I remember my first introduction to the work of Cheryl Strayed. It was in Florida, 2018, when she spoke at my company’s annual retreat. I was struck by the questions and emotions that her work conjured. I saw my colleagues open up about their experiences of love and loss in a way I hadn’t expected.
After reading Wild, her memoir that details her solo trek across the Pacific Crest Trail, I get it. Strayed shows her readers the type of vulnerability that gives them the confidence to be vulnerable right back. She speaks of grief, self-destruction, redemption, sex, love, loss, loneliness… She doesn’t hide.
As a solo traveller myself, I appreciated her reflections on her journey, especially the fact that, although she was alone on the trek, her experience was littered with and reliant on the kindness of others.
I finished the book with an urge to embark on a trek of my own. 🙂
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