Re: [Paddlewise] Queen Charlottes Return

On Sunday, August 25, 2002, at 10:09:30 AM PST, Kirby Stevens wrote:

> When we were in the islands we were fortunate enough to get a stint
> of sunny weather that lasted 9 days. On the other hand we managed to
> get 7 days of miserable weather. We were fortunate to observe the
> best and the worst of nature.

Eek...I feel one of my weather rants coming on...

I propose that we eliminate the terms "bad", "miserable", etc. from
our weather description vocabulary, and instead look at how our own
wishes and expectations might cause us to overlook the joys and
wonders that each different weather scenario offers us.

When you were forced off the water by the storm, did you spend those
days trying to stay warm and dry in your tent, thinking about how
"miserable" the weather outside was? Or did you dress for the weather
and enjoy some exploration of the island...or stand at the water's
edge to watch and feel the storm doing it's wondrous work to shape the
islands? Did you revel in the refreshing rain in your face and the
wind that takes your breath away? Did you marvel at the beautiful
storm waves as they crashed against the rocks and tossed trees around
like toothpicks? Were you lucky enough to observe the wind sculpting
those coastal trees into lovely natural "bonsai" shapes?

If a storm causes us to miss a planned route or destination, it does
not mean that we cannot enjoy the alternative wonders that "being
there" (where ever "there" is) can offer. While I might launch with
some idea of an A to B route plan, it is much more important to me to
enjoy where ever I am at any given moment. If I don't happen to reach
"B" on a particular trip, it only means that some other wonder along
the way took my attention and my time. This is not an unfortunate
failure to reach some goal...just a spontaneous change in plans.
Destination "B" can wait until the next trip.

When the weather doesn't always cooperate with our plans for a holiday
filled with nothing but "sunny warm days with moderate winds", it is
not a matter of the weather being "bad" or "miserable". It is instead
our own unrealistic and narrow "postcard expectations" of what
constitutes "good" that causes us misery. We cannot blame the
weather...for it is only our own narrow definition of "good", or
"beautiful" that is capable of calibrating our own personal "beautiful
to miserable continuum".

I happen to love all sorts of weather, and while I love warm sunny
weather as much as the next person, I would find it *dreadfully
boring* to have only that...especially on a nice long paddling trip! I
love fog, mist, rain, wind, and snow just as much as I love sun and
warmth! Each has its immediate wonders while experiencing it, and each
has its long term influence on the beauty of a particular region. For
instance...the Queen Charlottes wouldn't be nearly so spectacular if
it weren't for their natural abundance of so called "miserable"
weather.

We can't control the weather, so we have a choice... We can enjoy it
in all it's wondrous variety, or we can decide that some forms of
weather will always make us "miserable".  I prefer to enjoy.

Sorry for ranting, but it *really* annoys me when I feel that a good
storm is being badmouthed.  :-)

Melissa
-- 
PGP public keys:
mailto:pgp_keys_at_gmx.co.uk?subject=0x46C29887&Body=Please%20send%20keys

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