Jill's description of her growing relationship with, and subsequent marriage to Doug recalled Janelle's story at the beginning of the year about her greatest adventure. I think it's an important reminded that though we've spent a lot of time separating adventure from our everyday life, adventures don't need to occur on icy mountain passes or frozen seas. This was particularly important for as I prepare my final paper because I am planning on writing about a novel unrelated to the wilderness in order to further flesh out this idea.
I was particularly drawn to the line "I fell in love with Doug because there was no danger in falling in love with Doug." The idea that there was no danger implies that she did not go into this relationship looking for love--perhaps the most dangerous adventure of all--and as such was forced to be spontaneous and react to the unforeseen highs and lows that arose. This is another reason I think it qualifies as adventure. The implications of classifying this as adventure means no longer can we only consider world class ice climbers or pioneer sailors as adventurers--all of a sudden, we are all eligible for this title.
I was also interested in the role place played in her adventure. "I would not have had the courage to fall in love with Doug anywhere by Alaska," Jill said. The state taught her to "love and live life less conditionally," which allowed her to take this chance which she likens to a "trust fall." So while adventure can happen within the normal sphere of our everyday life, it may still involve a change of mindset--whether this is a change of setting, change of activity, or change of companions, adventure still requires some aspect of risk, but this does not necessarily mean our lives must be at stake.
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