It All Started with a Snowstorm

Photo credit: Egor Myznik  of Unsplash.com

It All Started with a Snowstorm

It’s been 26 years since I traveled to Nepal and subsequently wrote my book “Tenacity” about the adventure. I thought it would be fun to relive some of the stories about my experiences on that trip over the next few blog posts, I hope you enjoy them and see how my TRIP system came about.

Yup, it all started with a snowstorm. Sandee, a good friend of mine, was to drive me to the airport for an 11 pm flight, but as the afternoon progressed so did a typical November Colorado blizzard. We left with plenty of time, but with traffic and icy conditions it wasn’t long before we were behind. I got to the United ticket counter, checked my luggage, and was informed that my flight was about to leave and I’d better hurry, plus she couldn’t guarantee that my luggage would be on the same flight. I ran like an old O. J. Simpson commercial through the airport and got to the plane just as they were closing the doors. I knew then that my trip to Nepal was going to be an adventure with many twists and turns.

Life is like that isn’t it?  We often start a project or job that is well planned and ready to go when those pesky twists and turns pop up and make things interesting. I checked in Los Angeles for my bags, and they weren’t there, and the clerk told me that they had been checked through to Bangkok.

It was during this trip that I developed the basis for my TRIP system. I learned that I needed to be tenacious and resilient from the start for a successful outcome. I wasn’t aware that I was implementing those two-character traits, it came natural for me to be that way. I’ve always had a very positive and upbeat outlook on life and felt this vacation would be just as I had planned and a lot of fun.  But then those pesky twists and turns began to recycle with new challenges.

I made it to Bangkok and when I entered the baggage claim area the clerk checked, and my bags had been forwarded on to Kathmandu. I was getting a little nervous whether I’d see them again or not. Luckily, I had my backpack with a change of underwear and socks, a toothbrush and toothpaste which made my overnight stay more comfortable. It was then, while watching the Asian world news, I discovered that there had been heavy snows in Nepal and some Japanese trekkers had been caught in avalanches and killed. When I landed in Kathmandu, I saw helicopters unloading body bags from those avalanches, and I knew then that another set of twists and turns were about to disturb all my planning. But at least my bags were there waiting for me, what a relief!  Oh ye of little faith...

This trip was going to teach me real tenacity and resilience as on the job training for what my life experience was going to require. What happened next in the following blog.

Remember to take a TRIP for a lifetime, not a trip of a lifetime.

In the end, it’s just one man’s opinion…mine.

Keith……