The idea of publicly talking about STDs is terrifying to me. Yet I’ve learned through this Imperfectly Honest journey that talking about hard-to-talk-about topics saves lives.

I’m realizing that, at the age of 44, I’ve never actually learned how to be sad, or how to admit that I’m sad.

On my third hike with my friend John, we had an incredible but taxing trek that involved six hours of stream crossings and mud puddles in 90-degree heat. We were a muddy, sweaty mess by the end, and we were EXHAUSTED and HUNGRY.