Jan 7 - Describe a hike, long walk, or outdoor experience you have had and explain what it was like physically and mentally. If you have never been on a hike, describe a time when you were outside your comfort zone or had to rely on yourself in a challenging situation. Explain what you learned from the experience.

Response: Back at Pius, I used to do cross country for the first 2 years of high school. My friends and I would all run together along various parks that our coaches took us to, and I remember that my favorite park to go to was Henderson Park because it was so close to my house. We went on a run when the season was starting to turn into fall, so the sun was setting earlier in the day. I remember running with my friends through the big forest of the park and getting totally lost. Practice was going to be over in around 15 minutes, and we still had no idea how to get back. After freaking out for a couple of minutes, we eventually found the right path to take, but on the way, we passed by something beautiful. We were running down this really steep hill within the forest, but when we finally got past the trees, we could see the sun setting on the horizon, and the lake below shining from the sunset. We all stopped running for a second to admire the view, and there was a bench that a few of us sat down at to take a break and look at the sunset. We eventually made it back fine and on time, and went home after that. Even though getting lost in the park was scary for a moment, when the fear finally subsided, we were met with a beautiful reward for our integrity and bravery. I actually went back to this same spot in the summer with my girlfriend to have a little picnic, and it was empty because almost nobody knew about this amazing spot. So if it wasn't for us getting lost like that, I would have never found that cute picnic spot! 

Summary: Today, we looked over the new memoir we are going to read, Hike, and answered discussion questions about what we think it will be about.

Reflection: Hikes, walks, and runs can be great ways to let out a bunch of energy, but they can also be good for figuring out the problems you have on the inside by trying to "run away" from them.

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