The conference has ended and I'm hanging out waiting to go to the airport. Conferences are always hard to leave especially ones that are engaging and are happening in beautiful locations. I don't long to get back on the plane, though I look forward to coming home.
I don't fly very often, though I do enjoy the thrill of hurtling through the air albeit in a contained environment *(I have no desire to sky dive). What I do not enjoy is the airport experience, the long lines, the wondering if you're plane has been delayed. I also find the seats rather confining. No real elbow room even, and not the most comfortable position to sleep in. I really do need my physical as well as emotional space.
One of the last speakers today was Bishop Barry Beisner of Northern California, who talked about vocation and leadership using the metaphor of hiking. This caught my attention, because I used to love to hike. I had a dream once of doing the whole Appalachian Trail. But I was too timid to take that kind of risk at the age when it was feasible and my body could have done it.
He said there were four things to keep in mind when hiking and related each to our work and I would add life in general. You must consider "trail." There really are clear paths that have been walked by others and while they sometimes need some tending, they can still be seen. Our "companions" who do we trust to be with us, whose company will we really enjoy, and who will motivate us when we want to call it quits. The "load", what we carry with us, do we know how to pack for the journey, what is it we really need, and what do we take because we think it might be useful but it just takes up space and weighs us down. And finally is "pace." If we go to fast we will burn out or collapse, but if we go to slow, we might not get to where we are going before it gets too dark to function.
I hope someday to be in good enough shape again to at least walk around the mountains in Copake Falls, but I know in the journey of life, those four things are essential, to a happy, productive and fantastic journey.
Blessings,
Ed
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