The Warm Heart

The Warm Heart-
So I read recently a story about Lord Horatio Nelson and in this story he was standing on the quarterdeck of his ship during a storm without any kind of coat to shield him from the weather. Now when his midshipman came and tried to give him a slicker he refused saying "my love for queen and country keeps me warm enough". Now when i first read this i kind of chuckled thinking hes just saying that because hes this great war hero and he has an image to maintain but then i read and learned more about the man and what i learned was very interesting. At the end of my readings i came to the conclusion that Lord Nelson wasn't really full of it, i felt that he said this because of a deep burning passion towards his country and a all encompassing love of the sea. Because of these two things he truly felt a warmth when he had the chance to display his passion and love. Now before you lose interest and start thinking what does this have to do with the outdoors just hang in there its getting better i promise.
So this past weekend I had the chance to go camping in the Black Elk Wilderness of South Dakota which reminds one more of Emyn Muil from the Lord of the Rings than of a South Dakota landscape but this is where i ended up. Now going into this trip i knew 3 things: 1. it was going to be raining when i got there 2. that it was going to get very cold in the night and 3. that when temps reach a certain degree rain turns to snow. So needless to say i was a little hesitant to venture out but was determined to test my gear and maybe myself as well. So after a very long and cold night learning that hammocks might not be the best shelter in the cold i wake up just as it starts getting light out. Now in that moment as i peer outside my brain registers 2 things 1. that there's about an inch of beautiful snow and 2. that i'm no longer cold. Now this lasted for only a brief moment but in that moment i realized what Lord Nelson was speaking of. See very few things in my life have i been more passionate about than i have for the outdoors and its wandering. I have loved a ridge line framed by a sunset for just simply being there and sharing that beautiful view with me more than a good many people who have stepped in and out of my life. In the end it was this passion and love that decided to show up and warm my heart on that cold morning, reminding me that nothing beats doing what you love!
So I guess the point of this little snippet is to encourage you to seek out the "ridge line"  that warms your heart, those vivacious excursions  that prick your soul and make you feel more human and alive than any amount of likes on your social media page. Seek out the battle that each and every human wants and desires deep down, the battle that will tell one his or her true worth. The fight where the only challenger is the wild and the ref is God and His creation. Seek out the answers that can only be discovered in a valley with a river running through it or on by seeing whats on the other side of that peak. The original outdoors man said it best in Matthew 7:7 "Seek and ye shall find...". Get out there, warm your heart and seek the wild.
thanks for reading
Luke
"There's no better companion than the trail. It doesn't care what your reasons for visiting are. It gladly waits and gives generously to those who seek it. It can serve as confidant, counselor and ferocious teacher all at the same time. The trail overflows with discovery, breakthroughs and epiphanies not the least of which is the simple feeling of freedom"