The Torah of Hiking the Appalachian Trail
- Leann Shamash
- 14 minutes ago
- 5 min read
#breisheet #parshatbreisheet #seferbreisheet #appalachiantrail #hiking #thejoyofhiking #learning #chevruta #torahlearning #journeys #hiking #communities #limudtorah
Happy Parashat Breisheet and welcome to a New Year and another step on the path of Limud Torah (Learning Torah)
This is a blog post about journeys and those who journey the hard way, by foot. I hope that you will read into it the parallels of the journey of Torah learning, which I hope appear in each paragraph and during each leg of the journey.
Please note that I switch from he to she and they in the post...all hikers.
There is so much to read and understand about this first parasha of the year, but I will begin the year with an appeal to all of you who read this, to begin or continue your journey. I am still sad to say farewell to Moshe Rabeinu and here we are, back in The Garden again. We begin the journey again, and it never gets old.
For two years now I have signed off with the words, "May we hear good news soon." Indeed, we have been graced by good news; news that is almost miraculous. With gratitude to the all important players who made the release of the hostages possible. To the hostages, Welcome Home and back to a second life that lies ahead of you.
May good news lead to more good news. HaShem Yitbarach.
Shabbat Shalom and thank you.
Leann
The Torah of Hiking the Appalachian Trail
The Appalachian Trail is long. (For this post length doesn't really matter, but if you wondered, it is almost 2,200 miles long, stretching from Georgia to Maine.) Of the many hikers in the world only a select few choose to hike the entire Appalachian Trail . A small percentage of those finish while many others do not. Some folks hike for a short period each year and some make the herculean effort to hike the entire path at one time. Each is rewarded in their own way.
Beginning the hike is easy, but humbling. New boots and socks, walking sticks and new equipment is ready to go. The hiker's pack is heavy as his first steps are filled with euphoria; a vague understanding that there is a destination to reach, that much awaits him on his journey. On the other hand, a hiker does not know what lays ahead, but still she hikes, for a hike is just a series of steps, one following the next and then another.
The trail curves and circles, climbs and descends. The hiker will encounter rocky, slippery and even dangerous passages, but she keeps walking although by now she understands clearly that blisters exist, mosquitos bite and backpacks cause backaches.Some days on the trail are beautiful and on other days the rain falls upon the hiker in buckets and creates a certain soggy misery.
As the trail reveals itself, the hiker notes the beauty of small, unnoticed objects. It might be a tiny fern or a smooth stone, a scampering chipmunk or a glimpse of the sky through the trees and the hiker hopes that this walk will never become mundane; with the gradual understanding that the hike is wondrous; maybe even holy.
One thing the hiker learns is that special people are called to hike this path. Whether it is by evening campfires or hiking together that the hiker gradually, and with humility, learns from these fellow hikers. These partners on the path, share and become teachers of skills along with sharing stories of their lives, for it is the stories that are remembered.
There are stretches of time when the hiker treks alone and can immerse himself completely in the trail which yield moments of illumination as the trail discloses its secrets.
There are certainly days where all goes well and the hiker cannot imagine leaving the trail behind, but at other times the hiker thinks that it would be so much easier, as the trail meets the paved road, to just walk away and leave the hike behind. The temptation to place her head on a soft pillow, to be covered with warm blankets, dressed in clean clothing and eating ample and varied food. Life is so much easier without the challenges of the trail, but for those who stay the reward is great.
I suspect that there are as many reasons to attempt the hike as there are hikers. Do the hikers search for themselves in the forests? Do they see deep inside of themselves as they crawl through mud and forge raging streams? Do they draw strength from their hike? Do they find their truth on the trail?
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The trail is in front of you. It begins now, or maybe it begins next week or next month It is the hiker's decision and she won't know the successes unless she puts on her boots and begins the hike. It is the blisters and the failures, the peaks and the valleys and the close reading of the trail that leads to the knowledge of the path. It is about the meetings, the interactions nature and humans. It is about the challenges and the stamina that lead to experiences which will change the hiker forever.
So, if it is your time to begin the trek, bring along patience, hope and perseverance. Bring your truth, and remember to bring along an open heart and an open mind, for you will learn much from this trek through the mountains, and from those you meet along the way.
It’s time to go.
May your trek be sound and may it bring you fulfillment, and a mountain of experiences.
בֶּן הֵא הֵא אוֹמֵר, לְפוּם צַעֲרָא אַגְרָא:
Ben He He said: According to the labor is the reward.
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Addendum
This post is not based on my own hiking of the Appalachan Trail but is based on a book that I read a few years ago called Wild by Cheryl Strayed (She hiked the but the Pacific Crest Trail) and Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods. Anything that I have written here is from memories of these books and it is the vivid storytelling of both of these authors that allows me to place myself briefly in the boots of hikers.
Also, on a few occasions over the past years we hiked in the White Mountains in New Hampshire from hut to hut and had the good fortune to meet up with Appalachian Trail hikers who had permission to sleep on the floor of The Huts in exchange for help with hut maintenance after dinner. On those evenings and early mornings I could see the will power needed to hike day after day, week after week through woods, mud and glacial deposits.
In addition, a particularly vivid memory is when visiting Mt. Greylock a few years ago, we sat for a few moments with a young woman who had been hiking the Appalachian Trail for months. She had recently met up with another hiker, who was doing the AT in segments. Watching them as they sat in the rain and chatted about their hikes while thoroughly enjoying their snacks is a memory that I will always treasure.
Other Post in Words Have Wings on Parshat B'reisheet
In the Image of God
Ruach Elokim
https://www.wordshavewings.net/post/the-open-table. The Open Table
Link to A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson
Link to Wild by Cheryl Strayed
Link to other books on hiking The Appalachian Trail
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