I’m pretty sure I’m in heaven. Never in my wildest of dreams have I imagined that life could be so beautiful. I wake up smiling. I go to bed smiling and thinking about the places I’ve been, the people I’ve met, and the love that I feel. Days pass like weeks and weeks pass like days.
We just got back from a two week stay in Red Rock, Nevada and southern Utah where we climbed with some friends from Jackson, Wyoming. We had met three members of the crew the previous Thanksgiving in Red Rock at the parking lot of a popular climbing area where we made tentative plans to go out for a Thanksgiving feast later in the evening. Somehow we regrouped without even an exchange of phone numbers and from there we spent the next few days camping and climbing together. At the end of the trip it was sad to say goodbye– you never really know if you will cross paths with people again. But thats the beauty of living the bus life– we have an open schedule which we can match to that of our friends, and when we heard they were headed back to Red Rock, we jumped at the chance to spend more time with some of the best people we have ever met.
There is something great about spending time with other climbers. Never have I found a group of people who are less judgmental and more encouraging than climbers. I mean, we climb rocks– and for what? It’s not like its a competition and there’s not a prize at the top. We push our limits and face our fears just because, and in doing so we find happiness. We get to encourage each other, no matter where we are at to do better and to make it just a little farther. A good example of this was last week the entire group (10 people in total) dressed up in costumes and jumped on the same ridiculous crack climb, even though everyone was at different climbing levels. We whooped and hollered encouragement to each other as we each took our turn to grunt our way up the climb. Even though I felt like a walrus flopping my way up the wall, the cheers of encouragement made me feel like the best damn climbing walrus out there.
Another thing about this last trip was that, throughout the weeks of waking up with the sun, climbing until our fingers hurt, and laughing around a campfire each night, it didn’t feel like we were on vacation. This is our life! We get to spend our days filled with good people and adventures, and at night we sleep in our own bed. Home is wherever we are with the bus, and she can go just about anywhere we want to go. I had some apprehension when we first moved in that we would get sick of each other and this lifestyle– but the more time we have spent in the bus, the more I fall in love with this simple lifestyle. I’m learning more about myself and my place in the world. I am influenced by the beautiful souls around me and encouraged to love myself and others just a little more. Instead of being complacent about my life, I have found that Matt and I together are pushing ourselves to be stronger and better humans.
I know this lifestyle isn’t right for everyone, but I do feel that most people would benefit from simplifying their lives. Life is too short to not spend time doing what you love with people who make you happy. The more I learn to live with less, the higher my quality of life seems to be.
Live deep and suck out all the marrow of life.
Namaste, friends.
Simply Mountain People 