Blog 60 Surrender (Gary)

Note: Interesting timing for this piece.

            “God damn would you stop whining!  You are becoming histrionic.”  Mark is testing my patience around surrender.  I say, "Ye of so little faith."  Yet ONLY he has ever been in this place.  That's my job just like it is his sometimes.  Not to fix but to listen, although I would claim he has more fixes than I.  Sometimes he doesn't want to listen long enough for me.  I surrender and listen.

            You see, I believe that it is useless to fight, or try to control certain events.  It feels to me that things always seem to provide a lesson or a better way that you won't realize until later.  Enough people have told me stories that were tragic yet in some way the outcome made sense.  Obviously, some things are just tragic, period.  My side hurts, yet I am setting too fast a pace for Mark.  He invites me to go on alone.  I slow up and tell him I will follow his lead.  I will walk with him.  We are not as fast today but we still make it to the tree in a great time.  We turn at the tree for the downhill, and our physical energy is spent as well as his angst.  We float down.  It has been a good hike.  We have seen only one bike rider and at least one of us has left a large piece of our load here.  We are quiet now.  Thank you, spirits of the mountain.