After we shared our “best and worst” at dinner last week, I started a conversation with my kids (as I have done many times before now) about my upcoming surgery to donate my kidney.  I was reminding them both that they can always ask me questions, whatever they want to know or are curious about, at any time.  While my ten-year old son had some pretty interesting and curious questions about the kidney, the body, and healing, my nine-year old daughter had only one question for me that night. 

“I only have one question” she said.  “Can you die?”

…Most of all, I believe in showing others what is possible in this life.  My hope is that by sharing my journey and my story around kidney donation that I not only help educate others about organ donation, but that I am able to positively impact others, help them to think bigger, and help them to see that in their life, ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE. 

“As we arrive, I notice a long table inside the tent so that we can all sit together. The decor is simple and absolutely beautiful with traditional Peruvian scarves laid out on top of green and white tablecloths. There are vases filled with local fresh flowers and our napkins are folded in a fancy star shape and placed perfectly atop our plates. There are actual wine glasses and bottles of Peruvian white wine too! Immediately I find myself thinking that I can’t wait to recreate this scene in my own way back home in New Hampshire with my friends and family. As I look around the table capturing this breathtaking beautiful and equally as bittersweet moment, everyone smiling and feeling good, it hits me. We are nearing the end of our time here in Peru.”

“As I reach the “Stairs of Death”, I know I am near the summit. My body and mind shift gears and push into overdrive and my adrenaline flows full force. The stone steps became so narrow that at times my feet are placed sideways to fit and they are so steep that I find myself climbing with both my hands and feet, like I am climbing a type of stone ladder built into the side of this ancient mountain. These stairs are like some part of an obstacle course I never imagined I would find myself on. I am blinders on and laser focused with a sole goal of getting to the top.”

“We sit at the Sun Gate for I have no idea how long. I am far off in my own world letting this whole experience imprint on me so that I never forget it as long as I live. I think about the world, history, ancient civilizations, the people that were here before me and will come after me, and all the things that had to occur in this world for me to be sitting where I am sitting right here and now.  I think about this epic adventure, this group I joined on a whim, and how grateful I am to be a part of it all. I think about how nothing happens by coincidence, there are no accidents, and everything is meant to be as it is. I think about connection, culture, the Universe, and most importantly, I think about my family back at home, Jack, Anna, and Paul. I think about my parents and my brothers and my sister. I think about my friends, family, and loved ones. I think about those that have passed on and I think about how close I am sure my entire spiritual team has been to me along this entire journey that is Peru.”

“During the trek I had shared with some of the team that I was there for a lot of things, but most notably to keep pushing my edges, to keep getting extremely uncomfortable, to keep doing hard things. I only had one rule. Don’t die. Today was the closest I had felt thus far to a sharp edge, to true discomfort, to a really hard thing. Hard thing is actually an understatement. It was hot as hell, everything burned, my lungs and legs were on fire, there was no where to escape to and the only way out was up. My mind though…my mind was tough as nails, fully dialed in, and never going to quit.”

“The pace today is definitely slower and feels more relaxed than the norm. As we continue on, I find myself becoming more mindful of the plants, the flowers, the rocks, all of the edges around me on the trail. I worry less and less about moving quickly and focus more and more on the small details of the here and now, the flowing river to my left, the giant swaying Eucalyptus trees off in the distance, the near 84 heart rocks I have seen before even arriving to lunch. It is hot and dry and the trail is covered in dirt that kicks up with every single step each one of us takes. I am covered in thick, caked on layers of dirt, sweat, sunblock, and deet, all of it a type of war paint from this journey. I wear it proudly while at the same time thinking I may need to go through a car wash to remove it all in the end.”

“Trekking is no different than any other sport that requires your full physical and mental commitment for hours at a time. When you’re in the midst of it, there is no room for deviation. You are completely locked in. Your full focus is on moving, progressing, and pushing with every fiber of your being. It can be glorious one moment and completely uncomfortable the next. You find a way, as Dori says, to “just keep swimming”. But the moment you see that finish line, the moment you taste the end is in sight, the moment you know you have made it, that is the moment you allow yourself to begin to loosen the reigns and let go.”

After exiting the sacred forest area, we began quickly and rapidly ascending via uphill switchbacks on repeat.  It was hot and humid. I was covered in sweat. My lungs felt the initial weight, the tightening and burning, as we began climbing and so did my body but, as I’ve come to learn, that weight, that tight burning sensation eventually gives way to a sense of ease and a steady pace for both the breath and the body. I manage to keep stepping forward and up and to keep pace with the group. Every time we take a brief break and then begin again, so does the burn, only to eventually fade away. This becomes a theme for me. Burn, push, ease, break. Repeat.

Another theme for today that would prove to follow me along this entire journey was this…there is massive mental power in reminding ourselves that we just need to take one step at a time.  

I could feel my legs wanting to GO! I was itching to break out of being a tourist in the city and beyond ready to start trekking the trails of Peru and get away from it all. 

Today, I would get my wish as our seven day Hidden Valleys Salkantay trek finally begins!

As the plane touches down in Cusco, I take in the sights of a city below me that I am seeing for the first time, the discomfort, the unknown of it all hits me face first.  I’ll be doing some hard things for sure on this adventure because if you’re not growing, you’re dying.  I am all in on growth. 

I wake to a voice on the overhead announcing first “service has ended” followed by “flight attendants, please prepare the cabin for landing”.  I have arrived…almost. 

I am off to a continent I have never visited, to a country I have never stepped foot in,  to towns I can’t even imagine in my mind, and I am feeling excited.  I am feeling curious.  I am feeling ready.   Today is day one of thirteen.

If you’ve been Googling “successful morning routines”, you’ve probably found that you need to wake up at some unGodly hour, complete 12 activities before the sun rises, and wound up feeling defeated before you event start. If you are looking to build a realistic and successful morning routine, or revamp yours because it just isn’t working, check this article out. I share six tips to help you get on your way!

Have you ever tried to form a new habit only to throw your hands up in defeat? You’re not alone. Habit stacking makes it easier to change behaviors and form new, sustainable habits. Read on for 7 tips to help you succeed.

Our minds wander on average 47% of the time and thanks to one study, we know that a wandering mind is an unhappy mind. Read on to learn how can to pull your mind back and regain presence.

If you find that your mind is wandering and that you are often distracted and rarely present, you’re not alone.  In fact, during the pandemic, Google saw a 300% increase in this search question:  How do I get my brain to work?

Read on for 5 quick tips to help you improve your focus.

“…I believe that we all simply want to feel seen and feel heard. We want to know that someone is willing to take the time to listen. We want to know that someone cares…”

One day you will look back at this time in your life with gratitude and a smile and know… I DID THIS. I have built something more beautiful than I could have imagined and I have grown beyond my wildest dreams.

On February 21, 2021, I summited Mount Kilimanjaro with our team. It literally took me thousands of extremely small steps just to get to that summit over six days and thousands more to descend back down over the next two. Every single step was worth it. The top of that mountain was the closest to Heaven I have ever felt.