Experiences, like choices, do matter. They guide, coach and teach us throughout our lives. But as Albert Camus says, “You must undergo it.” Undergo it is just what a small group of 14 boys and dads from Troop 55 did this summer. They spent two weeks hiking the trails of Philmont Scout Ranch, a 137,000-acre Boy Scouts of America high adventure base, located in the rugged mountain wilderness in the Sangre de Cristo range of the Rocky Mountains in northern New Mexico.
Travel
Namasté In Alaska: the Painting
If you’ve read my vow for this year, you know I am trying to “not purchase anything I don’t truly need” However, when I met Dottie Leatherwood – a gifted painter with the rare talent for capturing an experience and bringing it to life, I began to think about one possession I might just want after all …
“Wait for the Magic” – Cuba Defined
Our guide in Cuba gave us some strange advice at the start of our visit. “Wait for the Magic,” she said. Doubtful, I tucked Carol Steele’s words away, and waited to see if they would be true. Believing that the Cuban buildings would be gray and crumbling, the people poor and sad, and the cars all old, I was unsure where any of Carol’s magic would appear. Sure enough, every time I focused on the people, the magic would start to appear.
What’s Next for Cuba?
We just returned from an eye-opening trip to Cuba, a trip that until recently was not permitted for citizens like us. Cuba, while just 90 miles off Florida, has been off-limits to U.S. travelers for more than half a century. Now, as I settle back into my daily routine, I am having trouble reconciling my pre-existing prejudices with the realities of life on that small but powerful island.
Every Step Takes You Closer to Your Rainbow
Our young people are often criticized. “They always want more… They’re not grateful… They have their face in their phones…” But Generation Z, the iGens, are the first post 9/11 generation. They are the internet generation, the information generation. They access EVERYTHING faster, and they can move away just as quickly. They have inherited a new world in need of the unique rainbows only they will be able create. This story introduces you to one “iGen” rainbow maker …
Everything Is Never Clear Here
Jeremy says, “There are no answers here. Just stories.” Yet, I want answers in my life, not just stories. Answers help me plan my day and prepare my tomorrows. Answers help me sleep better. I stay tucked in with answers. Without answers, I work my sheets loose at night. One leg sticks out, kicking at the questions in the night.
Street Art Tells a Story
I had not looked deeply at street art until Brian sent me some examples. He has been collecting images for years – looking for answers to what these artist are trying to say. Now I look at street art differently – with more interest – asking the same questions.
Skunk Cabbage
Skunk Cabbage is the first sign of spring along the streams of Alaska. It sticks its green head up from under the melting snow to welcome the return of the breeding salmon. When you look closely at the plant, the inner most leaf, around the flower, is bright yellow and the plant has a flower on a tall stalk, like a staff. The Tlingit people of Southeast Alaska respect this special plant and understand how it is hitched to everything else.
Casey’s Ministry
Twenty-five years ago Joyce and I visited Alaska. In the years since, we have longed to return, to go deeper, to learn more. When we discovered that Casey Anderson, the rock star of NatGeo Wild and America the Wild, was part of a trip with National Geographic on the Sea Bird we knew we were ready to travel.
Namasté in Alaska
My wife and I journeyed to Southeast Alaska for a week in late May, traveling among the many islands on a small expedition ship. Each day we went ashore by Zodiac inflatable boats to a remote cove or inlet. I found Namasté connecting me to my surroundings in ways I had not previously experienced or even thought about.