Cheers to this Life

Fight for this life. Never loose your sense of wonder. We are creatures; mammals. Why have we lost our instincts? Our intuition? We are so connected to the digital world, why did we disconnect from nature? – especially when nature is what gives us life. Don’t you feel more alive when your outside compared to a temperature controlled home? Humans – why does our species compulsively feel the need to manage everything? Ecosystems can heal themselves if we actually let them; the world has secrets we will never understand. Instead of controlling nature – lets celebrate it and respect its marvelous power. Choose to go human-powered: bike, hike, walk. Prioritize your values and you will soon find out that living is the most basic and essential one. Build on this concept and frame your days around it. Do we really need money to be happy? Money allows us to buy all these things but in the end they overwhelm us and clutter our lives. Items also hold us back. They keep us from traveling, from vacation because we have to work those extra hours to pay those bills. Who in this world ACTUALLY owns every item they possess? Not many. When you rid of all the shiny, fancy, expensive things around you; you start to gain the world. You also gain time because work is not vital to pay for all these unnecessary things. Your time is valuable and when the work-load lessens, you have to ability to start focusing on your health and happiness. We get so caught up in chasing these financial dreams but forget that our wellness is what keeps us alive. Go to your local farmers market – make a fresh home-cooked meal – your body will thank you. After all these years of fueling ourselves with crap lets take the time and effort to fuel ourselves properly. You are what you eat and do you even know where your food comes from or how it was treated? How about all the chemicals, antibiotics, horomones, and tampering that food has gone through? Make a choice: do you either want to be happy, healthy, and vibrant or do you want to be miserable, busy, and worn-out? Yes, organic non-gmo foods are more expensive but what makes other food so cheap? – there lies the real question. Balance your day so you have the opportunity to be active, everyday. Sitting and laying down should be a treat, not a way of life. Your body is only as old and worn-out as your believe it is. So lets change our mentalities: age is just a number, it doesn’t limit you to your abilities. Strive to be fit for your WHOLE life. We can die at any moment so right now is always the right time to start your journey of wellness. Become aware of the unhealthy scripts in your life and reimagine new habits. Consistently work on creating those new behaviors and soon you will start reaching for that juicy apple instead of those processed, greasy chips. Or what about every time you believe you can’t accomplish something: tell yourself you are strong, courageous and are capable of anything. When your mental state is positive, success in the action is the result. Battle through those obstacles and the sense of achievement is so satisfying. Search for the ambitions in your life that elevate you. Ever felt that high after a workout or eating a clean and raw meal? Or how about the high of finding free-time to do whatever the heck you want? Dig deep into those moments and spark your soul. Never forget your origins and never forget to play – all the time. Appreciate the little things and soon the whole world seems to be a brighter place. Cheers to your life and this amazing opportunity to do whatever the f*** you want!! There are no deadlines, no routines that should stop you from absolute excellence and happiness.

*** Just a quick run-down of the meaning behind this picture. Cheers to the sunflower that I watched grow to this amazing height and bloom so graciously. Cheers to the one and only coffee cup I own because I believe in simplicity. Cheers to coffee because it energizes my soul and puts a smile on my face. Cheers to sticking with calisthenics and getting in the best shape of my life. Cheers to climbing because it has shaped me into the person I was meant to be. Lastly, cheers to this life because I know that I am finally following my dreams and believing in myself!

8/11/2018 – 9:26 am – Silver Creek

Unexpected Euphoria

Unexpected: unforeseen; not expected.
Euphoria: feeling/state of intense excitement and happiness.

