"The Paths We Cross" by Guest Writer Lisa Louis
“The Paths We Cross” by guest writer Lisa Louis is a sterling example of the work for which the copiously talented, San Francisco based author is known best: gorgeous, evocative writing on universally relevant subject matter.
Greetings RGG readers and subscribers. Got a great one for you today. Lisa Louis, the San Francisco, California based published author and creator of the hugely popular HikingAutism website and blog, graces The RGG’s humble digital pages with a lovely, brand-new piece. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Lisa and her work, let me briefly dial you in…
I first learned of Lisa and her remarkable writing through my interactions with her on Twitter (X) a few years ago. Writing under her handle, HikingAutism, she presented links to short, beautifully written works published in her wonderful and popular site, HikingAutism, which she’s been writing and producing since March, 2018. These written gems included at the time, and still do, “Insights” and “Hikes,” which, respectively, relate to Lisa’s thoughts, recollections, associations, and observations of a myriad of natural wonders and locales, and notes about a constantly evolving and growing list of natural trail hikes through various locations (typically in Northern California – but the list also includes hike notes sent in by readers from locations around the world). Among its other notable content, Hiking Autism features breathtaking photos that accompany both her “Insights” pieces and “Hikes.”
But probably most central to HikingAutism’s general theme, and, truly, its inspiration, is the fact that, for Lisa and her family, the activity of hiking and the condition of autism are inextricably linked. Lisa’s younger son, Sean (pictured in the above featured image with Lisa), is profoundly affected by autism. At one point, Lisa, explains, Sean was so acutely overwhelmed by the massive sensory overload that the condition presents that it was virtually impossible for him to even leave the insulating confines of their house. It wasn’t until a gifted young teacher came into Lisa and Sean’s lives that breakthroughs were suddenly achieved. This teacher’s methodology for achieving Sean’s re-acclimation with the outside world was based on implementing the activity of hiking through various of nature’s settings as an initial and gentle steppingstone. The efficacy of this methodology bordered on the miraculous, and Lisa felt that this remarkable young teacher’s efforts might best be recognized – and a fitting tribute to this young man best accomplished – by creating HikingAutism.
In addition to the works readers will find through Lisa’s regular HikingAutism publishing schedule, her non-fiction book, Just Get to the Trailhead: An Autism Journey, is in the manuscript preparation stage in anticipation of pre-publication editing. The book chronicles Sean’s experiences as he progressed from at first being trapped indoors as a result of his condition’s ravaging sensory overload component, to hiking the steep and challenging trails of Northern California’s Mount Tamalplais. Once this remarkable work hits the racks, RGG readers will be among the very first to know. I promise.
As you’ll read below, Lisa’s sensitivity to, and appreciation of, the transformative, evocative power and beauty of the natural world are profound, and, as always, beautifully and poignantly recounted in every example of her lovely, resonant writing.
J.G.S., December, 2024
The Paths We Cross
Lisa Louis
Thanks to John for the generous introduction and the gracious invitation to share some written thoughts with The Renaissance Garden Guy readers.
I crossed paths with John as we exchanged comments on Twitter. I was captivated by the “Renaissance” component of John’s site name. The Garden Guy writes not only about gardening but also about the visual arts, performing arts, and literature, and touched my heart with poignant essays about grief and loss.
I aspire to be a renaissance person through the example of my father. An aerospace electronics engineer by profession, he was also a musician who played over a dozen instruments, dabbled in painting and writing, and did all the plumbing, electrical and car repairs. Dad taught my brothers and me how to swim, ride a bike, paddle a canoe, snowshoe, and ice skate. He showed us how to safely climb under a barbed wire fence to get from field to field. He took us camping and hiking in the Adirondacks, and taught us how to chop wood and build a fire.
The love of the outdoors—feeling the cold crunch of the snow underfoot in winter, hearing red-winged blackbirds and Canada geese return in spring, walking barefoot over sharp stones in icy creeks in summer, and inhaling the undefinable smell of autumn while walking amidst orange and red maple leaves—is a gift that has kept me sane throughout all of life’s challenges.
The simple, sustaining power of nature is the underlying theme of HikingAutism. Hiking has been therapeutic for our entire family, and life changing for my younger son Sean. If the sensory overload of bright sun, the loud sound of planes flying overhead, and wind blowing harshly on his face in outdoor settings were overwhelming, indoor spaces were worse. Flickering fluorescent lights, sounds and smells that may be undetectable to others but were paralyzing for him—all of these kept my son from being out in the world.
