If You've Never Stared Off Into the Distance Then Your Life is a Shame

Last night at the O.C. was a joy as always. We always have new people come, and it is a lot of fun recounting the past events of the show as their heads swim with this avalanche of new knowledge. This season has been very subdued so far, and is definitely building momentum quietly towards some sort of incendiary move or revelation. If I were to guess who Caleb will name the new C.E.O. of the Newport Group, it would be Jimmy Cooper, which would be a great irony.

Sarah and I are going down to Houston this weekend for a retreat with First Colony (the church that she interned with this summer). It will be fun to meet all of the people that she has told me about, and to see her work with the kids she poured her life into this summer.

For some reason I have been thinking a lot about Trek lately. Perhaps it is that touch of cool in the air that I last felt in the mountains or it is possibly that desire I occasionally get in class to get up, walk out, and go do something daring and dangerous. When I walk into my room and look at the poster of Mt. Everest above my bed, I begin to daydream of crampons, ice axes, and high, lonely places. One of the things that I began to dream about this summer was trying to climb all 54 peaks above 14,000 feet in Colorado. I have done five: Mt. Elbert, Mt. Massive, Mt. Harvard, Mt. Shavano, and Mt. Princeton, and would like to add more.

It is always encouraging to have goals and desires that seem unreachable because you have to push yourself simply in order to dream them. If achievement of goals does not require you to stretch, grow, and feel a bit of pain, they will probably not mean that much. The things that you pour your time, heart, and blood into are the things that you cherish. Begin dreaming today. Find that person, mission, or goal that will cause you to go to those lengths, and then don't look back.