Emily Tucker- Time and the Sublime

     After reading chapter 5 of American Camino, I found that I really resonated with the last section of the chapter titled, "Time and the Sublime". These two pages discussed how the Appalachian Trail serves as a liminal space towards the sublime and how it relates to time. In contrast to the American culture of busyness and fast-paced society, hikers on the Appalachian trail noted how they felt a different sense of time while on the trail. One hiker stated that "there's suddenly so much time to think and so much to think about". This is rare in most American's everyday lives, as we grow up in a society where we are taught to keep working harder and longer hours to build up the future we want. While there are a lot of good things about the ideal of a "self-made man", I think we often neglect the fact that none of us take time to stop and simply think. When our schedules are so busy, our lives fall into a routine pattern void of introspect, meditation and prayer. Even in our moments of rest, we are planning ahead for our next task or event. Everything in our lives seems to be planned out and set for a specific time. On the contrary, the hikers on the Appalachian trail had nothing to plan for, allowing for all the time to think and reflect, facilitating an interior journey towards the sublime. 

    Nature allows us to experience the sublime. As Dr. Redick states on page 228, "Wilderness symbolizes those spaces that have the potential to ground culture in that which has ultimate value". If we separate ourselves from society, to simply think and meditate apart from schedules and plans to reconnect with nature, I believe we will experience an interior journey of growth and introspection, gaining knowledge of the things that are truly valuable. 

     In my own life, I think these same ideas can be applied to simply "living in the moment". So often I find myself planning ahead for the next thing, instead of enjoying or being present in the moment I am currently. If we constantly worry about and plan for the future, we miss out on everything happening right in front of us. I believe it is important to take some time in our day to pause and reflect to fully immerse ourselves in the present moment. Sometimes we just need to "take time to smell the roses" and appreciate nature and the small things that we already have in our present moment.

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