Feb 26, 2019
Karen Tracy's first experience with
the desert was the destination of one of her father's Sunday
drives. Her dad had a friend whose parents had retired in Joshua
Tree and were doing some farming... not the type of farming you
might expect. That house is still there, as is the little
shed that housed the farms product. Karen recalls her feelings
around the 'farming' and also remembers the owners proudly
demonstrating their toggle switch operated window blinds.
It would be a number of years before
Karen returned to the desert. A marriage to a fellow student at
dental school dissolved, but Karen moved forward and completed
dental school. Some of Karen's friends had purchased property in
the desert and she would find herself out here on weekends in the
70's and 80's.
After graduating and then leaving a
dental practice in Northern California, a friend called asking
Karen to come out for six months to assist with her own dental
practice in 29Palms while she took some time off for the birth of
her child.
Thirty-three years later, Karen is
still here.
During her stint helping her dentist
friend, Karen discovered climbing and the Joshua Tree climbing community.
Karen worked hard to become a climber who takes herself climbing,
rather than one who gets taken climbing. At one point, Karen was
working one day a week at the dental office and climbing the other
six days of the week. It was the climbing that cemented Karen's
decision to stay in the desert.
In this episode, Karen talks about
the fall during one climbing trip that not only broke her back, but
broke her arm in several places. After an attempt to self
heal, Karen heard a message calling her to try yoga. After an
attempt to self-teach by book, she decided to go to Los Angeles and
Hawaii for in-person classes culminating in a trip to India for
yoga teacher training as a way to improve her practice. A few days
after her return to the desert from India, she received a phone
call from one of the few studios in town to come and teach.
Karen also shares her experience with
Transcendental Meditation (TM) and talks about the meditation domes in Fairfield,
Iowa, as well as her involvement in the beginnings of Transition
Joshua Tree, a sustainable system based on the
Transition Network of Rob Hopkins.
Photo:
Elena Ray