This was an unexpected find on HN but I found it very moving. Good writing lets you do something that is almost impossible otherwise; to get a glimpse inside someone else's mind and experience, the thing that is forever hidden from us unassisted.
I think it's all too easy to view other humans almost like NPCs, and most of the interactions we have in our day to day life reinforce this. You interact with the grocery checker, the waiter, even unfortunately sometimes your loved ones, and those interactions are 'on rails', following a script.
What a nice change of pace from AI-written linked-in articles.
Awfully broad stroke assertion of an entire country of authors. The prose of Ernest Hemingway, Cormac McCarthy and Kurt Vonnegut contradict your comment. Which countries are known for their concise use of language in storytelling?
Sure, because the oddysey, illiad, war and peace, ulysses, the other war and peace, the grapes of wrath etc are so much more concise than the great gatsby and to kill a mockingbird.
...Grapes of Wrath is American (John Steinbeck) . But I agree with you that parent comment is ridiculous. Proust wrote page-spanning individual sentences.
Thank you for the article. I appreciate its authenticity, and I really hope you continue to find peace and healing with your dad‘s passing.
Experiences like this amplify what I think is our longing for permanence and I think CS Lewis sums it up well when he says “If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world.”
Even the longest trails on this side of eternity must end at some point. But I think they point us to something more eternal and lasting, something our hearts all long for.
Hiking — in mountains in particular - is magical. I’ve yet to do more than an overnight backpack, but every time I’m out, I’m so at peace. The only explanation I’ve come up with is that mountains are massive, immovable forces of nature that do not care if you exist, and to be around that is humbling.
Excellent article, and great writing that’s sadly absent nowadays.
This mirrors the 'post-launch blues' in software engineering, where the mental shift from active problem-solving to maintenance feels like a loss of purpose. The author's point about the trail being a series of immediate physical constraints is why these hikes are so addictive for people in high-abstraction fields like security or math. Once the external structure of the trail is gone, you're forced to re-internalize the discipline that was previously enforced by the terrain.
> ... series of immediate physical constraints is why these hikes are so addictive for people in high-abstraction fields
That really hit home. I work in data analysis but in the early 2000s did a 4-month cycle in Australia and a 7-month walking pilgrimage in Europe. Since then, I've become addicted to walking for a few months every few years. Love the physical challenge of moving across the landscape. But 'suffer' when I return to abstract data work. Feels like a loss of purpose etc... thanks for that insight... Never thought of it in that way...
This was an unexpected find on HN but I found it very moving. Good writing lets you do something that is almost impossible otherwise; to get a glimpse inside someone else's mind and experience, the thing that is forever hidden from us unassisted.
I think it's all too easy to view other humans almost like NPCs, and most of the interactions we have in our day to day life reinforce this. You interact with the grocery checker, the waiter, even unfortunately sometimes your loved ones, and those interactions are 'on rails', following a script.
What a nice change of pace from AI-written linked-in articles.
> Good writing
American writing. They need 20 pages till they get to the subject.
Awfully broad stroke assertion of an entire country of authors. The prose of Ernest Hemingway, Cormac McCarthy and Kurt Vonnegut contradict your comment. Which countries are known for their concise use of language in storytelling?
In my experience McCarthy can spend an entire book without getting to the subject.
Sure, because the oddysey, illiad, war and peace, ulysses, the other war and peace, the grapes of wrath etc are so much more concise than the great gatsby and to kill a mockingbird.
...Grapes of Wrath is American (John Steinbeck) . But I agree with you that parent comment is ridiculous. Proust wrote page-spanning individual sentences.
Thank you for the article. I appreciate its authenticity, and I really hope you continue to find peace and healing with your dad‘s passing.
Experiences like this amplify what I think is our longing for permanence and I think CS Lewis sums it up well when he says “If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world.”
Even the longest trails on this side of eternity must end at some point. But I think they point us to something more eternal and lasting, something our hearts all long for.
Great read! Looks like she just published a memoir too:
https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/748921/all-thats-un...
Hiking — in mountains in particular - is magical. I’ve yet to do more than an overnight backpack, but every time I’m out, I’m so at peace. The only explanation I’ve come up with is that mountains are massive, immovable forces of nature that do not care if you exist, and to be around that is humbling.
Excellent article, and great writing that’s sadly absent nowadays.
Subject didn't make sense.
'at' should be 'AT' or 'A.T.' = Appalachian Trail
This mirrors the 'post-launch blues' in software engineering, where the mental shift from active problem-solving to maintenance feels like a loss of purpose. The author's point about the trail being a series of immediate physical constraints is why these hikes are so addictive for people in high-abstraction fields like security or math. Once the external structure of the trail is gone, you're forced to re-internalize the discipline that was previously enforced by the terrain.
> ... series of immediate physical constraints is why these hikes are so addictive for people in high-abstraction fields
That really hit home. I work in data analysis but in the early 2000s did a 4-month cycle in Australia and a 7-month walking pilgrimage in Europe. Since then, I've become addicted to walking for a few months every few years. Love the physical challenge of moving across the landscape. But 'suffer' when I return to abstract data work. Feels like a loss of purpose etc... thanks for that insight... Never thought of it in that way...
Do you find jobs that allow you to take sabbatical? Or do you leave jobs and find new ones for each expedition you do?
Seems like just sitting with one's feelings for 5 minutes a night would amortize the cost of those "blues" over the full length of the hike.
End of trip for non-amortized blues: OMG my sudden lack of trail-purpose is casting a 100 foot high shadow over my entire existence. Help!
End of trip for amortized blues: Ah this feels familiar, and a bit heavy. Gonna head home and read a book.
Edit: I'd bet the physical exhaustion from hiking would even aid in accessing said feelings. Synergy, baby!