Tuesday, August 25, 2015

"Echoes From Within Their Flames..."

There is a small island.
Among many others.
Off the coast of a larger island...
A very favorite place of mine to wander by sea kayak. I had never set foot upon this particular point of rocky shore until during one very, very, low spring tide.
I was just barely able to land for a brief stretch.
I often wonder what I may find during such moments.
New vistas, unseen terrain, maybe not touched by any other. Something from our past.
And that was the echo that I not so much saw, as sensed that sunny day...
Among the trees, above the waters, tucked into the rocky shore, was an ancient fire ring.
How ancient I am never sure, but old enough for trees to grow tall among the placed rocks of this ring.
Old enough for there to be no remains at all of any flame burning, except for some blackening barely left under the rocks used there.
But still. Here this was, and I wondered over it. Pondered further too about who had been there, how very long ago, and with what echoes they had lived their lives with...
They would have been looking then at pretty much what I was viewing at this present moment.
They stayed longer in this spot than I would, to likely eat and sleep by this warm fire.
The flames would have flickered off the nearby trees with the echo of their laughter falling upon the company of the ocean.
Their presence would have been reflected in many ways as they lived that day among these secluded islands.
Such echoes create images in our minds eye of what was, even at times of what could be...
I remind myself that our actions in the wild places may echo and resonate for eternities just as these fire rocks have.
I ask often of myself too - what will we pass forward to be heard generations from now, and who will sense the reverberations of our intentions and adventures of today.
What an interesting connection over time.
From ages ago until these moments.
From then until now.
From them to each of us.
In the simple echo of a flame.....  DSD 
 

Wednesday, August 19, 2015

"A True Result..."

"The true result of any endeavour, whether on a mountain or in any context... The real measure of success... The true value of the enterprise - lies in the example to others of human motivation and human contact...". 
J. Hunt

"From That First Time..."

"While looking for crystals there, he happened to climb a nearby peak and felt for the first time, the mountaineer's exultation at standing on the summit. From that day forward it became his dream to become a climber...". N. O'Connell
 

Sunday, August 16, 2015

"Sharing Wonderful Quotes..."

Jon F. recently shared the above quote. This invited some musings of course over some of my favorites...

"Climb these summits and get their good tidings. Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their freshness into you and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves." J. Muir
It was an Outward Bound instructor who was first to introduce me to this special quote by Muir. It is one I have pondered, mused, and planned from over these many years.
A quote that set directions for me from all points of the compass...
Did you know that the actual writing of this quote is found to contain either the word 'mountains' or the word 'summits'. While being told the first version, the latter now resonates with me as the image of 'summits' has come to mean a great deal more too than the very top of a single mountain.
Some state Muir wrote it both ways as he did with many other notes and journal entries, when he composed and then revised his musings, at different levels, after different experiences, and over long years of ponderings.
That Outward Bound instructor was so right, and Muir's words have indeed rung so true, over these past decades of wild place journeys and within so many adventure seasons.
I often re-read this 'first quote' while looking towards the horizon.
For many more of such summits, sunshine, winds and storms, are waiting, patiently waiting. Just like these quotes do.
To simply be discovered and enjoyed out there..... DSD
 

Saturday, August 15, 2015

"Expression Of Spirit..."

"Human spirit is our greatest source for motivation.
Climbing then becomes an expression of this...".
P. Ament

"Directions Of Spirit..."

"Meaning is our map.
Human spirit is our unfailing compass...".
R. Robbins

"Mountain Spirits..."

"It is the human spirit that brings us to the mountains.
It is the mountains that reveal the human spirit to each of us...".
R. Messner

Thursday, August 13, 2015

"Hidden Strength Of The Human Spirit..."

"Both now and for always, I intend to hold fast to my belief in the hidden strength of the human spirit...".  A. Sakharov



"Art And Our Human Spirit..."

"Art is to me the glorification of the human spirit...".  H. Hofmann

"Part Of The Human Spirit..."

"We retell our favorite stories.
That's what we've done since we were always sitting around campfires.
It's part of the human spirit...".  J. Kinnaman



Monday, August 10, 2015

"Of Stars, Sharing, And An Appreciation That Also Points The Way..."

