Early April Fun

Julie spent her weekend down south doing training for her upcoming triathlon. Swam, biked and ran most of the course and had a great time! During the rest of the time, she got to relax with her teammates, talk about the race, and eat food. They were also treated to a presentation from several of the honorees (those with leukemia or lymphoma who the Team in Training program supports). One of our good friends, Todd, recently was diagnosed. He is lucky and has a form of the disease that is treatable by medication. He's decided to train and race with Team in Training group, too! He spoke to the group and Julie said he was very inspiring. Todd's awesome -- he has taken his condition and brought so much joy to people about it. When he was first diagnosed in the hospital, we visited several times and he was so full of life! Now, it seems that he really wrings the life out of every day. Even how he hugs you is inspiring!

I just got back from Joshua Tree, returning a couple of days early so I could take the EMT test for the SF Fire Department. I didn't have much preparation time since I was hiking and climbing in J-Tree, but hopefully passed.

J-Tree was wonderful, with lots of crazy experiences. During our last day of hiking, a couple of students didn't show up when expected after a solo hike in the desert. It was a pretty controlled area (25 sq mi of open desert), but they were out for a couple of hours already. We gathered, planned a search and used all of the students to go out and look for our missing hikers. One emerged on his own on a road a few miles away. He was shaken up but healthy. One of our search groups located the other hiker about an hour later. She was fine, too. Both were scared and a little dried out, but otherwise healthy.

I was very impressed by the students. As the teacher, the other guide and I managed the search and plan, the students came together to provide exactly what was needed. They acted like a selfless team, with a strong motivation, and excellent strength. It was very rewarding to be a part of it. The happy ending made it all the better. And the students seemed to learn quite a bit from the experience -- what more can you ask?