Why am I hiking the Grand Canyon?

"If adventure has a final and all-embracing motive, it is surely this: we go out because it is our nature to go out, to climb mountains, and to paddle rivers, to fly to the planets and plunge into the depths of the oceans... When man ceases to do these things, he is no longer man."
-- Wilfrid Noyce

In six months, I will be part of a group of people representing the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team in Training program where we will travel to the Grand Canyon to hike it.

I have tried to hike the Grand Canyon on my own but due to different circumstances, I was unable to. Going with the Team in Training program, I hope to improve my self: physically, mentally, and communally.

The physical challenge is probably the most obvious. I'll be going down a great, big hole for 12-13 miles (distance will depend on my training). This is hiking in the desert dealing with heat and regulating water intake. I'm use to hiking mountains so everything I've conditioned myself to do might not apply going down into a canyon.

The mental challenge is, well, dealing with the physical challenges (mind over matter). I'll need to learn how to focus on the goal in order to succeed. This is something I'm actually not great at. One of the reasons why I like geocaching because it breaks up the monotonous involve with hiking. There won't be any geocaching to do that this time (although, I will make an effort to get a cache or two done while I'm out there. We'll see).

One would think that there isn't a communal challenge. I'm hiking for a good cause in the fight against cancer. Who can argue with that? But in the past couple of days, I've realized I need to really look at who I am as a member of this society and why I'm doing this. Fund-raising is going to be a great challenge to me because I need to be out there to present my cause and say why people should support me. Thankfully, I am not alone in this. I hope to meet and befriend new people along the way as we strive for the same goals.

And maybe, as I overcome and succeed in these challenges, I will become a better person for it.