A freshwater wave crashed over the side of our raft, I lift my paddle in the air and give a loud yell… Wooohooo! My voice echoes in the Lehigh River gorge, and I encourage everyone to paddle faster, bringing us ever closer to the next set of rapids up ahead. This was my idea of absolute fun-spending a day out of doors, on the river, learning how to body surf, doing some cliff-jumping, and naming the rapids.

I was practically born in the outdoors, to two outdoor gurus who didn’t let having a little girl inhibit their adventures. I was on my first ski slope the winter before my second birthday, my first white water raft when I was two and half years old, my first rock wall (a special harness had to be made to fit me) when I was four, my first ropes course when I was eleven, and my first kayak when I was seventeen… ok, so the last one wasn’t as impressive, but needless to say, my life has centered around the outdoors.

I grew up on a thirty-two acre farm with goats, chickens, pigs, a horse, two dogs, and two cats. As a kid, every free moment that wasn’t spent with schoolwork was spent outside, whether it be playing an imaginary pioneers game, riding my horse, playing on my swing set, or playing sardines or capture the flag with my friends. In the winter, these games moved to the slopes as I skied on a ski team for several years, grew tired of skiing, and then learned how to snowboard. As I’ve grown older and had to spend more time indoors, those few moments spent outside are cherished and treasured… I have a hard time getting through a day without at least a couple moments spent outside.

As a college student, I spend a lot of my time in classrooms, labs, lectures and workshops, at times without a moment to spare. I feel like my sanity resides in the out of doors, and after a second semester English class in which we were required to read Emerson’s “Nature”, I felt as though Emerson confirmed that thought. Emerson wrote on how necessary it was for us as humans to spend time outside, that it would rejuvenate us, revitalize us, and most importantly-help us to remember and connect to our roots. I live by that today, and as soon as I get to a point in my life where I’m struggling, or feel as though I’m stuck in a rut, I immediately go to nature to help me center. There’s something completely settling about nature, and I yearn for that during moments of indecision or insecurity. I’m here to share my love of the outdoors with everyone, and to also share the information that I’ve gleaned from spending a lifetime loving nature. My hope is that other people can share in the wonderment that I’ve come to revel in from a life spent outside.