Wilderness Therapy and Change
Hey Steph,
I’m laying awake right now at 2:00 AM after having read both of your books in the past 48 hours. I’m a wilderness guide for a therapeutic rehab in Loa, Utah and I frequently guide in Moab so it was cool to know where you were talking about. I just can’t help but tell you that your story has touched me deeply, most notably when you talk about Fletch, I think about the relationship that I have with my own dog, Maggie. I am constantly looking for people who provide me, through their stories, with insight into the hearts and minds of humans and I cannot thank you enough for your courage and strength to write those memoirs. In the field of wilderness therapy, which I have been immersed in over the past four years, there is an intense amount of work placed on dealing with change and your story has provided me with a backdrop to use as an allusion for these guys to think about when they feel like they can’t go on, hell when I think I can’t go on. I hope you are doing well, thanks again, you are awesome.
Sincerely,
Sam
Hi Sam,
I’m starting to believe that dealing with change is the most important thing we can learn how to do as humans, and I’m also starting to believe that it’s getting harder for us to do as things keep accelerating at a seemingly totally unsustainable pace. That’s even true here in Moab, which is growing in a way I never could have imagined. Sometimes the roller coaster has to stop, and I think all of the answers still come from being outside in a real, meaningful way.
I’m also starting to realize just how important resilience is. It always seems like it would be great to be born with talent, natural gifts, heck, a trust fund, why not!….but no one is born with resilience. We all have an equal chance to earn it, and it’s the one thing that will literally save your life and allow you to be a fulfilled and happy human no matter what you were or weren’t born with, when things get hard. Which they will, at some point, no matter what. I will always be thankful for Fletcher: that little being taught me about resilience, and also about everything else I need to know in life. She taught me how to be stoic and self-reliant, how to live fearlessly and honestly, and how to live through ultimate loss with grace and gratitude.
It’s great you are doing what you do, and I appreciate your note very much,
Steph
