April flowers 🌻

I enjoyed a relaxing April in SLC. I spent most of my free time taking advantage of the pleasant weather to sport climb and boulder locally with a bunch of lovely friends.

It warms my soul to watch nature come to life in the spring - budding aspens, birds going bonkers, and rich green groundcover. This spring marks the end of my second year in Salt Lake and I continue to love the rollercoaster of the seasons (as opposed to the eternal summer of my childhood in California). When I first moved to Salt Lake I thought I might only spend a few short years here. But as the purple and yellow flowers come into bloom, I feel like I'm sinking my roots a little deeper too. I've found myself in a bouquet of colorful friends this year and their convivial energy makes this place feel like home. It's hard to say where I'll find myself 2 years from now, but I wouldn't be surprised if I was still here.

When I moved here as a sapling 25 year old my sole intention was to climb 5.13 on gear by the time I was 30. I didn't have a lot going for me at the time, but I knew I loved rocks and I wanted to surround myself with community that felt the same. I'm now in my 27th year, which means to stay on track I need to send 5.12b on gear. I've been spending very little time trad climbing in 2026 primarily due to a dearth of partners, but I feel like I'm sowing the seeds of success through sport climbing and bouldering. In the last 4 weeks I sent my second 5.12b mixed route in LCC and my first V8 in the canyon. For some reason I don't count mixed routes as trad sends (especially if the crux is bolted), but maybe I should give myself more grace.

Recently I've been making a conscious effort to talk to myself with more positivity. My friend Gabby called me out the other day when she was lowering me off a technical 5.12d sport route and I was teasing myself by saying "It's hard being a chuffer". (Aside: "chuffing" is a derogatory way to describe falling on a route). She told me that even if I was saying it in jest, I would never say something like that to one of my friends because that's mean. I love insensitive humor, but when someone is feeling defeated a good friend would never tease them insensitively. So why do I tease myself insensitively when I'm coming off a route feeling disappointed about my performance? That is not a strategy for self-improvement, let alone an enjoyable experience.

I'm trying to recognize that negative voice in the moment, and instead say something positive to myself like "that was a great link" or "you unlocked some great beta that go" or "you tried really hard and gave it your all". I can redefine my metric of success from "sending is the only thing that matters" to "try as hard and as smart as you can". The opportunity to challenge myself on stone with people I love is a gift. Practicing gratitude is the best way to enjoy it.

Thanks for reading my reflections and for making my garden of friendship so beautiful!