Revisiting my Wild Space
Lessons Learned from Five Seasons of Hiking
In the summer of 2016, I wrote a piece on my hiking endeavors. To summarize, I recognized the incredible merits of hiking as I was processing a year of underemployment. I discussed finding my “Wild Space’’: a less structured time, where the parameters are defined by my decisions to get up and get out on the trails, and where dusk is the only deadline to complete my day. Entering my Wild Space was a welcome escape. There was a great deal of emotional freedom to roam and appreciate the moment without anxiety about the future and all the what-ifs that came with submitting applications and engaging in informational interviews during the job search.
As I look back on what I wrote in 2016 and how I’ve benefited from the Wild Space ethos, I recognize that hiking has not only developed into a cornerstone of my leisure but has also become a far more nuanced exercise. Today, hiking is less about escape and abandon than it is about opportunity and growth.
I treat each and every hike as a learning experience. Sometimes the lesson learned is from my own foibles, and sometimes it is thrust upon me by the circumstances. The wisdom to be gleaned from hiking has no end in sight. Here are four important things I have learned so far from revisiting my Wild Space.
