Throughout history, great spiritual leaders have gone to the mountains for clarity.
There’s something sacred, transformative, and deeply clarifying about ascending into the stillness above the noise of life. Our family cabin has become just that—a sacred space where I go to find healing and where I bring those I mentor when they are ready to make a shift. A place of reflection, restoration, and realignment.
This past week, I had the honor of working with a remarkable young man and his mother. He’s 18—bright, soulful, and brave—but he has been caught in the crossfire of two households with extremely different values. That tug-of-war, compounded by the transition into adulthood, created real trauma. It knocked him off course in a significant way.
To mark the journey of healing, we set our sights on a nearby peak—Lake Peak, which rises to 11,200 feet. The final 400 feet are a rugged scramble that forces focus and courage. And that is exactly where transformation begins.
At the base of the summit, I asked him to pick up a rock and place it in his backpack.
“Let this represent the burden you’ve been carrying,” I said.
He didn’t hesitate. He chose a massive stone—30 to 40 pounds—and shoved it in. Every step up that mountain, he carried not just the weight of the rock, but the emotional weight he’s borne for years.
At the summit, I invited both him and his mother to pause.
“Thank the rock,” I said. “It taught you something. It made you stronger. But now it is time to let it go.”
With reverence and resolve, he pulled the rock from his pack and hurled it down the mountain. It shattered, dislodging other stones as it tumbled—a perfect metaphor for what was happening inside him.
In that moment, I saw the shift. The weight was gone—not just from his pack, but from his heart.
So many of us carry burdens long past their usefulness. We’re quick to forgive others, but we keep dragging our own guilt, shame, or regret—rock after rock—up every hill we climb.
My invitation to you is simple:
Identify the burden. Learn from it. Thank it. And then—throw it off the mountain.
Release the heaviness. Stand taller. Breathe deeper. And return to life lighter and freer.
With gratitude,
Rich
