My colleague Lance Wood, and his daughter Anna, recently completed a hike on the John Muir Trail. Two hundred and ten miles in 28 days! Many people, including myself, tend to train hard for something this ambitious, but Lance and Anna set out on this great adventure together with almost no preparation.
I remember checking out of my hotel room and just spontaneously leaving a $200 tip for the maid. I had never done that before. I had experienced some kind of transcendence that I could not describe and I couldn’t help but overflow in generosity – to a person I had not even met.
Dads have superpowers, but we don’t always recognize what they are, or how powerful they can be. As a result, we miss some of the greatest opportunities to make the greatest impact as dads. This is not about “fixing”…
When asked why he climbed Everest, George Mallory famously replied, “Because it was there.” The quote made headlines worldwide and became a trademark statement among mountaineers for generations. Not to minimize Mallory’s achievement, but this is one of the most moronic statements ever made.
Courtney took a step and immediately went into a slide. Time went into slow motion. My left hand still had a strong purchase on the rock and my right hand gripped the trekking pole that she was hanging on to. As her full weight started to load the system, she swung underneath me. The inertia was far greater than I was expecting and I felt the sharp pinch of fear throughout my body. I felt my hand slipping off the hold I had on the rock. I couldn’t let her go. Then I lost my grip on the rock and we started to slide. It was over. I knew in a matter of seconds we would be airborne, free falling 800+ feet to our deaths.