I talk a lot about being prepared here – having the legal documents in place so that your family and advisors can step in in the event of an emergency and make sure that your finances, health care and children are taken care of. It’s not that the chances of an emergency happening on any one day are high, it’s that the consequences of not being prepared when an emergency does happen can be unfortunate or worse.
I was thinking about that this weekend, when I was heading to New Hampshire for a day hike with some friends. Even though it was a nice spring day, and we weren’t planning to stay overnight I still packed my emergency kit which contains a mylar blanket, headlamp, extra contact lenses & solution, and brought more clothes than I thought I’d need and warmer ones, too.
When we were finishing our day hike, they told me that they had an extra spot at Greenleaf Hut, on the shoulder of Mt. Lafayette, and asked if I would like to join them for a second hike that day and stay overnight at the hut. I did a quick mental inventory of what I had, realized with a short stop at the grocery store for a little more food I’d be set and said yes!
I had no sleeping bag with me, but my mylar blanket supplemented by a couple of the wool blankets at the hut kept me warm, and my headlamp came in handy when they shut the lights out at 9pm. The extra clothes I brought, which I didn’t need during the day when it was almost 70*, were just right for the chilly night and morning.
Being prepared made me able to say “yes” to a opportunity that came my way, being prepared lowered my stress level significantly when saying “yes” and being prepared made it possible for me to see this sunrise.
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