Lessons on the West Highland Way, Scotland

The night was almost upon us, leaving just about 40 min of light left to reach the next stop, Drover’s Inn near Inverarnan. We were tired after walking along Loch Lomond all day, on the West Highland Way, Scotland.
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Our companions had long gone ahead. It threatened to rain to add to our woes and way marker or google maps could not tell us how far we were from the Inn. Overall a hopeless situation.
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I was making stupid jokes about the height of hills and trees. At one point we passed an older woman resting. She was heading to same village as ours and I wondered how she could be so calm. She was not sure of the distance-to-go either.
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I was thinking ahead to the worst that could happen. We had enough water and food with us for the next 2-3 hours. But did we have it in us to walk that long? We had already left a bothy far behind, so there would be no shelter if it rained. I was drawing upon my experience of the outdoors to see what best we could do in that situation.
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My walking companion, a perfectly fit person, was someone who had not been in the outdoors as much. I was worried about her after a point because a calm had descended on the banter we were having till then. She was vehemently opinionated about not wanting to be a drag. Was she tired without wishing to admit it? Was she nervous about being on the Way after dark? I did not probe further for fear of triggering more anxiety. We kept walking.
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At one point, I walked ahead and waited for her to catch up. I looked back to see her follow, slow but steady, give me a smile. I learnt that day, once more, that true strength is when you take on challenges by accepting the faith of others and by knowing you are lucky to have it.
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The source of that confidence of feeling prepared for whatever came next was not me. It was her.
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A 30 min walk later, Drover’s Inn and our worried but furiously waving fellow walkers were in sight. Our pace picked up at this welcome.
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I remember that day along Loch Lomond for more reasons than the natural beauty and in more ways that the passage of time. I remember the the West Highland Way, Scotland for the lessons.
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