Miracles Might be Happening

I have had second thoughts about sharing all of this with you but I keep receiving conformation that these letters are ok to share.  Just know that this experience is super personal, I'm sure you know that.  We are doing well here at home.  Very much at peace.  Still making sense of everything each day but overall things seem to be going well.  He really enjoyed receiving so many letters from you all :)   Thank you to those who did.  Also?  I don't even have to correct his grammar or spelling, pretty impressive.  He expresses himself pretty well I'd say for a 14 yr old.  It's just his handwriting we need to address LOL.....FYI "trail walkers" are young adult counselors.  Usually college students that work here and there in between semesters, specially trained to work with at risk youth.  I think it would be so cool if he decided to come back later in life as a trail walker.  Many who work at Anasazi either went through this program themselves or knew a close friend or family member who did.  

Dear Mom and Dad:

Hey :) How has your week been?  Good I'm hoping.  Mine has been pretty awesome other than I totally ran out of food the other day.  I'm hungry, tired, and very dirty but I'm still very happy and I'm always able to stay in a good mood through whatever is going on.  I don't know what it is but I'm just having a lot of fun.

All of my band mates are really cool and we're all coming to be really good friends.  We've got some new ones too over that last two weeks and everyone here is super positive and easy to get along with .  Even though I'm the youngest one here, it just feels like we're all the same age.  But yeah, not much has happened this week activity wise but I have had huge awakenings that I would like to share with you.   So I've been thinking about myself and you guys a lot this week and how we could make our family relationship stronger and I realize that by finding out who I am, I can show you both who I am so we can both get to understand each other more.  Not just that but also that I am closer to finding myself than I thought.

I realized that I am not just one person.  I am whoever or whatever I choose to be.  That's the real truth.  So, I want to choose to be me and what that means is that I am a person who does what they want and what they should do and is still happy.  I want to add in a few things as well.  Such as respect and honesty and maybe a few more.

But yeah I think that this has been my most important week yet relating to self discovery.  Now all I need to do is try and be who I want to be.  I'm going to try and do that amongst my new friends.  And my trail walkers are basically my friends so I'm not even gonna call them trail walkers.

I hope you liked my letters last week with all the answered questions 'n stuff.  I'm really starting to notice how well this program is working too.  I'm super excited to just get home and see you guys and have fun.  We should also go snowboarding when I get back because I really miss it and I wanna hit Bachelor this year!  I hope to hear from you guys soon.

~Tyler

P.S. Sorry I didn't write to both of you separately.  I'm working on a lot of projects this week and it was just easier to do one.  I'll try to next week. :)

TO EVERYONE:  JEEZ you all write a lot!  I'll try and get back to you next week when I have the time. Sorry, I'll respond to everyone though, Love you all!

~Tyler

Bonus Letter!!

Received a bonus letter today.

Dear Mom and Dad,

This little letter is me answering all the questions you guys asked because I didn't have time to in my other letters.

Did I keep the gloves? Not a chance. Do I like the cactus? They're cool to look at but they hurt really bad. Fun to throw rocks at. Do I like the scenery? Yes actually. Especially the sunrises and sunsets.

Have I learned much about plants? Yeah, a lot. Mainly about what wood is which and which is the best for carving spoons.

Am I learning survival skills? Definitely. They've taught me a lot out here. Have I learned to protect myself from the cold? Yes, I guess.

What does my trail name me to me? I'm honestly still trying to figure that out but I have some ideas I will share with you when you get here. Do I like my trail name? Yes, very much.

Do we normally call each other by our trail name? No, although everyone here calls me sawyer. It's cool. Wet Dog? Oh man, it is the most delicious thing out here to eat. I'll teach you both how to make it when you get here. Can I cook? Let's just say I can make the best pancakes out here. Alongside my new friend Jaxon. I also invented something called "the can of whop A." That's another surprise for you both.

Do I eat wild edibles? Yeah, whenever I can find them..Do I take baths in the rivers and streams? I should but it's way too cold.

I hope that answers some of your questions. There is still a lot out here that I want to tell you but I'd rather just show you. It will be very fun. Thank you both. Feel free to ask more.

Love, Tyler

(*"Wet dog" is a mixture of tang, brown sugar and powdered milk I believe.....Marnae)

Tyler's Letter 3-1-17

This weeks letter of Tyler's is AMAZING you don't even know how many emotions I go through in one single day....I typed his letters this week.  It was hard to read his copy.

Dear Mom, 

Hey.  It's me again.  How is everything?  I hope it's all going well.  Everything here is pretty great. I'm actually having a lot of fun this week with some of my new friends I've made.  The hiking is still kinda brutal but I usually can handle it.  But yeah I've been feeling super happy and excited this week because of how much I'm learning and how much I'm being accepted and helped by people.  Also just thinking about how fast everything has flown by so far.

I'm already on day 23.  That's so insane but cool because that means the sooner I come home and get to see you guys.  I'm really excited to get home and see all my friends and family and spend time with them.  I know I'm not even half way done yet but I'm just so excited for the great things to come in these following weeks.  I've been thinking a lot about who I am this week and through hiking and working hard to make things and talking with my trail walkers I've been learning so much about myself that I never even thought possible before.