Sean’s ability to go from trapped at home to being happy out on a trail reflects the calming and uplifting powers of nature. I created HikingAutism in part to encourage people to get outdoors and hike, but this concept takes certain things for granted. My family has the resources to have a car (though it’s old and battered) to drive across the Golden Gate Bridge, and the money to pay for a bridge toll and possibly a park fee. Public transportation is not free, and often doesn’t take riders to nature trail destinations. This is a hidden aspect of inaccessibility.
The more obvious challenge is that not everyone has the physical ability to hike, at least not to walk on steep or rocky trails. Though some don’t like the term “disability,” it is used in school and support systems to provide help to those who need extra assistance, and my son surely needs help to function in the world. Though Sean has some physical coordination issues, and is mightily challenged with communication skills, he has the physical strength and agility to climb any steep trail on Mount Tamalpais, and has hiked thousands of miles over the last dozen years.
My awareness expanded on multiple fronts as I crossed paths with others through HikingAutism. The first person I connected with consistently made me aware that not everyone can walk a trail easily, even if it’s the thing they most love to do. Marjorie Turner Hollman, Massachusetts based author of a series of Easy Walks books, taught me that what is an “easy walk” for my son Sean, who is fairly sure-footed, could be hazardous for her. After recovering from life-saving brain surgery, Marjorie was challenged with partial paralysis that makes it difficult to walk on trails with jutting rocks or roots, or that are steep or slippery.
Marjorie loves the outdoors and writes about how to enjoy walking with the caveat of having the trails be relatively smooth and free of things that others may not see as obstacles. I started adding notes about trail steepness and smoothness in my Hike Notes.
I did an interview as a caregiver on the Journeys podcast through M4G Advocacy Media, which covers an incredibly wide range of disabilities issues. M4G Advocacy Media creators Krystal Schulze and Mark Desa both deal with the challenges of ataxia, a condition which can range in levels of severity. It can make physical mobility difficult, and in some cases makes it difficult to speak smoothly and freely.
In-depth conversations with Krystal and Mark revealed how their challenges differ from Sean’s. Sean requires immense patience in trying to communicate because his brain is doing a rolling search to find and then emit the words he wants to get out, often to make basic requests. People with ataxia may have no problem formulating sophisticated ideas, but getting the words out can take extra time, and that requires patience from conversation partners. For some, ataxia may make a mountain hike out of reach. This is why I remind readers that we can find a dose of nature in neighborhood parks or gardens, or in the flower growing through the crack in a sidewalk.
A third eye-opening conversation came in an interview with Kevin Lowe, host of the podcast Grit, Grace, & Inspiration. Kevin is effervescently positive and uplifts his listeners through interviews with guests who have overcome life adversity. Kevin woke up from brain surgery at age 17 to find that his vision was gone. As I talked with Kevin about why getting my autistic son out in nature was so helpful and important, it occurred to me that most of my descriptions about nature and hikes are visual. Meeting Kevin made me more thoughtful about including descriptions of sounds, textural senses and smells we experience in nature.
I think of friends who have multiple sclerosis, my son’s old schoolmates who have cerebral palsy, and many older relatives and friends who have lost their mobility with age. Some of them may never hike along a nature trail, but just getting to a scenic trailhead can be enough. Those who can’t get out easily might also enjoy an “armchair hike” by looking at nature photos.
I circle back to thoughts of my dad in his last days, unable to move much outside of the chair in which he watched TV, ate meals, and often slept. His chair sat near a big picture window from which he could see the grass and trees where he might have memories of playing with us as kids, or where he might watch deer and rabbits wander through.
We can’t always get to a mountain trail, a forest path, or a beach to walk. I wish for everyone to find a moment each day to take a calming breath and spend a few minutes at a window looking outside. Listen for birds, notice what plants are growing, or watch a spider build a web. The simplest things have the greatest power to lift us up!
“The Paths We Cross” ©2024. Lisa Louis and The Renaissance Garden Guy
In addition to her profession as a writer, Lisa Louis works as a Japanese technical document translator, a skill she developed after living in Japan for several years and then working at Hitachi in the U.S. Besides providing her with a substantial linguistic and grammatical basis for her work as a translator, her experience living in Japan also led her to write her first published book, Butterflies of the Night (hardcover and out of print, but available in an Author’s Guild Backprint.com version), about the history of Japanese nightclubs.
