-I believe awareness is the greatest tool for being human.
The practice of presence in each moment.
Watching. Listening. Observing.
Many are saying it.
Pointing at it.
And I will continue to.
Over and over again.-
Saturday morning I was sitting in a beautiful cabin with my partner Katelyn.
We rented a small VRBO house in the woods.
We desired to get away from the to-do lists, our computers, and the magnetism of work.
We were sitting next to the fireplace and wanting to plan our day.
Desiring adventure and to find the most beautiful places around us.
Of course, we were searching for the nearest hikes on the internet.
Looking for something that called to us.
In a moment it hit me, we were trying to create within the realm of the known.
The desire to control and choose our future.
Based on other peoples experiences, data, information, research.
All mind.
Limiting our possibilities.
I looked at her and opened the conversation to do it differently.
What if we just trust ourselves and go for it?
No plan.
Just head out the door.
Follow our gut. Our intuition.
Being the amazing human she is a big smile arrived on her face and she was all in.
We drove down our insanely steep driveway in the little white Nissan and we were on our way.
Looking for clues.
The first thing we came upon was a big log archway.
It was the entrance to a ski lodge.
We were in the middle of nowhere North Carolina and supposedly there was a resort in the area.
My brain couldn’t register it.
The info did not match my mental projections of North Carolina.
It was as if I did not believe it existed.
We turned down the road for a quick look.
Are there really chair lifts in NC?
Little did I know we were about to transport back 30 years in a setting that is so dear to my heart.
We pulled up to the little lodge. Wolf Ridge.
Sat in the blue chair lifts that you see in this photo that was next to a trickling creek.
Walking around the lodge we came upon two lifts pointing up into the mountains.
My body opened and felt so at home.
I haven't been around ski lifts in almost 2 years.
A setting I have spent many of my adult years immersed in.
It felt like a remembering. I could take a deeper breath.
Katelyn and I were taking pictures and looking around.
All of the sudden an older man walked down a tall set of stairs.
We said hello and asked if it was alright that we were there.
“of course” He replied with the most southern accent my ears have directly received.
He continued down and connected with us.
His name was Orval. And he owned Wolf Ridge.
He bought it back in 92 and when I asked him “why?” He responded “I don’t know”
I loved a nonsensible response like that.
We chatted for a while and asked him if he knew of any hikes in the area.
He told us there were lovely views from the top of the chair lift.
Pointed us off into the woods and drove off in his side by side.
With a little worry about ticks and the unknown, we laced up our shoes and headed up.
I am continually fascinated by how on edge my mind can be when in the abyss of the unknown. Everything can become dangerous.
We made our way through the woods and weaved in and out of a community of stunning homes. Sat with butterflies. Giggled at our good fortune. Finally making it to the top.
I felt this cozy energetic blanket around my body.
Life was holding us.
Supporting us.
The views from the top were stunning.
The chair lifts reminded me of a world I love so much.
All of it from the decision to trust.
We made our way down the backside of the mountain.
More unknown.
I felt fear in my system again.
Fear of others.
Fear of nature.
Fear of the abyss.
Life presented us with directions.
Off in the distance, Orval was waving his hand.
Like a magical leprechaun, he was now on the other side of the mountain.
“Come this way” he shouted.
“The views are really good that way” pointing us further down the road we did not think to walk down.
The wooden tower you can see in the photos is where it took us.
Magic.
Wonder.
Beauty.
Immersed in it all.
Moma deers. Baby does.
Soaring vultures.
Buzzing bees.
A symphony was dancing around us.
We must have stayed there an hour.
On our way back, cups full, Kate paused to take a picture of a house we really liked.
She wanted it for her dream board.
Like clockwork, a man walked out the front door and we said hello.
I figured it was an Airbnb host. Cleaning up. Tidying.
Richard was a friendly man. About my dad’s age.
We got to chatting and learned he and his wife owned this home.
Kate and I began telling him how much we love it.
The ways in which it caught our eyes.
And the divinity kept rolling.
He opened it up and said, “let me show you one of my latest projects.”
For the next hour, we got a full tour of the nicest cabin I have ever stood in.
This man paid attention to details.
Little motorcycle trinkets.
Marble countertops.
A dreamy bathtub.
We sat on the top deck and looked at the views.
Captivated.
I found myself drifting off in awe once again.
Blown away at what happens when I let go of the reigns.
We found ourselves out front.
Once again seeming like the journey was over.
Only to find the grandson of Orval on his quad out front.
Richard waved him over to tell him to grab the neighbor, Dave.
A producer that lives in the community full time.
Within minutes the community was out front.
6 of us connecting, talking about wolf ridge, and sharing our adventures.
Talks of Dave’s famous margaritas.
Rumors of the burnt-down lodge and its hopeful replacement in the near future.
Richard gave us his number and we were on our way.
This day blossomed from the fork in the road.
Do we find an adventure led by our mind, or do we open to limitless possibilities?
Kate and I returned to the car a bit dumbfounded.
Can life always be this way?
Down to the subtleties?
Is life really always working for us when we can trust in the process?
Life keeps pointing me to this lesson.
Over and over again.
Leap and the net will appear.
Open to the infinite possibilities and continue to be amazed.