The combination of these two words perfectly describe our travels from Duluth to Grand Marais, MN. In one day we were able to pedal 120 miles and I got to say, we kicked butt on every mile. And the mileage didn’t stop there – an extra 30 miles was added on the next day; so 150 miles in two days – what a sweet treat. Never did I imagine that my dream of completing this trip was in my forecast; and it only took one day of planning to make it happen. Sometimes the best plan is to not have a plan at all – unawareness of the outcome is what life is about. Stop living in your future plans; the excitement originates from writing your story as you go. Make every day an opportunity to add some character to your overall narrative. Believe in failure and your wheels will stop spinning. Believe in success and you become limitless. Discover your serenity and what fulfills your days. You never know when your time comes to an end so start living your dreams now. Eliminate the distractions in your life and appreciate every moment you have to be alive. Life is a gift so start acting like it is. From there, find your gift and share it with the world. Nurture compassion and be kind to others. Identify your inner peace and shoot for the stars. Uplift yourself and always uplift others. When your surround yourself with positive like-minded people, you will soon find out you are capable of absolutely anything. Generate your environment so it is a splendid and a motivating one. Be grateful that our bodies allow us to be active and get out there. All the questions you have in your mind can be answered out in nature. Let go of technology and happiness will be found. Rid of the noise in your life and clarity is the result. Take every chance to experience something new and write about the lessons you learn. Take the time to look back and reflect on the journey that brought you here. You are stronger than you think and have a marvelous soul. Keep your elevation rising and you too can accomplish the craziest ideas in your head. Keep pedaling and I promise the destination is closer than you think. Keep faith in your journey and fall in love with your own novel. Achieve euphoria and let it be unforeseen – the conclusion is yours to enjoy.

Honorable mentions:

– Obviously my biking partner, Sydney Karels, for making this trip phenomenal and so grateful to have you in my life so we can accomplish epic shit together.
– Andrew, Customer Service Manager at Cook County Whole Foods Co-op, (and his mother) – thank you both for your wonderful kindness and the world is a better place because of your presence.
– Hunter from Grand Marais that paused his hammock session to photograph us after our long day of biking since Sydney’s phone died and I own a fancy flip phone.
– My roommate Jade for picking me up a mile down the road when I got a flat so Sydney and I could collect ourselves and figure out how the hell to fix a flat (HA) – go us!
– Being able to cross hitch hiking off the list when a local, Beth, picked us up and brought us to back to Grand Marais when we were 8 miles east of town without our bikes! Thumbs up baby!
– Lastly, the hundreds of cars that passed us and moved over for us, especially in areas where the shoulder is narrow. So thankful for everyone’s compassion and attention on the road!

7/20/2018 – 10:53 am – Cedar Coffee Company/Spokengear – Two Harbors, MN

The Vision

Do what defines you. It’s never too late to decide what your purpose is, right here, right now. Today can be the day you choose to live out your reason of existence. It truly is simple: find your happiness and grasp onto it. Manifest your dreams and bring them to life. You can’t blame anyone but yourself for not pushing your limits. Rid of all the excuses that have stopped you from pursuing your wildest of fantasies. Tomorrow you have different ambitions? That’s okay! As long as your energy is expelled toward growth, joy, and your own personal definition of feeling alive. Everyone has different goals. Everyone has their own vision of a well-spent life. So why not become the vision in your mind? Believe in success and believe in failures. Just like an arrow: you will have your drawbacks but learn from them and propel yourself forward. Forward onto the person you were truly meant to be. Always keep your elevation rising for your dedication will push you to your summit; your summit of success. Search for your path and dammit, make it a bizarre one. Let your definition be wild, unique, and as thick as a dictionary. Take every opportunity for a new experience – it just adds character.

My opportunity today is to spread my vision – my definition of a happy life. I want to be inspired and inspire others to get out there and search for their own enlightenment. To contribute to the concept of rewilding and be out in nature – where we are meant to be. To love the life you were given and take care of yourself under all the dimensions of wellness. To learn something new from every moment. To believe in the impossible and make it possible. To let go of any image or judgement that is holding you back from utter brilliance. Positivity is a blessing so lets spread it. But most importantly – for Elevation Rising to become a movement where everyone can be an inspiration. Let my writing aspire you to get out there and elevate yourself.

Thank you folks for reading and believing!

7/4/2018 – 4:21 pm – Duluth MN