Living the Dream

Last night, I had a great opportunity to be a guest speaker on BACKPACKER magazine's Gear & Go Tour.  The tour is designed to give locals advice about gear to use for trips in their area and then give them local trail ideas and beta so they can get out their and do the hikes.  Me giving advice... wow... that's a scary thought.  I met a lot of awesome people who are at different stages of their hiking and backpacking lives.  Some were planning their first outing while others had been backpacking longer than I had even been breathing.   

I also met Justin and Patrice La Vigne.  They are the ambassadors for BACKPACKER traveling around the country in a decked out Sprinter van, hiking trails and talking about the gear they used and the experiences they had.  Man that's gotta be a cool job.  Before Justin and Patrice started this tour they ran a backpacker hostel on the Appalachian Trail.  Yeah... also up there on the really cool jobs list in my book.  While talking to them I mentioned

"You all are living the dream" and Patrice repied, "We wake up and pinch ourselves everyday to make sure this is real".  

They are living the dream and they didn't hesitate to make a change in their lives when an opportunity presents itself.  I think we all need to seize on these opportunities, no matter how big or small they might seem.  Talking to another friend of mine yesterday, he was at a crossroads.  Does he keep working at a factory making a steady income punching a clock or does he start writing and take an opportunity as radio DJ to pursue his passion?  

My response was telling him he will never look back and say "man I wish I had kept that job at the factory".  Most likely he'll think "whoa what an epic journey my life is taking".  

We all need to live our dreams and take advantage of doors that may be opening in our lives.  If the doors aren't opening for your passion.  Pull out the crowbar and start prying it open!