I have for long thought that I will have a post dedicated to all my trek mates. This special post will be a gratitude post that will highlight everything that I have ever learned from each one of them. This post is due and will happen soon but before that I have summed up common things I appreciate in all my trek mates.
Balancing Act
To give anything time apart from work and family is a task – a fact we all know. Yet time and again the mad people I trek with have managed to find the time to do something they love and be in the mountains.
When I began to trek with these people it was different. We were all in college and life was easier. Being every other weekend in the mountains wasn’t a big deal. Adulting is tough and growing up makes it tougher to keep following stuff you are passionate about.
However, be it getting family members to trek, making sure one weekend is with family and the rest on mountains, or knowing and mapping the need in the house so as to plan which weekend can be okay with family if you are in the mountains is a puzzle that each person I trek with has till date managed to solve well…
There have been times when treks have been planned and some work or family emergency ruined it for so many of us. Such emergencies have made many miss treks they would have loved to be part of. But never has this balancing act got us down. None gave up till date. One, two or many, each trek mate I know since five years hasn’t stopped. Adulting is making it tougher but passion survives it all.
Curious for Knowledge
The core group I speak of here who will be part of my appreciation post soon are all hungry for knowledge. Each one has a special reason and interest to be in the mountains and makes sure has enough knowledge gained during each trek. History, fort architecture, nature, birds or mountain ranges are just some of the many broad categories.
No one has ever said no to grasp something new from the other. The amount of knowledge each one has in their particular field of interest related to treks is crazy. I haven’t yet managed to gauge it all from them, the reason why it keeps me going on these trek mates. Exactly why treks feel incomplete without the presence of all core people of my trek group.
Adaptive Nature
I am someone who loves to plan, loves it, even more, to adhere to plans made. My brain panics, when plans aren’t made at all or are made and not adhered to. It gets difficult for my brain to process plan changes, especially at the last minutes.
However, I can say that through the five years of trekking with my gang I have become better at adapting to changes at treks. My brain doesn’t panic anymore, yes it stops, but I am getting better at accepting sudden changes at treks. I have become more adaptive as a person thanks to the crazy on spot plan makers I trek with.
I believe I have seen my mates adapt to all kinds of tough situations one can think of during a trek. Be it a terrible accident, be it losing our way to the fort, be it losing a mate, be it the absence of enough water or food, you name it and we have survived it together with grace.
Neither of the trek mates has ever said no to something. The attitude of all of them has always been that of let’s try it. Every suggestion has always been considered to make the trek successful. Each person has tried their best to add value to what is already on the plate and adapted to whatever has been the final outcome.
I am grateful to have met my crazy trek bunch. I can never be enough grateful. I hope that this gratitude post also becomes a motivator for us to be better versions of what we are and keep learning like we always have. The in depth “things I learned from each trek mate” post shall come soon, I promise.
@nisha_navgire for some pictures of the treks I have been to with these amaze people.