Have you ever thought that hiking is liking life and dating? Well, I thought of all my hiking experiences and came to that conclusion. Dating is Like Hiking.
Overall, I like hiking, but there are times that I don’t particularly like hiking, such as when I am on a trail that is steep and I don’t know how much longer I have to keep walking. However, the feeling I get when reaching the top of a mountain trail is amazing. Then, I feel it is all worth it. You might feel that you are struggling right now with life or dating or both, but it won’t always be that way. It may just be a few months or a couple years when you’ll look back and think that all your struggles in dating and whatever sacrifices you made in life right now were all worth it.
One day on a hike, my husband and I and a friend got lost for part of the way. After the hike, I thought to myself that hiking is like life in a way. There are some times where we feel we get lost along the path of life. Other people can help us on our journey. Hiking and life is so much better when we have great friends and relationships to share our journey.
On that particular, hike we started off to a good start. The trail was easy to follow. Towards the middle, though, there was a fork in the trail with 3 offshoots and we weren’t sure where to go. We picked one of them and then we saw some more trails that other people had made. We tried a few of those trails and we realized none of those trails were leading us to the main trail that we wanted.
At one point, our friend said that she could understand how the Israelites could get lost for 40 years. We weren’t overly panicking, even though we saw that we were between big rocks and we couldn’t see where the main trail was. We had food and we had water. We had gone on several hiking trips before.
We tried to remember where we came from and where we saw a sign that said “Wildlife Sanctuary area.” My husband tried another uphill trail, while our friend and I waited at the bottom of the hill. We then all decided to keep going on that uphill trail. We still weren’t sure this was the right trail. Then, a jogger approached and we asked him if we’d reach the parking lot if we kept going, he said “yes.” As he passed me, he said “I’ve gotten lost so many times.” It was through experience of "getting lost so many times" that he got to know the way.
So, we continued on and after we walked about 4 minutes, the area looked familiar to me since we had gone to the place the previous year and had hiked a different trail. I was able to recognize the path leading to the Interpretive Center. It was now level land and after a few more minutes we saw where we parked and the Interpretive Center at the place we went to, which was Vasquez Rocks in Los Angeles County, California. As we reached the Intepretive Center, my husband saw the jogger and the jogger waved at us. My husband had done that trail 2 times before. During those other times there were more people, so he was able to follow where the people went. Just like in life, it’s good to have others along who are going on the same path.
My husband and I have done steeper hikes and it does help us to keep going when we see others going along our path. A few trails that my husband and I did that go uphill are a trail near Griffith Observatory, Saddleback Butte, Garden-to-Sky trail, and Snoqualmie Falls.
For a trail we did near Griffith Observatory, it was uphill on the way, but I saw others walking that path and that inspired me to keep going. In a way, I thought, If they can do it, I can do it, too. It also helped that I could see the Griffith Observatory. The destination was in sight.
My husband and I hiked a trail at Saddleback Butte as a First Day Hike one New Year’s Day. On that hike we were at the tail end of the pack, but it definitely was motivation to see others going before us.
One hike that I was complaining for most of the hike was the Garden-to-Sky trail on Catalina Island. I was complaining on that one because it had so many switchbacks, I couldn’t see the peak where we were headed, and I just didn’t know how much longer we would have to keep hiking to get to the real top of the peak. However, reaching the summit was worth it. When we reached the top, we could see the other side of the island and on the other side, we saw an amazing view of the Pacific Ocean. Now that I remember, it was basically only my husband and myself on the trail. We didn’t see others on the trail while we were hiking. I think that was one of the reasons I wasn’t motivated and kept complaining on the hike.
Another hike we did that had, I believe, similar slope to Garden-to-Sky trail was Snoqualmie Falls Trail in Washington State. I had not complained on that hike because I had seen on a board a depiction of how far we’d hike, so I had an idea of how long it would take to hike. Also, I think I didn’t complain because I saw others doing the hike, too.
I think having an idea of how long a hike will take and seeing others on the path helps in endurance on the hike.
Just like in some of my hikes, I didn't now how long the hike would take and I felt it was an uphill battle, you may not know who much longer it will be until you become married or if you’ll ever get married. You might think that it's an uphill battle and that you'll never reach your dream of becoming married. You might feel you don't even see the possibility of marriage just like on one of my hikes I didn't even see the top of the peak.
I found that for the hikes when we saw others on the same trail, hiking was easier. I think just seeing others helps us feel motivated and encouraged. I’d encourage you to find Catholic single women friends who would like to become married, too. You can pray for each other and encourage each other along the way. As you see them get further along the path, it’ll provide you inspiration. On the road of dating, you might feel lost because you feel like the relationship is not getting anywhere or you feel that the man you are dating is not right for you. You might stop dating for awhile and it might feel like you are not getting anywhere in dating and are stuck between rocks. When this happens, believe in yourself.
Believe in yourself. Find the road that is right for you. I think you’ll find that there’ll be someone on your path that will help guide you. Keep your dream of becoming married in mind, heart, and soul. Believe that you will get there. Be encouraged. One day, you’ll look back and think that all your prayers and efforts to become married was all worth it.
If you need a guide on your way, feel free to email me, Celeste, at loveisonitsway.mktg@gmail.com.
