere you never expected to be.

Use the resources available to you.

But sometimes, the best way to figure it out is just by trial and error.

You’re going to get tired, burned out, and frustrated, and just want to “get there” already. Don’t let this tempt you to take the easy way out.

Remember, you chose this path.

Enjoy the beauty of the journey.