Philippians 2:3-4″Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.” (NIV)
“Air Force Academy is closed to hikers because Osama Bin Laden was shot.” In Colorado Springs, we said ‘alright’ and turned around and left. What are you going to do? Nothing. We traveled north to Monument, Colorado for a drive to Mt. Herman and a hike to the top surrounded by big rocks. It gains 1,000 ft in 1.1 mile, so not for the newbie.
It is always fun to learn about someone while hiking with him or her. I met Nan two months before at a conference. We clicked and kept in touch with email. We arranged a hike as our first time to get to know each other but it took two weeks to arrange. Mt. Herman is a fairly easy hike, well used and very eroded with side paths everywhere. The path at 7:30 am is shaded and cool even in July. Shots ring out when we park the car, but they stop soon after we start. What was that? No idea. Four years later, someone was shot in the area and was found months later. Yikes!
Getting to know someone while walking is the best way to move the conversation with the flow of your body’s rhythm. I am interested in the other person’s hiking experiences. You learn what they like. What they don’t like. Are they scared? Brave? Adventurous? Cautious? You can learn all this by walking with someone on a trail in the woods.
At the end of the first hike, you know if this is someone you can spend time with doing what you love. You also help them if you are more advanced as a hiker. Whatever you decide, you may have started a new friendship for life, a hiking buddy, or a person that you will find some other way to get to know. Or it may fade away…..
When did you last make a new friend? Who do you need to call and arrange to meet?
