Author: Bob

Ever since I was kid, I have loved being outdoors.  The outside world is so diverse, visually, auditorily, and texturally.  Only a clear blue sky seems to be unbroken in color and texture.  All the diversity and complexity of nature has always fascinated me.  When I am outdoors, I get that feeling of joy, of being totally alive, and I think that leads me to be more creative as well.  As the days seem to blur during the Covid 19 pandemic, it has driven me to seek inspiration when I can’t be outdoors.  I watched a Ted Talk today by Ethan Hawke about giving yourself permission to be creative.  We struggle so often with the challenge of doing something important or of value instead of just doing what we love and trusting that nature will expressive herself through us in a way that makes the world a better place.  You have to be willing to be the fool at times (in the eyes of others), because you are simply doing what you love.  Watch the video and think about your passion.  Do what you love and do it often!

Last week in a desperate attempt to maintain my sanity as an avid outdoor person, I headed to Flaming Gorge in Northern Utah. The campgrounds in that area are open and the springtime fly fishing is epic on the Green River below the Flaming Gorge dam.  Monday morning found me packing my FJ with all of my camping gear and food.  It was strange to be driving across the open desert in Southern Wyoming after spending 7 weeks around the house.  A little unsettling in some ways.  Six hours later I was driving south of Rock Springs and into Utah and the rolling hills around the Gorge.  It was a beautiful day (despite the usual wind) and I was definitely easing into the spirit of heading outdoors, my greatest passion.  

I found a campsite at Dripping Springs and set up shop. It was one of those true pleasures of life to sit down next to the campfire before climbing into the tent for the night.  Sometimes the less money you have to spend, the more pleasurable the experience!  The ensuing days were punctuated with the incredible scenery of the river, catching amazing trout and enjoying the peace and sparse company of this unique area.

One of the silver linings of the CV19 pandemic has been the increase in people getting outdoors, if simply for a neighborhood walk.  Another is the reduction of traffic around town and the improved air quality.  This a great time for everyone to appreciate the bounty of nature and to observe the vivid aesthetics it has to offer each of us. Get out and rediscover what she has to offer!

I am uncertain where I first read the following tenants to live by but I found them compelling and certainly worth sharing.

1. Allow yourself the uncomfortable luxury of changing your mind
2. Do nothing for prestige or status or money or approval alone
3. Be generous with your time, resources and credit
4. Build pockets of stillness into your life
5. When people try to tell you who you are, don’t believe them
6. Presence is far more intricate and rewarding an art than productivity
7. Expect anything worthwhile to take a long time
8. Seek out what magnifies your spirit (people, ideas and books; find them, hold unto them, visit them often.)
9. Don’t be afraid to be an idealist
10. Don’t just resist cynicism, fight it actively

Finally, be constructive, live with sincerity and act from a place of largehearted, constructive, rational faith in the human spirit, bending toward growth and betterment.

A couple of weeks ago several friends and I skied over Pearl Pass to the Friends Hut on the Western Slope of the Rocky Mountains here in Colorado.  We were greeted by soaring peaks over 13,000 feet covered in their white mantel of winter.  We were somewhat vexed when the time arrived to ski back to our vehicles at Ashcroft as we awoke to nearly 14 inches of new snow that morning, versus the forecast of 5 inches.  This meant a real risk of avalanche danger from the surrounding high peaks.  We held a serious conversation about the risks and the alternative of skiing 16 miles south to Crested Butte to avoid re-crossing the pass.  This was not idle conversation!

We eventually decided to retrace our steps and assess the danger as we skied, the risk of avalanche heightening all of our senses.  It was butterflies in the stomach time as we approached Pearl Pass to find gusting winds and very poor visibility. We did descend the pass successfully, and as we skied a mile across the snow covered cirque, I was moved by the beauty and majesty all around us.  This was a moment that created an intense joy in living, if for only those few hours of soul moving grandeur.  Was it worth the risk?  Absolutely!  Today’s world has created this false sense of security that has caused people to fear life and avoid those precious moments that make the journey worthwhile; activities that dispel an existence of quiet desperation as described by Henry David Thoreau.  Especially during the current Covid 19 crisis, we need to get outdoors and experience nature while being active.  That does not require interacting with large groups and is probably the best way to enhance one’s mental and physical health.  Get out there and discover the joy in life.  Do something new and outside your comfort zone, do it with passion and do it today!

