highlighting

Starting with a visit to San Diego...
Here's some highlights of my recent adventures, which have been, in a word, lovely:
-numero uno: the deliciously adorable Lily Crum and her mama and papa Erica and Raymond visiting from Pennsylvania :)
-the drive with my friend/co-worker Jessica and my friend Sarah (ah, how I love the open road!!)
-late night treat of wine and chocolate with Ester
-breakfast on the oceanfront with friends - Lisa, Aaron and the
Crum family - and visiting with the lovely Leslie Diaz-Burns :)
-dinner at The Red Sea with friends :)
-running along sunset cliffs with Jess!!
-jumping in the ocean!!!
-potluck dinner and live music that we made (long live the Indigo Girls, the guitar and the stand up bass!!) with friends
-Lebanese, Thai and Mexican food
-ice cream at the Lighthouse with more friends
-swimming with the Bulgrien boys! :)
-taking forever to finally leave town
-making the return drive in 5 hours (w/o stopping...or slowing from 80mph)
---what did I miss?! Did I mention it was lovely visit? It was...

THEN... a few full days of work and lots of preparation for some more 'time off'.

THEN... the 7 day Adventure Leadership course in which I participated with 3 others (2 of whom have been coworkers this summer and have become good friends) and under the instruction of Bryce and Leslie (my dear friend and the one who introduced me to Summit).
Here I will attempt to express some highlights from the course: hmmm...
-spending time with some wonderful people and spending time under the stars and reflecting on each day
-learning more about Summit's philosophies on adventure leadership
-gaining some insight into how I function in leadership and group facilitation roles
-learning and practicing a lot of map and compass and navigation stuff! (ooh, I really like it!)
-learning how to set up a top rope anchor system and facilitate climbing/support school and feeling increasingly comfortable doing so :)
-backpacking everyday in the beautiful Ansel Adams wilderness area around some deliciously inviting high mountain lakes
-lots of scatological laughs and flatulence. :) so immature...
-meeting and facilitating a climbing day with some teenage girls from a local grouphome - this was an incredibly challenging and rich time of learning for me...
-learning to receive feedback from co-leaders and instructors - both encouraging and constructive criticism...
-completing a 10 hour day of hiking off and on trail summiting Madera peak via the steep and bouldery Notch with our backpacks, a bit nerve wracking but rewarding-what our instructors deemed 'the bivi challenge' - a night on our own with 8 items of our choice plus the clothes on our back (only 2 sleeping bags for 4 people!)
-having to evacuate out of the course area on the last day due to a fire nearby that was started by a propane tank exploding in an RV...helicopters and all.
-mixed fruit pie at the Jones store -yes, mixed fruit, like with grapes, pineapple and papaya...from the can...it was good nonetheless. :)
-debrief after debrief after debrief...but as I learned :) reflection is key to learning
So, all that said...I will be considering pursuing more involvement in such areas of leadership and outdoor adventure with Summit here. I enjoy it sooo much - the challenge the reward the space to enjoy others and have time to contemplate alone the being among the trees and mountains and lakes the natural environment of learning therein and I appreciate the sensitivity and motivation of this community to Christian faith and awareness of group dynamics...

Don't worry there's more... After we returned to base, ate and cleaned up, I headed out with Leslie and Corinna. Sadly as we were getting ready to leave, Golda, Corinna's car, revealed a gas leak (!!!). With Ann behind us, we made the 8 mile drive into town, seatbelts off and helmets on ready for a quick bail out in case of explosion :) nervously awaited the mechanic's word and then sadly said goodbye. Golda had reached her final day. I can only imagine when that day comes for Surely... oh the tragedy!! (If anyone has a VW diesel rabbit that they want to sell, Corinna and Leslie are in the market for one). But, we had plans to get to the east side for a wedding and a little R&R...Hertz here we come. Amazing how inexpensively one can rent a car for these days. So, that's we did. Drove off into the noon day sun in our little
Mazda 5 with 3 bicycles and great expectations of some relaxing fun.
So, while others were at the wedding, I jogged and hiked around the nearby meandering lakes (pictured there to the right) and streams in the Saddlebag lakes
area, against which the ceremony was set! (beautiful!) Later that evening I allowed myself to do something I've never done and will probably never do again...I 'crashed' the reception...I was enticed by the dancing to the live folk/bluegrass music with a lot of my good friends from this summer...way too awkward did I end up feeling most of the night though :( ah well, they are a gracious and delightful bunch and it made for a great memory.
The next day we rode our bicycles!! Leslie, Corinna and I rode almost 60 miles from Lee Vining to Mammoth and back along Hwy 395, enjoying a nice lunch mid-day. It was beautiful ride, perfect amount of hills and flats, sun and wind! Ah, it felt SO good!! This is my team that's training for the Whitney Classic at the end of Sept. The success of this little ride gave me much more confidence in the upcoming Whitney (which is a total of 135 miles that the three of us will share). It was lovely. And the following day we rode about 20 miles around the June Lakes loop - wind in our faces...a little too much if you ask me - peddling hard downhill just plain sucks. :) But, it was gorgeous - the road lined with aspen trees and mountains towering above. We spent the remainder of the taking a leisurely route back home - via a dip in the lake and some blackberry picking (we probably picked 2 lbs of deliciously juicy ripe blackberries!!).

Since returning I've been saying goodbyes and settling in trying to figure out what I'll be doing here for the next month and a half...Cooking for just 6 people or so doesn't take quite as long as cooking for 15-20. Jessica (my cook mate pictured here) is leaving today for New Zealand and will be one of the last to leave besides me...
You wonder why I'm not leaving, why i haven't come up with a great next plan? I don't know...my bank account is again slowly dwindling away...But, I'm just not eager to leave. I seem to be at
peace with what moves me to consider staying here...such as these lovely ladies pictured here :).

However, I will be leaving early October to go to Kansas City for the most of this next year (via my brother's wedding in AZ). There I will begin pursuing doula certifications, midwifery education and hopefully spending some time helping at the Catholic Worker
house. I'm also considering taking a Wilderness First Responder course to start the process of possibly doing more for Summit next year. Lots to consider and seek guidance about... I'm anxious to spend time with my family and friends in Kansas city and elsewhere, though.
Oh, and did I mention I ran the 13 mile loop around the lake a couple days ago!!! Training for the marathon is going well! It's about 2 months away in Kansas City. It felt incredible - a bit painful, but pretty amazing...I remember thinking at the beginning of the summer that I would make it my goal to run around the lake...it feels really really good to have worked hard and actually done it!
Goodness, have I been blessed...
PICTURE GUIDE:
1. Raymond and Lily Crum
2. Leslie Diaz-Burns, Lily, Leigh, Lisa Johnson
3. Colin, Bryce, Luke, Matt, Phillip, Leslie, Leigh, Monica
4. Luke, Monica, Leigh, Matt near Sing peak
5. Luke, Monica, Matt, Leigh on the peak of Madera
6. Leigh checking out the fire in the balls/course area
7. Golda - Corinna's late great transport
8. The wedding near Saddlebag lake
9. My Whitney Team - Leslie, Leigh, Corinna at June Lakes
10. Jessica and Leigh in our kitchen at Summit
11. from l to r back row: Nicola, Brittany, Libby, Kelli, Maril, Kate, Leigh
front row: Jessica, Meggie, Jamie, Carey (laying down - birthday girl!!), Ann