from USG survey responses

Those of us who have weathered cancer will never take the health of our bodies and minds for granted again.  Cancer forced its own suffering on me in its own terms.  In response, the self-sought suffering of backpacking on the trail is by my own conscious choice. Blistered feet, aching knees, cold-numbed fingers on a frosty morning are not hardships but proof that I'm alive and well after cancer. When backpacking I'm choosing my suffering, rubbing up against the callous, uncaring, indifferent attitude of the natural world and making a contest on my terms in my time. Every struggling mile uphill, all the camps by rivers or on mountain sides, and each night that I spend alone in the woods listening to the coyotes in the distance is my way of howling back at the disease that I hope I've left behind me forever.  Backpacking has deep meaning beyond simply an being an enjoyable leisure activity.  It's a defiant celebration of the joy of fitness and health.