A recent NPR program focused on the impact smart computers are going to have on our society.  With the ability to learn, the guest projected that computers may displace 80% of the current workforce.  He cited the oft repeated mantra that other jobs will be available, but he cautioned that this time that may not be the case.  Are we preparing people to be productive, contributing members of society?  I argue that much of what we do in school today is stuff facts into kids’ heads and provide daycare so that parents can go about their work day without interruption. When I think of many of the life skills I have learned the hard way, I fear that our citizens are going to be ill prepared for the onslaught of technology and how it is integrated into our society.  It is not natural for a child to spend most of their day sitting at a desk.  If we continue our public education system it should be more holistic, fostering an appreciation of science, art, math, and language; but also an appreciation of nature and life skills.  It frightens me that most of our policymakers in this country do not have an appreciation of our natural world and the value of getting people out of their comfort zones and out into nature.  We need to get kids outside and active if we are going to insist on making them spend all day at school.  Let’s give them the chance to be well educated in every sense of the word, so that they can do a better job of managing life on Earth than our prior generations.

Living a better life is not necessarily about big changes. And I think that creating a better world is much the same even if we are faced with big challenges, like this disturbing statistic: the Paris climate accord requires that we reduce the average carbon production of each individual in the world to less than 2 metric tons per year.  Currently, the average American produces over 21 metric tons of carbon a year. Hitting the desired target would require a 90% reduction in what we Americans produce in carbon each year. That is not going to happen overnight. But what if you made some small changes in your lifestyle that helped reduce your carbon footprint and improved your health and quality of life?  There is a common phenomenon that I observe every day: people jumping in their car to drive a mile to the grocery store, to the fitness club or on some other errand. What if you walked, or rode a bike, think how much our environment would improve?  As Americans we also get far less exercise than we should.  Think how much better you would feel!  Try to break that old habit of always climbing into your car to travel short distances.  Set an example for your kids and your friends and get outdoors and enjoy the world outside that metal box.  You might even meet some interesting new people.  I think you will find your life and the world have improved and maybe you will start to develop a passion for the outdoors.

During many years of adventure, I have had the pleasure of meeting a lot of great people who have shared their experiences, homes and gear!  They have helped make the journey very worth while.  Unfortunately, there have also been those people who appear to leave their manners at home.  I was reminded of that paradigm on a trip to the desert this past weekend.  I was camping on BLM land in a fee based camping area.  At the end of the day there was one empty campsite next to me.  Later, after everyone had settled in for the night, I was suddenly woken from a deep sleep with lights shining in my tent and the rumble of an engine breaking the still of the night.  It was sometime after midnight.  Apparently, the new arrivals thought it was ok to drive through the crowded campground in the middle of the night, because they needed a place to stay.  The next morning I took the time to kindly remind them that they were being less than courteous by disturbing everyone else in the middle of the night just because they could not arrive before the usual quiet time.  I had to give them credit for settling in quietly, but the late arrival is inexcusable and left me grumpy and tired in the morning. I have lost count of the number of times I have had this experience and it is truly inconsiderate of those who insist they are the only people who count and should be excused for disrupting everyone else’s peace and quiet!   Even in a wilderness environment, consideration for the people around you is so very important, and may save a life in more dyer circumstances.  Be the exemplar, be courteous and considerate!

If you have not had the opportunity to read the Holstee Manifesto do it right now! It is the product of three business founders: Dave, Mike and Fabian’s attempt to define success as they began their new venture. Life is simple and we owe it to ourselves to discover what we love about life and do more of it! Search for the Holstee Manifesto right now and read it with an open mind and heart.