Who Do You Believe You Are?

It’s the beginning of a new year. I always feel a reset happening with the New Year, because it’s a chance to reflect on the last year of your life and decide how it went for you and think about what you might improve on for the New Year.

I know making New Year’s resolutions is kind of cliché, and there are lots of people don’t like making resolutions because they are unrealistic. I guess they are right, it probably isn’t necessary to make New Year’s resolutions. But, I feel like it is necessary to stop and think about your life periodically, what is working and what is not working, and to make adjustments, and the New Year just seems like a natural time to do it.

So, do you make a list like everyone else? You know, lose weight, eat healthy, and exercise more? I’ve done that before, and sometimes I’ve even accomplished a few of them. They are always things I know I need to do better, but I never seem to want to do them. So I psyche myself up at the beginning of the year, and I quit thinking about it a month later!

I read a quote recently which I think it is attributed to Tony Robbins,

“The strongest force in the human personality

is the need to remain consistent

with who we believe we are.” 

Our personality is how we relate to the world, our styles of thinking, our behavior and our emotional responses, how well we adapt to our circumstances, why we behave differently than others in the same situations as well as our consistency in our reactions. Modern psychology has studied why we react the way we do, they argue nature vs nurture, biology vs circumstances, and all the interplay thereof. It’s interesting to read and learn about, but I think people can change a lot about themselves if they are really motivated to do so.

The reason that quote is so interesting to me is it says we are inclined to do what we do based on our view of ourselves!  So, wouldn’t that also mean that if we can alter what we believe about our self, we could change who we are somehow?

If we believe we are not capable of something, we don’t do it, and therefore who we are is someone who doesn’t or can’t do that.  But if we decide we are capable, and act as though we were, we would believe we are capable, and now that is who we are!  We have improved our selves just by deciding that we can and acting as though we can, and now we are.  It’s like wanting something so much that you keep working on it, even though you don’t always succeed, until you achieve it.

Crystal Peak
Mt. Rainier National Park

One example for me is that I started hiking without planning anything. I did know I would need good shoes and I only knew about one trail, and that’s all!  I just started doing it, and I learned more as I went.  I found the Washington Trails Association website which showed me trails and what I needed to take with me to be safe, and I just kept doing it.  Now I am a hiker! It’s part of my identity, and a part that I am really proud of.

Who do you believe you are, and who do you want to believe you are? It’s just a conscious decision to change who you believe you are. For me, I think I am a person who needs everything to be planned. I want things to go a certain way, and if it doesn’t, I am stressed, and I enjoy it less or not at all. The problem with that is that I ruin a lot of things for myself by thinking that it all has to be a certain way.  I think I want to be a person who is ok with whatever happens, and actually enjoys spontaneity!   So, I am making that decision for myself for 2017. I don’t know how I will change that in myself, but I am making a conscious decision to be easier going, less planned, have less expectation and be more spontaneous!  

Happy New Year everyone!

Why I Hike Alone

 

I have lived in Washington State for almost all of my life, and as a kid I may have hiked a handful of times, but I never thought about it as something to really get into, ever!

Then I read Wild, by Cheryl Strayed. She hiked the Pacific Crest Trail alone, and it helped her find herself after some really bad times in her life.  I loved that idea. I decided I wanted to try hiking for exercise and for my inner self. I took my dog, Abbey, and my first hike was Snow Lake at Snoqualmie Pass on September 4^th, 2012. I hiked with my 4 year old grandson several times that fall, because I was babysitting him a lot.  But after that fall, I hiked alone.

So, why do I like hiking alone? There are several reasons

1.       I can go where I want- I can do a hard hike or an easy hike depending on my needs that day. I can do a trail with a waterfall, or a view, or a lake, or just a trail through the quiet forest. I don’t have to okay it with other people, I can change my mind at the last minute, and it’s simple and spontaneous. Occasionally, I hike with my dad, and usually I tell him the day before where I want to go, and he can say yes or no. He always says yes though! I use the Washington Trails Association website and phone app to help me choose hikes, it’s the best!

2.       I can go when I want- I am retired, so my time is my own (at least until recently!), and with the Google weather on my phone, I can look at the weather for the week and pick a nice day and just go!

3.       I can go at my own pace- I don’t have to wait for anyone, or keep up with anyone; I can go as slow or fast as I feel like.

4.       I don’t have to visit with anyone- That is the reason why I can do so much thinking; I don’t have to be social. (I am naturally introverted anyway!)

5.       My mood improves- I believe it’s just like a runner’s high, the endorphins kick in, and I am happy! And what is so much better than running, there is always a payoff at the end of the hike, a view, a beautiful alpine lake, a powerful waterfall, something that catches your breath and you have to sit down and take it all in!

6.       I do a lot of problem solving- It is amazing how clearly I think when I am walking, even just around where I live. Maybe it’s the improved circulation to the brain, the oxygen in the lungs, and the endorphins making me smarter (?), but I actually come up with solutions to problems, or I come to a conclusion or decide on one of my life’s truths.  Hiking is therapy to me. I feel it in my brain and my heart when I don’t get to do it!

A lot of people ask me if I am scared, worried about attacks from people or animals, of hurting myself, or getting lost. No, I’m not, because I am extremely careful and I have my strict safety rules.

1.       I only day hike, so I make sure that I am done before dusk.

2.       Someone always knows exactly where I am and how long it should take.

3.       I hike well-travelled trails.

4.       I read WTA’s trip reports and if there are bear or cougar sightings, I pass.

5.       I have actually gotten hurt before, I sprained my ankle on the Annette Lake trail.  But, I still managed to get home before anyone worried about me. I limped down using a walking stick for support and if I couldn’t have done that, there were people on the trail who would have helped me.

 

      In my mind, the benefits completely outweigh the risks, so I plan to continue.