“Happiness is only real when shared.”
About six years ago, I hit a point where I wanted to live differently. I realized I was caught in the rat race of life. I always dreamed of more adventure, big mountains, hard hunting, epic stuff. I’d consume content, watching other people do it and thought “why can’t that be me?”
That’s when the idea of long wilderness backpack hunting became my focus. But I didn’t have the skills for it yet. So I started planning trips for myself. An overnighter in Pennsylvania State Forest, a long weekend in West Virginia wilderness, etc.
I was sick of waiting for others to go with me. Or maybe someone could go, but they wanted to stay in a hotel or do things differently. Eventually I just did these trips by myself. And I was always glad I did.
I spent a lot of time alone. I loved every adventure I went on, preparing for the big mountains of the West. I got to the point where I said, “I don’t need anyone. I got this all myself.”
Into The Wild
Then I watched this movie Into the Wild. The main character shared a similar call to adventure. I related so much. Based on a true story, he took it to the extreme. He went full solo wilderness survival in Alaska.
By the end of the movie, nature won. And he passed away. His last words were “Happiness is only real when shared”.
I remember thinking “nah— the adventure is where it’s at. And solo is just fine by me”.
My Realization
Well, I’ve come to learn something about myself recently. I love people. I love community. I’m so blessed to be able to find such like-minded people here in my new home state of Idaho. Type A, fit, love for the mountains, etc. Everyone seems to have their “thing” which is awesome. And the love for adventure seems to bring everyone together here— regardless of what exactly it is we’re doing.
I’ll still do some solo hunts. They can be fun. I enjoy calling the shots out there and taking full ownership, for the good and the bad. But I now know deep down what brings me the most joy is being around great people. And I also know I have a family back East that I can always count on as well (It’s weird. Since I moved, I almost feel closer to them in a way. I don’t know, still trying to find the right words here/ figure this one out).
The Takeaway
I think it’s great for people to strive out and do the things they want to do, even if it means doing it by themselves. And maybe a lonely chapter of that is required for you to grow into the person you want to become. But I believe we are all wired for human connections. You may just need to keep looking for your “tribe”. And that’s okay. Because once you do, life can get even more fun. And epic. Ask me how I know.