be careful what you ask for.

So I packed up my bags and my camera and my dog this weekend, ready to run to something different, something exciting and something that is not this town.

So as I'm driving to Fort Collins, I see a side highway towards the mountains and I decide to adventure. I drive about 30 miles onto this winding road, taking me past ra

nch houses and cattle guards. I find a place that makes my heart soar because it is beautiful and full of colors. I grab my camera, take off my winter, 800 fill down jacket, for the sake of making the picture look like it isn't 35 degrees out, and shut the car door.

30 minutes later, I am considering punching through the window

because I locked myself out of the car.

Not going to lie, I try to lightly punch the window with my fist, but only do it half-ass because I'm freaking out. Now stranded with only my camera and my puppy inside the car...I take a look at myself in the window. I am completely, and utterly out of control of the situation. My anxiousness level is bouncing off of the clouds and I try to cry and realize i can't even do that right now. Trying to think rationally of a solution (other than breaking my hand trying to get through the window). So the first car that drives by, I flag down and ask to use h

is cell phone. He says the only cell phone reception is 15 miles up the road. So, trying to not look terrified and vulnerable, I climb into this man's truck, knowing that it is incredibly dangerous, but my only choice. Creeps drive these roads, just now realizing how real this possibility can be. I call my parents who were not so thrilled, as they have been nagging me to make a spare set of keys for months now...

oops.

So for the next 5 hours, I sit in Gordon's house in a town in Colorado that I didn't know existed while my parents ran my spare "clicker" up to his son who lived in Boulder, who ran it up to us.

and here is the twisty part of the tale

I don't know how many people read this and know that I want to be an outdoor therapist. My whole entire job is going to be based on listening to people who I have never met. For these 5

hours, I learned a lot about this man. I believe 1 or 2 posts ago I said, no one is a stranger, it is your choice in labeling them so. I listened to parts of his life, not as a stranger, but as another human being, another person with a soul, another person that has been hurt in their life too, and someone that wanted to know these things about the person that rescued me. He definitely didn't have anything to gain by picking me up. He had the choice to just drive past, but, he didn't. I know I was meant to meet this guy, and I know I was meant to listen to him and be some part of his life. And if he hadn't showed up, I would have been...to put it lightly...screwed.

So be careful what you ask for, I asked for an adventure and got more than I had planned for. My uncle Todd used to always say:

"it's not an adventure until something goes wrong"

I think I just put that into practice.

So by the time I clicked my car open and gave my dog some much needed water, we were finally pulling into Fort Collins. The rest of the weekend was good. Not very much picture taking, but enough laughter to keep a grin on my face the entire time.

So here are semi decent, pictures from this weekend:

we were floating, we were walking on air.

to leave it behind as we walk on

running

two wings, two souls

So I don't know if it was me that locked myself out of my car, or if my dog stepped on the keys sitting on the front seat, but it happened that I somehow was not able to get in.

My advice for this post: listen as a soul, not a stranger.