A Few Small Steps

Hello All!
Thank you for joining me during this summer expedition on the Appalachian Trail. As many of you know, my best friend, Pam, has a son, Ethan, who was diagnosed with PBD or Perioxisomal Biogenisis Disorder. This disorder affects very few children but the impact is severe, up to the point of death. For every newborn diagnosed with PBD only 1 out of 2 will survive their first year. Recently a family was discovered with sons in their 30's. This a huge revelation and source of hope to any family who has faced this diagnosis and told they are alone. This walk is dedicated to Ethan and every PBD family. The truth is no one is alone. It is a truth hard to accept, yet each one of us need it regardless of the disease, addiction, problem, or situation that makes us feel no one and nothing can help. We are only as isolated as we allow ourselves to be.

There are selfish reasons for this walk as well. Through this trip I hope to refresh myself. At the end of every school year, I walk away exhausted and extinguished, in need of time alone and a place to find freedom. Hopefully I will stumble upon some of that this summer. Also, this trip is meant to jump start a truly active lifestyle, a change that seemed too demanding to consistently keep over the last year amid stacks of papers, lines of students, and towers of school books. Overall there is a vast amount of life I want to live, this is the first small step toward it. Hiking seemed appropriate because after all, it means that I simply put one foot in front of the other.

I hope you continue with me on this journey. Over the next few weeks, I will be polishing this blog, continuing to buy and pack my gear, and walking all over Decatur.
God Bless,
Steph