Have you ever looked at your shoes and thought about the grounds they have walked? Have your soles gone as far as the closest city or country next door? Have the laces dragged on the pavements of people-laden New York City? San Francisco? London? Do you remember that Summer day when you stepped in liquid-like gum on a hot, paved sidewalk? Were you headed to a museum, to a concert or to visit a friend? And why stop at shoes? Your favorite scarf? T-shirt? Hat? Where have they gone? What, like your eyes, have they seen?
My body and my articles of wear recently went on my long, mountainous rock climb, which I did not even remember I had put on this list. I've always been one to enjoy a good hike, preferring the climbs and diverse terrain over flatland so I pushed really hard for the trip to a peak called Canchón about 4 hours away from Pampas Grande on the second weekend since my arrival to the town. Waking up at 5:30 a.m. and heading off less than an hour later with Diego, Eduardo, three of my students, and a dog, I had no idea what to expect. The kids, all of whom I thought would set us at a moderate pace being younger, sprinted ahead from the beginning and kept that pace throughout. Well, so much for that idea, I thought as I realized I would be the weakest link. Inclines are challenging but when you start out at 13,000-14,000 ft. above sea level and climb higher, with unaccustomed lungs, you tend to feel it a bit more. But, it was all too spectacular, I could not stop. And of course, during the hike, in true Diana-fashion, I managed to have a few casualties, the most humorous being putting my hand on a little cactus as I was climbing, about 2 hours into the trip, and having cactus needles sticking out of me.
I will admit that at perhaps hour 3 of the journey, after the last 45 minutes being one of intense heaving-one's-body-up climbing, when we arrived at the base of the peak, I started to think that I would be okay stopping here. And then I looked at where I'd come from and where I was headed and WHERE I WAS and made the decision to keep going. It is like waiting for hours to get to the base of the Statue of Liberty and then being told the crown just opened up and you are first in line. You have to go! And then I got to the point where I was "in" Canchón, I had the option of climbing a bit more, A LOT higher and considerably more dangerous. I had that moment of hesitation but, just as you would, if you got a chance to move from the crown to the torch in Lady Liberty, I took that chance! Except we were above the clouds! BREATHTAKING!
At the top of a "mini" peak on my trek to Canchón, I let my feet hang over a huge boulder I was sitting on and looked down to the ground no more than 100 feet below me. And I looked at my boots. You have been in my suitcase on the travel to Perú, my friends. Your "passport" has been stamped. You have walked in the muddy roads of Pampas Grande and now you are climbing/hiking/walking some amazing terrain. And so are you fleece jacket. And it's not to say that I talk to my shoes and clothing often, but I do think about where they have been. And it's a reminder to me that when you go somewhere or do something (whether in your town or another country) you aren't just taking yourself but, just like your clothing, also affecting those you meet, those you left, creating a memory for them too just as you did with your clothing.
wow...
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