I Suppose

Ever felt like you're burning 10,000 more calories than you ate for breakfast? Ever felt like you're rubbing the first layer of skin off the back of your ankles because you're going so steeply uphill? Ever climbed a mountain?

Before July 4th, if someone asked me these questions I would have said, "No I have not, and I don't think I will. Who wants to do those things if you could be drinking a robust cup of coffee and reading a good book safely in the shelter of your very own home?" But. If you ask me those questions now I would say, "Yes, yes I have."

Every July 4th in Seward, Alaska there is a race that many fight tooth and nail to get registered for. Now, why people fight so hard to get in this race I'm unsure because running up a mountain and then flailing back down the same mountain doesn't sound like a party to me. But sports has never been my thing. The race is called Mount Marathon and so is the mountain on which the race takes place. Aunt Lyn volunteered herself, Mk and I to help hand out water to all the exhausted runners at the top of the mountain. So that's what we did. How did we get up there? You guessed it. We hiked. And hiked and (panting) hiked.

Now, physical activity that doesn't involve a leotard and tights has never really been my strong suit, so when I heard that we were going to hike a 3,000-something foot tall mountain I thought, "I wonder what would happen if I just didn't make it." This thought also occurred several times during the hike. But luckily I have an Aunt who loves me so much (and who had a knee replacement a year and a half ago) that she hung behind with me. The other hikers, including Mk and her fit runner's bod, took off faster and made their way in a speedier fashion to the peak. Aunt Lyn and I decided that the slow and steady route was probably better for the both of us. I probably should have eaten more than a forth of a muffin and a single strawberry for breakfast, but with the help of an encouraging Aunt, a full Nalgene of water,  and half a package of energizing goo, the peak was finally under my feet.

You may be wondering how we got back down. The logical answer would be that I had to hike back down, right? Well, not when you have an Aunt with friends in high places. Instead of risking our lives sliding back down the mountain on the loose shale, we climbed into a cozy little helicopter that gently taxied us down to sea level once again. It wasn't the longest helicopter ride out there, but it was cool enough to check that off my bucket list. And really, that's all that matters to me I suppose.