Yosemite!!!!

Tired, cold and hormonal! A very bad combination. I could tell my sisters and mom were getting tired of my bad behavior. You know that saying, “Don’t bite the hand that feeds you.” Well, I was biting - and hard!


I had only slept for about 45 minutes the night before we arrived in California. Not to mention, I almost fell out of bed many times in our hotel room the following night.


To say I was upset that my sisters were going to go climb these wonderful mountains while I was stuck in the valley (Yosemite Village) with my mom would be pretty accurate.


I’m a firm believer in having a positive attitude. Bad behavior is a choice. And I was making all the wrong choices, driving up to Yosemite National Park.
From the very beginning, my sister adamantly reminded me that she wanted to go climb the mountains.
“Is that OK with you?” she asked.
Like a dummy I kept saying, “Yeah. Sure. No problem,”  when clearly that was a lie. I wanted to be so selfish and for some of the time, I was.


Every so often, I have to admit to my limitations. Not being able to say I climbed those gorgeous mountains was so hard. As most of you know, I love a good challenge. But I couldn't accept this challenge, and that made me so angry.


Our first day in the valley, Bella said, “Let’s try the wheelchair accessible trails first.” I tried to have fun and a part of me did,  but I still wanted to go climb those beautiful mountains.


By the second day, all three of them were sick of me being sour. Like any good sister or mother they made sure I knew they were fed up with my attitude. Which infuriated me even more. I kept thinking “I’m the chill one. Why am I acting crazy!?!”


The second I asked myself that question the answer came. Gosh, if only that happens all the time, huh? Besides my hormones acting insane,  it all came down to pure jealousy!


Irrational jealousy.


Oh, and don’t forget self-pity.


Very quickly after being surrounded by these incredible mountains and rocks I started realizing I wasn’t there for myself. The moment I started remembering that this was Bella‘s dream, my self-pity started to subside and the jealousy fell away.


When I had to be content with just looking, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. Spectacular and wonderful can’t even begin to communicate how beautiful Yosemite is. I was speechless! The grandeur of it made me realize how tiny I am in this great big world.


It was in that instant I started to see the beauty and the true majesty of Yosemite. Oh, how I was missing out by complaining!


When you’re down in the valley to the left you have Half Dome and to the right you have El Capitan oh and don’t forget about Three Brothers. I could go on and on. You truly can’t escape from the intensity of it all.
I have to thank my mom and my sisters for being so gracious towards me and my crazy behavior!


Special thanks to my mama bear who pushed me up and down the valley, and who was my personal photographer. 90% of the photos below were taken by her.


Thank you to my Bella for putting this whole thing together and for encouraging us to be adventurous!


Thank you to Divine for just being Divine! Pun intended...
A great man named John Muir is the reason why Yosemite is a national park today. This is what he believed:
“Everybody needs beauty as well as bread,
places to play in and pray in,
where nature may heal
and give strength to body and soul.”
John Muir
I’m inclined to agree with him!
After God gave me an attitude adjustment, my mom and I started having so much fun! I can’t tell you how many times we got lost in the valley, laughing the whole time! I had an amazing opportunity to talk with some incredible people.


As a matter fact, One of these amazing people challenged me to go to all 58 national parks! This woman had a fear of heights and, like a boss, she wanted to conquer her fears. So, she became a rock climber. My HERO! She also told me about a program about adaptive rock climbing which I’m really interested in.


Because I am disabled, I am allowed to go to ALL national parks for FREE. Anyone want to join me? By the way, I probably won’t be climbing all the mountains (maybe just a few!)
P. S. - Speaking of challenges and disabilities. Yosemite is one of the most accessible places I’ve ever been!!! Every door has a button and every sidewalk has a ramp. They have buses taking people from trail to trail who always accommodated me first! I would encourage anyone who is disabled to go visit the valley! Next time, I’m most definitely taking my power chair and leaving everybody in the dust.









































                                       
         

     





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