I just spent a weekend with 400 friends and now I am packing to skijor in the Alaska wilderness and commune with silence for a few weeks.  I get energy from both.

At the Martha Beck Life Coach Summit I was infused with the energy from 400 magical people (life coaches) who all believe in my best and highest self and automatically greeted me as if I was perfect as I am.  Pretty heady stuff.

I get the same powerful infusion in the wild: the knowledge that I belong.

My sled is almost packed for the 2 weeks planned, it weighs 100 pounds.  I am going to try to get it down to 90 before I leave this morning.  (Good luck with that, Wendy).  My huskies are excitedly pacing and so am I.  I like to be in nature by myself in order to connect and enjoy the  flow of skiing with dogs.  I have a treat on this trip; 2 amazing friends will travel with me for 10 days and I will take some extra days on my own.  We will have long stretches where we will not see each other on the trail, and few words are needed.  In the evenings we will recount the day, laugh, look at maps and collapse into our tents.

People ask, “Don’t you get scared or lonely?”

Scared, yes, when I have to cross overflow, or it gets 55 degrees below zero, but that is also the adrenaline that feeds my soul and places me squarely in the moment, alive.

But lonely?  Nope.  You see, I have a lot of company; this teeming earth and all of you on it.

I immerse in the rhythm of the planet. I stay aware of my surroundings and groove on the gorgeousness of skiing every day with dogs across the land.  I look for wildlife, watch the dogs for clues to what they smell or sense and how they are feeling.  I listen to the LOUD silence.  Have you heard it?  It is the buzz of the earth and all of us on it and you can hear it in remote places.   I feel the vibrations of life everywhere.  I bring you with me, and my ancestors too.  Then there are the plants.   The noble spruce and the bending birch are friends witnessing my progress across the white  landscape, breathing with me.  They can sing you know, you can listen here to the Amazing Phenomenon Of Singing Plants .  I see this planet and all of us are a lot more exquisite than we are willing to admit.  Have you ever stepped into the woods or out onto your lawn and felt the deeper calm, the sigh that emanates?

Among many inspiring words at the Summit, Martha Beck said,  “Alone = All One”

We are never really alone, we are part of the great whole, and it is tangible for me whether I am in a crowd of people or a crowd of snow.  I know you can tap into this.

If you feel lonely right now, try  going outside or open a window or touch a plant.  Breathe the plants, take a walk and just feel your soles on the ground.  Listen for the silence between noise.  I am sending you a warm smile, can you feel it?

You do not have to camp in the snow on the edge of civilization to create your own connection, you can create adventure in your backyard.  Want ideas?  Health Educator and Life Coach extraordinaire, Erica Haray-Butcher, created a wonderful blog radio, listen to our interview and many others here.

We can never really step away from the world, the world is us.

I have a flight over the Alaska Range with Paul and I must go now.  I wanted to let you know you are not alone.  Lets talk when I return!

Much love,  Wendy