October Updates and The Importance of Sharing a Cup of Sugar

Hello Everyone!

Well, this was a summer. Where to even start with all the differences, changes and life during a time of such impact.

I’ve had a hard time finding the balance to write and share things that are going well in the mix of so much that is not going well for so many people. This has been a heavy year for so many people.

One of the only ways I know to get up every day is to work hard and put forth the energy into the type of world I want to live. I love working in parks because the outdoors can be such a place of refuge for all types of people regardless of gender, gender identity, race, color or religious affiliation. It prides me to work for an organization that works so hard to create that opportunity for all.

With that, I do have some good things to share with you.

I had another article published by Northern Woodlands. It might be no surprise it was inspired by our time at Townshend State Park watching dragonflies. Where do they go in winter? Turns out this answer was hard to come by and you can find out here:
Dragonflies Take to the Skies

Then we had a video go viral (yeah!) but not get proper attribution (boo). We took a short video of a maned wolf in Brazil. It has gotten viewed well over 3 million on times on Twitter and our handle was not included. On our youtube channel (are you a subscriber?) it’s currently over 64K views.

I mean the maned wolf is a super cool animal!

It made headlines across a handful of Brazil newspapers. So all that was nice and that was about all that came of that. I took the video on our refurbished phone similar to these renewed phones (we never buy new phones, save that money with a used/refurbished phone), but I still sing the praises so much of this pocket sized, drop proof, waterproof, scratch proof Panasonic camera like these. The price point is so good and quality excellent. I always recommend this camera in case you are looking…you know for that awesome moment that comes outta no where and you want to document it.

I know some of you have seen on our Instagram, facebook and Twitter feeds that we have been loving working this fall in the parks. This picture shows the beach at our park. Omg!

This gold autumn view was taken from standing on the beach. 

Winter plans are still shaking out. With all the weirdness and unknowns about the current global situation, we are not planning any international travel. It’s been interesting to see pictures of our friends from all over the world wearing masks, showing themselves, their hope and their support to try and figure out how to move on from this from Australia, all over Europe, Brazil, our dear friends in El Salvador and just all over. I have thought so much about the amazing pockets of places we have been so fortunate to have found, and, how much they rely on tourism. Just the same I am still thinking of all our friends who run businesses and restaurants here. Support each other.

2020 seems to be the year that just will not let up. Well neither will I and I hope none of you will either. Plant gardens. Make cookies. Go to sleep earlier. Reach out to people.

Speaking of not letting up, if you feel compelled by this story and want to try and help someone get up, our cousin Drew was involved in a near fatal motor cycle accident. He has been managing a Harley Davison motorcyle store, quit to take a dream ride across country as he was then planning to start his own business when his bike crashed in New Mexico. He has been slated a 5% chance of walking again. He is already crushing the recovery and currently trying to get stable enough to be transported to a place in Colorado that has the highest success rate of spinal rehabilitation. After much apprehension, (his long time girlfriend set this up) here is his  Go Fund Me page. Even if you want to leave a comment, so much of a positive recovery and healing is mental. You don’t have to know someone personally or send money – just the cheering on and encouragement from fellow humans can do a wonder of good.

I think there is a lot of group think going on, from every angle, that we are so sure we know what we think, or want to think, or think that we know what we think (if that makes any sense?).

It’s been a brutal and unfair year. And we have been brutal and unfair to each other.

One of the byproducts of travel is it is hard to not have an increased level of empathy. Tables turn quickly when you are on the road. One might look up and realize all of a sudden, our skin color is the minority. Or all of a sudden, we realize how vulnerable it feels to not be able to speak a language well and HOW HARD it is to learn another language and put it to use.

Our bubbles have to expand when we travel. Our world becomes bigger and yet a result is often our world becomes smaller too. Because when we are one the road, we observe and live among other people, all trying to get by and mostly, at the end of the day, go home and have dinner with their families. We see more a reflection of ourselves than unrelatable people.

The other day I reached out to someone we recently became neighbors with when we moved to this park. I wrote them and said, here is our phone number and stop by in case you ever need to borrow a cup of sugar. I laughed a little at this saying because it seemed like a different life where this saying was applicable. And then I was saddened because in my childhood the mentality behind this saying was the way I grew up thinking about the world.

There’s a lot going on and there’s a lot still to come in the near future of the world. We have the power of change. And the power of change doesn’t always mean changing everyone else. The biggest power of change is, always, our own attitude. (Read: Man’s Search for Meaning.) When I set aside all the other feelings about the state of the world, at the end of the day, I want to be someone who will share a cup of sugar with anyone.

If you need to go climb a mountain in Nepal, Africa, Brazil, across town or any other place on earth to figure that out, I hope you do. Or, simply, be a person who will share a cup of sugar with anyone, like right now.

Until next time,
Tiff & Chris