I come from NH, by motorcycle, 15 months ago. I traveled by choice, and changed my life style consciously. More than a year later, settled into my new life, the Sacred Mountain, and the 1% of it that is the Arizona Snowbowl have come to represent Love, Passion and Purpose.
I would not have set off in the first place had I not been drawn to the more natural side of life. At the age of 24, sitting at a desk in a cubicle two years running, there was a clear fork in the road. The path most advisable was the current course that had started 20 years earlier in a pre-school classroom in Melrose, Massachusetts. Now, after two decades of schooling, two years out from my 2006 graduation at Muhlenberg College, I had achieved a moderate level of success for a young professional and things seemed to be looking up.
However, when a soul that is meant to explore life falls victim to the routine society has told us is most proper, that soul may grow tired of said routine and take the path less traveled. In an explosion of spontaneity, I bought a motorcycle, sold everything else, and took off in the general direction of West.
I have snowboarded a good deal of my life, been on teams as a player and a coach, and experienced the highest of highs and the lowest of lows in these regards. I have taught people in classrooms, on playing fields, in the office and the backyard, but until my first winter at Snowbowl I had not found a home for my desire to share knowledge or my excessive need to stay active.
Now I feel home. Snowbowl is not like many places. The mountain is small, family owned, and lacks many of the amenities larger mountains offer. The lifts are a bit older, and a bit slower, but the place smacks of character. Most everybody (save a ski patrolmen or two) are there because they are in love with the place and the people the mountain draws to her. The mountain is also wild and pristine; a true place of nature's beauty. And of course, the best part of all; the tree riding.
So I plan to climb to the top of the peaks this coming Sunday, and make an offering to the Snow God. May He see fit to cover us with white early and often this winter. And if He does, I will see you up there. May the Sacred Mountain, and the 1% of it that is the Arizona Snowbowl help you to redefine your Love, Passion and Purpose in life.
- M
Leave a comment