Seeking Refuge - Taking Refuge
I feel blessed to say I have had a lot of wonderful experiences lately. The truth is, I don’t know what to write about, and when I go to put pen on paper, that list of a million other things to do comes up quickly. But writing about where I am at in life has always been a grounding process for me, one I do not take lightly.
So, to pick up where we left off. My last day fighting fire was June 20th, 4 weeks ago. From that point on, I finished a rigorous 12 week strength training program that has put me in the best shape of my life. Physically speaking, that is.
Last weekend I got the great pleasure of attending and helping with the Sports, Energy, and Consciousness Festival in San Rafael, CA. This was a treat, hearing from the collective experience of former Olympians, sports psychologists, and all around good people who are changing the way we view sports in real time. This is a whole topic in and of itself, one we will eventually get too. But truly, an inspiring weekend, one I will not soon forget.
Over the course of this past week I have been spending my time at a most lovely refuge in Northern New Mexico. While I could spend countless words telling you about the beauty of this space I am in, I will save that for another time. I am here in preparation for the annual Nomads Clinic in Nepal. During the months of September and October we will start a medical pilgrimage into the farthest reaches of the Himalayas. Our goal, to bring the best of compassionate Western and Eastern Medicine to remote villages in desperate need of clinical support. Along the way, I will take part in bearing witness to an indigenous people who seem to thrive in the most challenging of environments. Now, I have no background in clinical support. I will be going as part of a support team to help keep the machine that is a medical mission like this up and running smoothly. I consider it a great honor to have been chosen to take part in this undertaking, a momentous occasion.
Between now and then I will be splitting my time between Northern California, and Northern New Mexico in preparation for this wonderful journey.
So many questions arise when I contemplate the journey my life has taken me on this far. How does one go from chasing an Olympic dream, to fighting wildland fires in the American West, to preparing for a trip to Nepal in service of the greater good? Well, I don’t know the answer to that in full. What I do know, the life I had been living was fast paced, controlled chaos at best. My body, mind, and spirit were begging me to take a moment to look at the pace I was maintaining, begging me to take refuge. So, I am taking refuge in beautiful spaces, with beautiful people, preparing for beautiful work ahead.
I am on a journey, returning from Saturn some might say. I do not know where it will lead, or what far distant shores are waiting on the horizon. But this experience, continues to enrich my life in numerous ways, and life is a gift that will keep on giving. So many wonderful people have been involved in this, bright shining stars not pointing in a direction, simply illuminating what is there, what has been there all along. We need only the courage to step out into the world with an unknowing direction. My most fervent hope, is that in my blessed time on this earth, I too can help others along the way, bear witness to there lives, and maybe in some small way illuminate what has always been there, always been true for them. So my message continues to be one of hopeful uncertainty, in rare and exciting circumstance.
Thats all I have for now. For those of you taking the time out of your busy day to read this, I thank you.
With Love,
-RB