Constellations are much more than a grouping of stars...
These subtle outlines within celestial images are full of the most ancient history and mystery too. For ages, such constellations and the stories told of them, were associated with journeys, and especially meaning. It was a wise wanderer and a knowing person, who made the constellations a part of their lives.
We often particularly associate them with navigation. Who has not gazed up at the North Star, and then discovered a new course to set out upon at times when far out in the wild places.
Stars inspire us.
They gift us with a special light set against the darkest sky. They are potently full of adventure metaphors.
Thus they subtly also encourage us...
When we take this a step even further though, then we create a whole new direction for ourselves. Outward Bound first invited me to do this. For years I have passed forward this engaging gift as well.
Constellations can be very personal. Selecting and giving meaning to a grouping of stars can be exceptionally inspirational. By doing so we each then navigate by such an individual constellation in truly unique ways.
To choose a constellation as a reflection of ourselves is to always be assured of journeys for beauty, enjoyment, and meanings often only told of in tales. The brightest of these stars are the ones that will always hold true for us again and again, season upon season, adventure by adventure.
Stars can represent our motives, our dreams, and desires.
Stars can mirror what we want, within our adventure goals and objectives for out there.
Stars echo too about the person we want to become, and for the close companions who share in our experiences.
When we are challenged by life's adversities, which we each surely will, our personal constellation is always there for us. Gently assisting and forever pointing the way, through the inevitable trials of life's terrain and then beyond. When we are in the midst of those times when we feel lost, we know they are there. Waiting to shine out and quietly give direction and support.
There is something very comforting about having such constellations in our lives.
Creating our own personal constellation is to live among awe, like the inspired ancient mariners.
So when the sun next begins those travels towards its resting place this very evening Dear Friends, turn and look at the far distant horizon, and begin to gaze up in the approaching night sky, upon your very own personal constellation..... DSD

My sincere appreciation for sharing your wonderful images my friends.

Saturday, August 08, 2015

"Pointing The Way..."

Have you seen the "Google Doodle" today my Friends?
It commemorates an historic First Ascent.
Some say that Balmat & Paccard, pictured in the statue above, birthed mountaineering.
Pointed the way, if you will.
Most will agree that they indeed 'kindled a spirit of adventure' that we who wander high embrace to this very day.
The interesting fact that small rocks and crystals were inherently involved only makes me smile all the more..... DSD

Wednesday, August 05, 2015

"Our Adventure Epiphanies..."

"In present day, 'Epiphany' refers to a sudden recognition or insight into the essential meaning of something.
In lower case, the word is much older. It first appears in the work of Herodotus, Greek Historian of the fifth century B.C.E., and means 'the coming to light'.
Seals depicting such revelations have been found on the island of Crete that are older still. The Greeks, it would seem, have been having epiphanies for a very long time and, I suspect, Neolithic folks before them.
But my favorite part of the definition tells us that the revelation is often brought on by simple experience. Something big is occasioned by something little, something easily missed. And it unfolds from there - sometimes as a flash, sometimes in exquisite slow motion - out of conventional time and space and knowledge.
'Look at this!' you whisper as you see something about the universe that you've never seen before. 'And look at this', you whisper too, seeing yourself seeing it.
The universe is bigger than it was a minute ago, and so are you...". 
A. Jauregui

"How Everything Fits Together..."


"There... Near that still water...
You will see all that can be seen,
You will know all that can be known,
You will be all that you can become.
There... Upon the still water...
Your reflection awaits...".
Grandfather, Mountain Elder

"And it came to me all in a feeling, how everything fitted together, the place, and ourselves, and the animals, and how the sky held us...". 
W. Berry

Sunday, August 02, 2015

"Our Shared Artistry Of Creating Endless Forever Moments..."

Many have written musingly about, and even more have whispered gently aloud, that there is surely an art in creating a sense of endless adventure days for ourselves...
We talk too about the challenges and distractions, arising from simply finding the time to get out there.
I've wondered often though, is it only how we get the time for our journeys - or is it also not more truly about the 'way' we are, the 'being' we become, within whatever moments we do have to wander.
Certainly we extend the time we have by going earlier, longer, through things like alpine starts and first light launches.
We expand on the days too when we patiently watch the sunsets, sit for long hours by the campfire, and gaze up longingly at the full moon and its companion constellations.
We prolong those measured hours so that hopefully they are transformed into memorable enduring moments.
Therein I sense is another elusively subtle way to timely navigate - by finding that which is personally memorable, that which embraces our individual meanings, deep within those seconds of our newly developing awareness and perception of what is significant, and what is not.
These are surely keys to the legends upon this alternative map for our wonderful endless timelessness out there.
Such ways of 'being' and not just 'having' an experience, are clearly means to extending the length, breadth, height, and depth of time within any adventure journey.
Then it no longer about minutes, but more so now reflecting an artistry in creating timeless forever moments.
'Time is relative' the wise ones have said, and we adventurers know how to really experience the truth of this..... DSD

Saturday, August 01, 2015

"A Blue Moon Upon So Blue Mountains..."

"Three things cannot be long hidden.
The sun.
The moon.
And the truth...".  Buddha

"The acid test of a true adventurer, if presented with certain anonymity, is whether each of us would still have made the journey beyond the last blue mountain...". M. Clark