Alaska changed my life.

This might sound over stated, but it couldn’t be more true.

The trip to Alaska was meant to be a refresher, I was meant to go work there for the summer and return to “regular life” come September…whatever that meant at that moment in my life.

The funny thing about life is, it always does what it wants, no matter what you think.

Alaska changed my life in many ways, the most notable one: living.

You see, before that summer in 2013 I was doing (and succeeding at) all the normal functions of what categorizes a living human, but I was not really “living”. Not by the standards of those who leave a legacy of fully lived moments. Don’t get me wrong; in no way was my life empty or poorly lived. It simply was not MY life. It was not a deliberate existence. Maybe it was once, but it had since stopped. And my heart was begging me to live again.

Enter Alaska.

2013 came with a summer of mildly cool days, a different gorgeous scenery, lots of hiking, and perhaps what’s most important: a change of priorities.

My first summer in Alaska was scary, but oh so refreshing!

It included 12-13 hours long work days, 2-5 hours evening hikes, little sleep, lots of wine, and a carelessness that only could come from being so far away from everything and everyone I knew.

I went to Alaska on my own. I knew little of the town, less of the state, and nothing about anyone I would meet. It was exciting.

The hours were long and the work mentally difficult and physically tiring; but the summer days were infinite and I didn’t mind sleeping little as long as I got to soak up all the beauty and etherial truth this new little town had to offer.

Skagway: “place where the north wind blows”

No statement was ever truer. And these winds came loaded with truths...some pretty, some ugly but they were all truths.

In Skagway I learned things about myself I was afraid of getting to know before, and I only came to learn them because I had no distractions from myself. It was me, myself and a town full of strangers which became oversized (and even stranger) from 7am-7pm as cruises filled with tourists flooded in.

I came to love solitude, and quiet moments of meditation between the mountains, the wind and myself. I also came to understand hiking, sales, love and friendship….all tangled together and then pulled apart; piece by piece.

That summer in Skagway, I broke my own heart and taped it back together. Only to come back around and try to super glue it…. that is a different lengthier story, but suffice it to say that some decisions are painful, but things will always work the way they should.

This is a story of redemption, love and happiness. It is a story of finding oneself through the freedom of travel, and of finding the strength to be brave when all you want to do is curl into a ball and have the world swallow you. This is an ongoing story, and one I hope will motivate anyone reading to seek their truth; without judging what that may be.

I am nowhere near my conclusion, as this journey is what I’m most intrigued by.

But if you’re interested in finding out more (along with me), hop on.

I promise it won’t be a boring ride.