And Sometimes...You Bail.

Yesterday, two of my friends, James and Tara, and I went trekking into Boulder Canyon for some sport climbing. I was going to try and lead my first sport climb, James was planning on on-sighting some routes, and Tara was going to get on some rock for the first time in quite awhile. 

The weather here in Colorado has been pretty wet lately, and so we had a feeling the looming clouds over the canyon might eventually dump on us. 

We were heading towards Animal World, a climbing area in the canyon, but quickly got on the wrong path.  We ended up almost to the top of the canyon, before turning around to re-route and get on the right path. 

When we finally arrived at the crag, the aforementioned looming clouds decided to dump on us. First rain, and then hail. Thank goodness for climbing helmets! 

Since the rain was heavy, hail was falling, and lightning was blasting nearby, we bailed. The rock was going to be too wet anyway. 

Hiking back down the canyon was almost harder than hiking up because of the hail pelting our hands and bouncing off our helmets. Once we got back to the car, we hid under the back door for a bit before deciding to continue our climbing adventure - indoors. 

I climb at Movement in Boulder, and so we ended up going there for the rest of the afternoon. Our day ended up being a relaxing one, and we still got an adventure we will always remember, which is what this is all about anyways, right?

Learning not to get upset when things don't go as planned is an art. I still have yet to even come close to living outside of expectation. Only recently have I began to be aware of staying present vs. attaching myself to the outcome. The outcome lives in the future, which does not exist, so getting excited or fearful of what could happen is wasted when you could remain present, and find so much to enjoy. Meditation, breathing and yoga help me train my brain, but I struggle everyday with staying present. 

“Letting go gives us freedom, and freedom is the only condition for happiness. If, in our heart, we still cling to anything - anger, anxiety, or possessions - we cannot be free.” - Thich Nhat Hanh