I tried a new mantra today as I walked since my ankles felt so good. When I stepped down I would say "thank you" in my head. The beat of my stepping aligned with the two words perfectly. I called them my "thank you steps." Sometimes the thanks was for my legs or Will, the beautiful scenery, or the bright colorful flowers. It became my walking meditation and helped quite a bit!

We saw three other couples on the break. One was definitely having a tense moment. Hiking with your partner can be hard at times. Being alone with someone else for 24 hours a day is not something most people are used to. I've been surprised by how often we hike together and don't talk at all. That's actually more common than having a conversation while walking.

We found a great campsite by a little creek for the night. We were talking about trail names and Snowshoe said I should be something fun like "Sunshine" or "BeBop." He suggested Sunshine because He said I "brighten everything up." I told him that I really do go by "Stacy Raye of Sunshine" in real life. He was amazed at the coincidence , it was very nice.

“I think perfectionism is based on the obsessive belief that if you run carefully enough, hitting each stepping-stone just right, you won't have to die. The truth is that you will die anyway and that a lot of people who aren't even looking at their feet are going to do a whole lot better than you, and have a lot more fun while they're doing it.”

- Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird