Walking Retreat - Day 3

Part III: Perspective
Tuesday May 18, 2010

Today I set out on the trip home. Last night I had a dream about work and woke with concerns over the upcoming events, and other quickly approaching deadlines. The progress made over the past few days seemed to evaporate as quickly as the water in this arid countryside. After collecting myself a bit, I realize that my jarring back to reality was inevitable. I also reminded myself that no matter how consuming work can be at times that we are all more than our jobs and titles. Human beings are dynamic and are governed as much by feelings as ideas and thoughts. No matter how logical we’d like to claim to be at our root we are driven by feelings.

I had a couple of hours to wait in the international terminal of the airport before my flight. So I used that time to watch people and think about my trip. As I walked around the terminal the complexity of life struck me like a mack truck. I saw families with children, an old man pushing his wife in a wheelchair, and people conversing in half a dozen languages.

There was no way to tell who these people were just from casual 3rd party observation. You could tell, however, that there were deep relationships, vibrant passions, differing opinions, and many more emotions present in the terminal. If I was still obsessing about the pile of work that was waiting for me I would have missed this reminder about the complexity and beauty of life and relationships.

I guess there really is something to living in the moment.

Walking Retreat - Day 2

The power of silence
Monday May 17, 2010

Since we’ve been traveling we’re pretty cut off from work and life at home – no phones, limited e-mail access, too far away to fix any problems at work, etc. The result is that we have plenty of time to just be ourselves and recharge. On this trip I took the opportunity to simply enjoy the silence and focus on being present in the moment.

Too often it seems that I spend so much time worrying about insignificant details that I miss the greater beauty of the experience. I’ve spent entire trips fretting over “camera” or “journaling” issues concerned with remembering/recollecting/or sharing the trip that I’ve missed out on experiencing the trip in the first place.

This time around I didn’t take one picture. I did write a bit, but at my leisure, not at the expense of being present in the moment. I spent more time that I can currently recollect just sitting on the patio with a glass of water or bottle of beer. No book, no conversation, not particularly watching anything, not particularly thinking about anything, just enjoying the day.

At one point Greg asked me if I was ok (presumably because I was so quiet).

Yes, it's the quite that I've been seeking.

The challenge will be returning to the noise.

Walking Retreat - Day 1

The next series of blog entries were written the old fashioned way (long hand on paper) during my most recent travels up north. I used the four days as a sort of “walking retreat” where my primary focus was reflection and rejuvenation. I feel that the experience was a great success.

Part I:
Sunday May 16, 2010

We find ourselves in Edmonton this morning after a whirlwind weekend of Scholarship Dinner and then an early flight out of O’Hare. It’s amazing what a few thousand miles and a reunion with family in a little house in the country can do for the soul. We’ve missed Greg, Kelly, and Jaxon very much, but our reunion has been seamless as if we’ve never been apart.

I am very thankful for the relationship I’ve found here with my in-laws. It seems almost effortlessly that we’ve quickly become a family. The best part is that my Mom and Dad get along famously with Kelly and Greg – and it’s very reassuring to have that extra layer of support and unity.

Being here, we’ve truly been able to relax. Distractions from work and the tedium of our routine are literally hundreds of miles away. No cell phones reception, no regular internet access, it’s been wonderful.

Here, in the Canadian west, I am reminded that life doesn’t have to be particularly complicated. Sure, if you focus on the minutia (which we all do at times) it can get overwhelming, but on another level life is a series of tough decisions that shape and form us. My life in the last year has changed drastically – for the better mind you – but still a fundamental shift has occurred and must be acknowledged.

As I’ve tried to make sense of life, the world, and my new place/role in it it’s become clear that we are far more than any one aspect of our life. We are more than our job or any labels assigned by others or ourselves. We are potentially all of these things and much, much, more. That is a very encouraging thought.

I have spent considerable time reflecting on the words of Mother Teresa who said, "Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin."

You don't get much more to the point than that.