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| Summer... |
If you are from Colorado and are part of the outdoors community you know about the Colorado Trail. If you aren't, well you most likely still know about it. It is 486 miles of trail that takes the adventurer from Denver to Durango without the need of roads, vehicles, or for that matter civilization in general. It can be a dangerous trail, but what if life without a little bit of danger?
We live in a dangerous world. A world where being available 24/7 is the norm. We live in a world where facebook, tumblr, blogs, google, wikipedia and twitter have allowed us the comfort of knowing everything that everyone is doing at any given moment, and the notoriety of everyone else knowing everything that we say, think, do, or believe in. To some people this is their definition of comfort. You are never alone. To those extroverts out there, i know who you are, don't worry I am one too, this is perfect. Spending time alone is scary, boring, and ultimately down right terrifying to some people. It used to be for me. Yet something has clicked in the last few months, and more and more I find that I can spend time by myself, and you know what? The world goes on. The earth continues it's rotation, the sun rises and falls behind our Rocky Mountains, and everything is alright. Thank God right?
Banksy, I'm sure you know who he is, created a piece of art recently that is the embodiment of my philosophy for this summer. It is simple. A T.V. with a blank screen. On the screen the words: "In the future everyone will be anonymous for 15 minutes". Simple right? And certainly much different from Andy Warhol's original statement: "In the future everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes".
Alright, you got me. It is the future, to some extent, and not everyone has had their fifteen minutes of fame. It is certainly easy to argue that we have all had our 15 minutes in the spotlight. No doubt about that. "Hello facebook, I just broke up with my girlfriend. Let the comments begin. It's my birthday tomorrow. How many people will write Happy Birthday on my wall. Gee. I hope its over 200." That spotlight sure can be bright. Am I right?
So back to the original subject. This summer. The Colorado Trail, and of course day dreaming. I am going to do a couple solo trips this summer. Yes, I know it is dangerous. No, I don't care that you think it is dangerous. Yes, I will leave plans and an itinery with someone. None of that is the point. The point is that in the future everyone will experience 15 minutes of anonymity. What if I don't want that though. What if I want more than that.
Well, I do want more than that. Last semester I found myself on the verge of a mental breakdown. Seriously, I mean that. I realized there were about a billion contributing factors (yes I know, exaggerating like that is unbecoming of an English Major). Ok, at least it felt like a billion. Part of the problem was my constant interaction with so many people in so many mediums. Part of it was always being worried I was missing out on one thing or another (Let's be honest, there isn't much going on at 3 AM on a Monday morning), and part of it, which possibly gives merit to the whole situation, was some serious stuff going on in my life and the lives of friends around me. So I removed myself, backed off, and found myself returning to the simple things in life.
All of this is to say two things. One. I am going to go backpacking alone this summer. 15 minutes of anonymity will never satisfy my thirst. Two. Consider experiencing some sort of anonymity for yourself. Even if it is for a mere 15 minutes. You won't regret it. In fact you may even find that you are enjoying yourself. Create an adventure out of it. After all. Who can say no to a good adventure right?
Signed,
Anonymous
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