Especially when it came to my ability to be positive.  How I came to discover this was through dealing with rather confusing and frustrating situations such as one this week...so me and my band were hiking on Saturday when all of a sudden our trail walkers told us we had to do something different that day.  So we went the complete opposite way we came and we had to all get in cars and we weren't really allowed to ask questions.  Everyone else was just as weirded out as I was but we had no choice but to just along with it.  

Long story short we were just getting relocated to a new area but I found it frustrating and stressful at first.  But then I just decided to try and think positive and to not really worry and everything turned out to be great.  That may not seem like much but it was a huge awakening for me.  Also, seeing civilization again kind of made me homesick but happy the same time.  

But yeah, this week has been great.  I'm looking forward to hearing from you.  I would also like to hear from some of my friends too like you said.  That would pretty cool.  I hope I'm doing a good job on communicating how I'm feeling.  I'm feeling pretty happy and I also really miss everything back home.  Hope to see you guys soon :) (I really like the pictures you sent.)

Love, Tyler          

Dear Dad,

Hey Dad.  This week has been a great one.  So far I've been thinking about myself and who I am a lot this week and I've learned a lot about myself as well.  Not only that but I've been thinking about you a lot as well.  Mainly about how much I think you would like this place and how fun it would be if you were here.  You and mom.  I really miss you guys.  But it makes me happy to hear from you guys and how things are.  I can't wait to get back and just be home.  I don't know why but I just really want to be home and chill with the family and have fun.  

I also really want to work on the Yerf Dog (go Cart) now that the snow is melting.  Just seems like that would be fun.  I also wish I could tell you everything amazing that I see here and everything that happens and everything I'm learning.  It's just too much to put into one letter.  When you guys come here towards the end of my walking I'll be able to tell you and show you everything.  You have no clue how excited I am for that.  I just wish it could happen tomorrow but I know I still have some things to learn here about myself. 

I'm learning so much about myself each week.  I'ts almost overwhelming but amazing at the same time because I'm learning things about myself I never thought possible.  I'm excited for us to get to understand each other more and connect more and be happier.  So yeah that's my week.  How has yours been?  Good I'm hoping.  I'm anxious to hear from you guys again.  It's one of the best parts of my week.  I hope I'm seeming positive and making sense in my letters.  I'll talk to you next week.  

Love, Tyler 

Listening While Driving

We have read the 7 pathways, Anatomy of Peace and now listening trading off CDs of this one...So much valuable info.

Week 4

I put on my Facebook page some books that could be interesting for you to read.  You can buy some of them off Anasazi.org and some on Amazon.  They all have to do with personal change, for the better.  7 Pathways and Anatomy of Peace are the two we have read so far.  We intend on reading all of the ones I posted.

This is a link to some of them, the recommended reading for parents at Anasazi
http://www.anasazi.org/library.html

Here are our letters to Tyler this week.  Time is truly flying by.

A more positive week 3

Ok Folks....I think we have PROGRESS!!!!  I am beginning to maybe relate with parents of missionaries.  My mail day is WEDNESDAY and it's ALL I think about until his counselor sends me the email!!!  This week's letter is so much better.  I'll tell you what Brian wrote in his text to me because it is perfect.

"Tyler's letters are great this week.  A large amount of progress.  Still more needed but I am happy."

Could not agree more.  Keep the prayers coming!!!!  Thank you all so much.  This experience may kill me but today I am ok.  I could not share his letter last week for privacy though I did let some of you read it.  Like I said it was brutal.  Angry.  I knew it would be but it was still hard to get.  This one is SO much better and I think I can safely share it...remember to click on the letter so you can read it better.

Awakenings, "the making of an asking"

At Anasazi they teach about things like:
"the making of a walking"
"the making of a listening"
"the making of an asking"
"having a sitting"
Awakenings

This week our letters are a response to Tyler's first letter to us which was less than pleasant.  We did feel however and were council by his "shadow" that showing emotion is good.  Even if it's anger.

Each week we are supposed to write two letters.  One is a response to his letter.  The other is to, in a way, report, or talk about the walking we are doing here at home.  Explain awakenings we are experiencing.  Have you sat and taken the time to write a sincere heart felt letter to your child recently?  Let me tell you.  It takes time and effort.  It has been so good for us.  For me it has made me slow down.  It has allowed me to connect to him as well with myself.  I have three other kids that I need to write to as well.  I think this is so important.  I am grateful for the things I am learning. These are things I have always known but have forgotten.  I have known that writing is therapeutic. Honestly after college I didn't write much anymore since there were no more assignments.  Back when I used to do this blog more regularly it was mostly to keep a record or journal of life with little kids.  After I had Jace I think Facebook and Instagram took over which is a sort of quick easy record but definitely not the same thing.  When I go back through my blog here I am soooo grateful that I kept that record.  I do not remember very much of what I wrote about.  I am a little sad that I stopped.  Now all I can do is start back up again.  I can't really make up for lost time. I did print this blog back in 2010 and will probably do that again soon since I do not scrapbook.  I used to!  But I felt like this was a great substitute....still feel that way :)

I want to take some time this week to write some letters to each of my other boys.  There.  That will be my goal for this week.  As of now I use Sunday evenings to write to Tyler because his Shadow needs them by noon Mondays.  See?  Assignments,  Deadlines.  I need them : )

This weekend was good.  My letter to Tyler outlines much of what is happening around here so that will be a record for now...Also I am not great at following directions I don't think.  I set out to write two letters like they said but ended up melding it all into one.

To view the letters you need to click on the first one and they should all come up in a window that's easier to see.