Dear John,

Like you, I’ve been doing my best to work and fight through the challenges before us. The growing authoritarianism, the attacks on civil liberties and the constitution… and in Texas, our fight to defend free speech and the right to participate in our politics.

It’s the most important, most urgent thing we could be doing. But because it’s so important and at times all-consuming, you’ve got to force yourself to take a moment to rest and recharge every now and then.

Saturday morning I jumped in the truck with the dogs and headed into the Black Range of the Gila Wilderness. Door-to-trailhead is just under three hours, so by midday Artemis, Ziggy, Freya and I were walking into the mountain and away from civilization, politics, cellphones and the internet.

After a couple of miles I put down my backpack at a small clearing where two canyon streams come together and the dogs and I continued up one of the canyons. They were in heaven, bounding through the forest, chasing squirrels, sniffing all the new smells and just running free. I felt pretty good too, lucky to be able to do this, in awe of the giant wilderness before us, the life all around me (including the huge pile of bear scat we came across in one of the side canyons), the clean air I was breathing, the way my mind was free to roam without being interrupted by a text message, a phone call or a meeting.

I got back to where I’d left my pack, put up my tent, ate a snack, poured myself a bit of whisky and then made a fire and boiled some water to add to my freeze-dried pasta (yuck). I read my book until the light faded and then just sat with the dogs under the stars, finishing dinner in front of the fire before getting into my sleeping bag. The ground was wet from rain earlier in the day, and when I woke up in the middle of the night I could see the dogs shivering so I invited them into the tent and we tossed and turned together until the sun broke.

One more little hike before heading back down the trail to the truck, and I started to get my head around the week to come and the way I wanted to approach the challenges ahead. The drive home was peaceful, the dogs knocked out in the backseat.

Well, that’s my report from the mountain. I hope you are taking some time whenever you can, to get a little distance and perspective on the work that we’re all doing. We need each other today and for the long haul as well.

Beto