I just got home from a meeting of the local hiking club.\u00a0 The guest speaker was hiker Carey Kish.\u00a0 Carey has hiked the Appalachian Trail, all 2,189 miles of it, twice.\u00a0 Once at age 18 in 1977 and a second time in 2015 at age 56.<\/p>\n
Carey documented his journeys with slides.\u00a0 His slides showed how challenging this 2,189 mile journey is.\u00a0 In his slides, every hiker and everyone else in his pictures was always smiling, in spite of the hard work everyone was doing.\u00a0 He commented that along the way of his second hike (at age 56), an eighteen year-old kid told him that he himself could never hike the AT all the way through.\u00a0 The kid told him that his longest hike was a 50 mile hike with a Boy Scout group.\u00a0 Carey replied that his 2,189 mile hike was simply forty-four 50-mile hikes connected together.<\/p>\n
Carey\u2019s speech amazed me.\u00a0 It amazed me to see the bears, snakes, rain, and other hazards the AT hikers encountered.\u00a0 In spite of all these hazards, some of them still hiked the entire trail.\u00a0 And they all looked happy while doing it.\u00a0 Carey\u2019s speech confirmed some strategies my Grandma taught me as a young child to be happy and successful and to reach my goals.<\/p>\n
AT hikers have to dream big to set their goal of hiking the entire 2,189 mile AT.\u00a0 But they do.<\/p>\n
My Grandma taught me to imagine my goal, and then set it.\u00a0 Just like the AT trail hikers do.<\/p>\n
What Carey told the 18 year-old kid who said he could never hike the AT impressed me.<\/p>\n
My Grandma told me to do the same thing when I was a young child.\u00a0 She told me to break my goals into smaller manageable goals, and then reward myself when I reached each one.<\/p>\n
Never give up on reaching your goal, on making your dream come true, regardless of the hardships you encounter along the way.<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
Regardless of how challenging your goal is, you can do it.\u00a0 You can overcome depression, calm anxiety, overcome PTSD, raise healthy children, and get an education.\u00a0 You can do it!\u00a0 I believe in you.<\/p>\n
You just need to set your goal, break it down into manageable smaller goals or steps, and never give up.<\/p>\n
Soar like an eagle<\/a> over life\u2019s storms.\u00a0 Accomplish your goals, one at a time.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\nLet the\u00a0encouraging words<\/a>\u00a0in these\u00a0near\u00a0a\u00a0river<\/a>\u00a0posts help you<\/h4>\n
soar like an\u00a0eagle<\/a>\u00a0above life\u2019s storms.<\/h4>\n
Dreading something\u00a0that may happen in your future?<\/a><\/h4>\n
Do not let \u201cThe Small Things\u201d<\/a>\u00a0ruin your life.<\/h4>\n
I\u00a0 hope you have \u201cA Beautiful Life<\/a>\u201c.<\/h4>\n
Yes, you can keep going!<\/h4>\n
If you enjoyed this post, remember that BJ writes\u00a0children\u2019s<\/a>\u00a0books<\/a>.<\/h4>\n
Her\u00a0encouraging<\/a>\u00a0children\u2019s<\/a>\u00a0eagle<\/a><\/h4>\n
near\u00a0a\u00a0river<\/a><\/u>\u00a0<\/u>common core\u00a0reading book<\/a><\/h4>\n
is available on\u00a0Amazon.com\u00a0and\u00a0Barnesandnoble.com.<\/h4>\n
Buy BJ\u2019s\u00a0near\u00a0a\u00a0river<\/a><\/u>\u00a0encouraging\u00a0<\/a>eagle\u00a0<\/a>reading book<\/a><\/h4>\n
for a\u00a0child<\/a>\u00a0you care about today!<\/h4>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"