Visit Lisa Louis and HikingAutism at hikingautism.com, like her on Facebook at facebook.com/HikingAutism, and follow her on Twitter (X) at twitter.com/HikingAutism, and on Instagram at Instagram.com/lisalouis777.*
My very special thanks go to Lisa Louis. I believe you’ll agree that her work is wonderful. And I’ll add one more piece of info right here: In addition to finding her work by reading her books and visiting HikingAutism and her social media accounts, RGG readers and subscribers will be able to also enjoy brilliant examples of Lisa’s writing right here in The Renaissance Garden Guy. Yep. She’ll be contributing examples of her work on a semi-regular, to regular basis, and I’m honored to call the amazing Ms. Louis an RGG contributor! Well, hell, sports fans, how amazing is that? And while I’m in the mood for extending gratitude, as always, I thank you my dear readers and subscribers. Your continued kind interest and readership is dearly appreciated.
Cheers, and Happy Gardening!
*Note to readers: All photos are courtesy of Lisa Louis.
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Totally awesome that story is – and so powerful. As a person with autism – I wish something like that had been available when I was younger. But then again, I didn’t get officially diagnosed until I was in my mid-60s.
Blessings to Lisa and her son.
Thank you for reading Lisa’s wonderful piece and commenting here, Annie. I’m glad that you found Lisa and Sean’s story so amazing and powerful. I do recommend visiting her remarkable site, HikingAutism, and following her on her social media platforms. (Links to her site and her sm platforms can be found in her piece in The RGG.) Thanks once again, Annie.
Thank you for reading the piece, Ann. I have had the pleasure of having late-diagnosed women join the group hikes I lead for families here in the Bay Area, and it is always fascinating how autism manifests itself in subtly (and not so subtly) different ways in girls and women, making it harder for them to receive a diagnosis and understand why they have had extra challenges in life. Blessings back to you!
Lisa and Sean’s story was very inspirational. It should make us all stop and be grateful for our health and for all the simple joys to be found in nature. We just need to stop and “smell the roses.” I hope to read more of Lisa’s work here in The RGG in the near future.
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You’re absolutely right, Kevin. Their story is a remarkable one. Lisa’s and Sean’s triumphs in the face of the challenges presented by Sean’s autism definitely underscore the benefit of nature’s power, and the ability to persevere and flourish in those who keenly perceive and appreciate it. Thanks so much for reading this wonderful work, Kevin, and for commenting here.
Thank you for reading the piece, Kevin. You have hit the nail on the head with your “stop and smell the roses” idea. Even the smallest pause to take a breath and appreciate some element of goodness or beauty around us can be so helpful!
Such a beautiful touching story of unconditional love and the power to overcome all obstacles in finding a way to enrich the life of her son… Nature is indeed a powerful source….
Thank you for sharing this amazing story of pure love and hope 🙏🌹❤️🙏
Agreed, Roxxy. Lisa has related beautifully the power of both love and nature to bolster the spirit, enrich the mind, and ultimately empower the body. The synergy she describes is, without a doubt, miraculous. Thank you for reading this lovely work, Roxxy, and for sharing your own lovely thoughts here in The RGG.
Thank you so much for reading, Roxxy, and I hope you have plenty of opportunities to enjoy nature in your life as well! The “unconditional love” you mention here is something I come to understand more deeply each day as time goes on. Thank you!
What a beautiful and insightful piece. Lisa so cleverly captures the joy of immersion in nature and the outdoors. I loved the focus on how that can be a possibility for those faced with restrictions. Having supported a parent with dementia, I know it is possible, with a little creativity, to create and enable these experiences. So glad Lisa will be a regular RGG contributor.
I agree with your take on this beautiful work entirely, Sam. Given your own experiences, I had a feeling that for you particularly, Lisa’s essay would powerfully resonate. Thank you for reading the work, Sam, and for sharing your lovely thoughts here.
Thank you for your kind comments, Sam! The dementia support situation has many parallels with our situation with Sean. Thank you for reading the piece!
Lisa’s life story is an example of living life to the fullest. She overcomes barriers for her son and enriches his life. Thank you, John, for this uplifting opportunity to read Lisa’s words.
I agree, Rick. Her experiences with Sean have been powerfully enriching for both of them. Thank you for reading the piece and for commenting here. It’s truly appreciated, Rick.
Thank you for reading the piece, Rick, and for your kind comments!