The advice I got growing up about safety was to stay in groups and if anything happens, go to the nearest store for help.
This spring has brought out the hiker in me – and that hiker is at odds with the advice I received growing up. I love to hike alone, and there clearly are no convenience stores nearby. Since numerous students in our classes ask to prepare for the “hiking alone” scenario, it seems that many feel that hiking is taking a great risk.
But as I pass pleasant, quiet men and women walking alone with their happy-go-lucky dogs, I’ve been wondering why we were told to take precautions instead of go enjoy our alone time.
Somehow, we have been taught that the unknown attendant in the gas station is better prepared to deal with the situation we’re facing than we ourselves are. In truth, he probably has nothing more going for him than having access to a phone to call the police.
Who -really- is better able to defend me, than me? After all, others may not have any skills we do not have or cannot get. Certainly, receiving help is wonderful and speaks well of the community around us – but there is no good reason to not become experts about our own safety. There is no reason to not feel self-sufficient.
Experts are available for two important reasons: things we cannot handle on our own, or to teach us how to handle things better for ourselves. The more we use experts to teach us to be self-reliant, the fewer situations we will experience where we need an expert’s help for things we cannot handle. Good safety experts don’t tell you what precautions to take; they empower you to be in charge of your own safety.