A Quote

Yesterday I was reading through the journal I kept while I was in Kamchatka. I came across my entry for April 16 where I had written down a quote from the book I was reading at the time - Three Cups of Tea. In the book, the author quotes another writer - Helena Norberg-Hodge. The quote I wrote down is from her book Ancient Futures.

"I used to assume that direction of progress was somehow inevitable, not to be questioned. I passively accept a new road through the middle of a park, a steel and glass bank where a 200-year-old church had stood and the fact that life seemed to get harder and faster with each day. I do not anymore. In Ladakh (Pakistan), I have learned that there is more than one path in the future and I have had the privilege to witness another saner way of life - a pattern of existence based on the co-evolution between human beings and the earth."

I remember the day I wrote this. I remember that it was cold and we were exhausted. It was a rest day for us. We sat around camp in our booties, puffy down pants and sub zero jackets. We frosted cookies with nutella, read and watched the day pass by. I remember feeling homesick. I remember being hyper-aware. I remember writing this down and thinking - right on lady, there is more than one path. And I remember smiling at the thought of embracing a saner way of life when I returned home.

Thought I would share...