When the Trail Disappears It’s strange how quickly the world can vanish. One moment you’re following a well-marked trail, the crunch of gravel steady beneath your boots, the trees parting just enough to show the next turn. Then the fog […]
vulnerability
The Myth of Arrival: The Hollow Wind on the Ridge From below, the summit gleams like salvation. The peak whispers its promises: just a little higher, just a little more effort, and life will finally feel complete. I’ve heard that […]
The Trailhead I remember road marches during my Army days at Fort Benning, Georgia. We’d start around 2 a.m., moving out under the stars into miles of wilderness; miles of forest thick with loblolly and longleaf pines. Often, the Division […]
I’ve spent nights in the mountains where the fire was my only anchor. The wind cut sharp, the dark pressed in, and no matter how close I pulled my sleeping bag around me, the cold stayed. But the flames gave […]
Freedom With Boundaries Shortly after the first wave of COVID-19, something unexpected happened in the wide-open spaces of America. The National Park Service began closing gates, not because the wilderness was unsafe, but because it had become too crowded. With […]
Reading the Sky of the Soul Every morning, I give my students a writing prompt. An invitation to explore the thoughts in their heads and the emotions in their hearts. These journals are private, theirs alone, a place where honesty […]
The Rope Between Us If you’ve ever stood at the base of a rock wall with a rope in your hands, you know the weight of responsibility. The climber ties in, checks the knots, and calls down the words that […]
Embers and Ashes In the backcountry, you sometimes stumble upon the remains of an old camp. Blackened stones sag in a broken ring. Ash lies scattered by the wind. No heat or smoke. No hum of voices. It’s a still […]
Holding the Map When you hike with someone who’s carrying the only map, you follow their lead. You watch the trail they choose, the pace they set, the way they decide whether to push forward or pause. In relationships, many […]
There’s a trail in the Rockies that still haunts me. A thin ribbon of ice and snow stretches across a sheer drop, just wide enough to place your boots side by side. The wind cuts sharp, stealing your breath, and […]
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About Me
