“This weekend with Dennis H. Taylor, Olga Ortiz, Chris Rodriguez and group of others who are not on Facebook… spent two amazing days in Joshua Tree Rock Climbing. This was my second trip of actual rock climbing and my fourth time climbing ever. I swore I would never rock climb after some serious rock wall burn back in 2003… but here I am climbing… thanks DT. I want to give Olga and her husband Carlos of Rock Climb Every Day, LLC a big shout of thanks. Olga with just what you have shown me on technique has made a huge difference and has given me more confidence. Carlos your zen is awesome… It has allowed me to be brave. On the personal journey side… rock climbing has affirmed for me that it’s ok to be afraid just don’t let yourself be stuck… there are many paths to conquering what’s in front of you. Sometimes you will have solid points to stand on an/or to hold on too, other times you might have to rely solely on your toes or finger tip…and sometime it might require pressing your whole body against the rock and solely shimming up until you reach something solid. I learned that sometime you might have to use pure strength and force and force a move.. most of the time its about subtle actions… making choices and then making more. In all scenarios…being calm, trusting and realizing that you have the support you need both from yourself and from the person belaying you makes the journey more fun and empowering. For those that don’t know the person belaying you…. is the person holding rope on the bottom…their job is to offer support with the rope going up and bringing you down once you have reached the top. You have to trust them too… Know they have you… its truly a lesson in letting go of control… the whole experience… I am looking forward to practicing more and getting stronger…” – By Georgine Trujillo
