One step at a time: Lessons from the Vernal Falls Trail, Yosemite N.P.
Hiking the Vernal Falls Trail at Yosemite National Park this summer was tough! The trail climbs significantly, with steep and uneven stone steps that become increasingly dramatic as you approach the waterfall. As you get closer, the mist from the falls soaks both your body and the stairs beneath your feet, making the climb even more slippery and challenging. Step after step, my knees started to talk to me. My leg muscles began to shake, and at nearly 8,000 feet in elevation, my lungs were working hard for every breath. At the same time, the beauty surrounding me was almost impossible to take in all at once. Looking away from the trail, even for a moment, could be dangerous.
So, for a while, I had to focus on one thing: the very next step. I discovered something interesting. When I kept my eyes on the step immediately in front of me, I felt stronger, more centered, and more in control. But when I looked up to see how much farther I had to go, I could feel my footing become less certain. My breathing became harder, my body felt more tired, and the climb suddenly seemed much more daunting. As often happens when I am hiking, I found myself thinking about healing—both my own healing and the healing journeys of my clients. How often do we do the same thing in our healing journeys? We look ahead and see how far we still have to go. We wonder when we will finally feel better, reach our goal, or arrive at the place we want to be. Sometimes, seeing the distance ahead can make us lose our footing. We can become discouraged, lose our momentum, or begin to wonder if we are capable of making it all the way. But what if we simply focused on the next step? Keep a steady cadence.Take the next right step.Trust your footing.Trust the path.Keep moving forward. We don't need to know exactly how we are going to reach the top. We don't need to compare our pace with someone else's. Every person has a different path, a different body, different challenges, and a different pace of healing. Comparison, after all, is often the thief of joy.
And there is something else that is just as important as continuing forward: stopping every once in a while to look back at how far you have come.When I finally stopped to turn around on the trail, I could see just how far I had climbed. The view was breathtaking. From that perspective, the distance I had already traveled was much more impressive than the distance still ahead. The same is true in healing.
Sometimes we become so focused on where we want to be that we forget to recognize how far we have already come. So pause. Look back. Celebrate the steps you have taken. Take pride in the strength it took to get here. Whether you are climbing a mountain or walking your own healing journey, remember: You don't have to conquer the whole mountain today. Just take the next step. In service of you, Rebecca
Rebecca Beringer, CCH
Healing Way Homeopathy | River Run Holistic Health
1620 S. Lawe Street, Appleton, WI 54915
920-740-5048 | rebecca@healingwayhomeopathy.com
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