Hiking with Anxiety

 

Like any other day, you awake to a choice, to take a walk in the beautiful world along a path you have become so familiar with, there is no need to look at the ground and watch where you place your feet. Somehow this day seems different; you are now noticing the mountains that lay before you and in that moment you have an idea to take a new path that will lead you to the top where you can experience something you have only ever dreamed of.

So, you start this new course, where the terrain is unknown to you. The ground you could once clearly see as the foot path was cleared for you by the traffic of others, now lay plant species of varying kinds holding within them their own secrets and stories. Breaking through the tree line of the unknown a familiar friend rises to meet you, Anxiety. Like before, you misinterpret her presence for fear yet as you breath into the space of discomfort you find that there is a purpose for her joining you on this new adventure, one where she offers a feeling of excitement, beautifully balanced with caution.

Along the climb, a sense of awareness reaches you that you are not alone in the decision to reach the top of the mountain that would offer a new viewpoint. Becoming distracted by the sounds around you, not paying attention to the ground cover, pain shoots up your leg and as you look down you see a spider defending its home. Falling to your knees a cry for help leaves your lips, in only a few short seconds you can hear a person shouting out to you on how to remove the poison and heal the wound. In that precise moment you have the choice to use the guidance offered or remain as you are demanding they come to you to assist you. Realizing they are much too far to physically assist you decide to use the knowledge offered, removing the poison and heal the wound.

Feeling steadier on your feet and coming back to your present task, you build the courage to continue on your journey. This time however, the world around you is a lot clearer as you have a newfound respect for the creatures that live within and the dangers they pose when not being cautious with where you plant your feet as you climb.

Suddenly, a little further away from you, you hear an agonizing cry for help as another spider was forced to protect its home. In this moment, you have become a lot more aware of the time it would take you to reach this person to assist them that you shout out to them how to take the poison out and heal the wound as you were told. The understanding that as much as you would love to physically support another, the time it would take for you to pinpoint their location and navigate to them the poison could essentially have taken their life force.

With the grace you have now experienced, there is an understanding that some assistance is to share your own learning and experience. The choice of what to do with that information then lies with the one receiving the guidance. Releasing the idea of control, your eyes open to a new view of your life as you start nearing the peak of the mountain.

Pushing past the shrubs of doubt, a welcoming rush of air surrounds you as you take in the magnificent scene laid before you. Knowing you are solely present in this moment the rush of gratitude warms your skin, offering you the new perspective you were seeking. Soaking up your new experience, you note how there are many more peaks to climb in the distance and as a gentle hug embraces you, your forgotten friend Anxiety whispers: “There is more to learn and I am honored to walk alongside you every step of the way.”