Day 1

Over the course of the next few weeks, I’ll be posting a tastefully-edited version of the journal I kept during the time I spent in Iceland.

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“You’re Not Tired”
Ra Avis

You’re not tired, you’re broken. 
Your ankles are twisted and your body is bruised. 
The wind is in your face, pushing you down, 

Down, 

So far down
This mountain.

You’re not tired. You’re lost. 

You thought you were going up, but you 
just jabbed yourself on the same rock 
for the second time. 
You’re going in circles and the only thing
you can do is hope that the circles are spiraling you up, 

Up,

To the top of this mountain. 

You think you want to go up. You’re not sure anymore. 
You feel tired but you’re not. Truly. 

You’re not tired. 

Your heart is crushed so flat that it can barely beat. 
You’re not tired.
Your lungs are sick of breathing in the contamination you ejected.
You’re not tired.
Your mind is hiding from the sheer magnitude of the world 
it is being forced to translate, but 
You’re not tired.

You’re just going somewhere, and the journey has been bumpy. 
There’s been twisted paths and closed roads. 
There’s been pitfalls and jagged edges. 

Every injury caused by this journey, though, 
has been healed by this journey. 
Every scar you had when you started, 
Every wound you earned along the way, 
Will be healed in the next few steps. 

If you can make it. 

You’re slowing down. You’re aching. 
You can’t see where you’re going because
There’s blood in your eyes, 
Sweat on your hands. You’re slipping 
And everyone can see it… 

But they can also see your destination, 
And how far you’ve come. Not a single person is worried 
That you’ll fall. 
Not a single person is worried that you won’t make it. 

They see the breaks in you, and how those tears 
Did not break you. 
They see the callouses on your feet, 
And how those callouses did not weigh you down. 

They see your eyes closing on your journey, 
But they know you’re not lost, 
And you’re certainly not tired. 

You’re just a little sweaty. 
You’re just a little broken. 

But none of that ever stopped you before. 
You’re just getting started, so keep going, 

Up,
Up, 

Up. 

You’re going somewhere.

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Right now I am on flight 683 to Reykjavik, Iceland.

With any luck, I’ll be able to document my journey (35 days) in this journal.
I’ve never been overseas by myself before. It’s thrilling and terrifying, like deep sea diving or riding a roller coaster (probably. I don’t much enjoy “thrilling” activities by most people’s standards).

To remain entertained, I am reading Guards! Guards! by the late and wonderful Terry Pratchett.

… I should have brought a different pen.

I have no idea what to expect. I don’t know much about Iceland other than it’s cold, and the people are friendly and love hot dogs.

It’s going to be an adventure. The first of many through my life, hopefully.