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August 1, 2022

“Into the Wild I Go to Lose my Way and Find Myself” – 7 Life Lessons from Jon Krakauer’s Book “Into the Wild”

If you read my articles here on Peaceful Dumpling, you might recall me mentioning the name of Christopher McCandless aka Alexander Supertramp. The killer book of John Krakauer, based on the true life story of Chris changed my life forever and he instantly became one of my life heroes. I hope to encourage you to pick up this book or at the very least to watch the movie “Into the Wild.”, directed by the similarly inspirational Sean Penn (just thinking of his role in the movie “The secret life of Walter Mitty” – another unmissable, if you ask me.), with an awesome soundtrack.

“Into the Wild” inspired the adventurous side of the young adult in me by reminding me that I can change my life any time, even in this very moment.

I must admit, I had a quite big crush on Alexander Supertramp after reading Into the Wild. He was this free-spirited wild yet romantic character who flowed through life as he pleased, from one adventure to another and took any consequences as part of the game. He did things I always just dreamed of doing but I took  some important life lessons from his experiences and later courage to find my own way “into my wild”. He impacted me so profoundly, often when I find myself in a situation where I have to make a decision about my future I ask myself: What would Alexander Supertrump do?

The book and the movie helped me to understand the big problems in today’s society, inspired me to look deeply in myself, reevaluate what was important for me and presented me with the idea of living simply and appreciating what life has been given to me. It’s a book that makes you want to change the way you live and gives you a different outlook on life.

The first time I heared about the story of Chris was at university where my best friend talked about her presentation which had to be done about a character who inspired them. She chose Alexander Supertramp, who left his seemingly perfect life behind to live simply with no restraints in the Alaskan wilderness. He had money, a loving family, a college degree and anticipated going to Harvard Law School. But he came to the realization that he wasn’t living his life the way he wanted. He was living in a  bubble where money meant security, and hated where he pictured his future.  He believed the core of a man’s spirit comes from new experiences, he felt grievously cut off from the raw throb of existence, denied and even challenged society’s great need for superficiality. The need to appear better, richer, and smarter all the time. If he had stayed on the safe path, Chris would have been living the same life as millions of others. In his last letter he discusses the dangers of conformity:

“So many people live within happy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more damaging to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future. The very basic core of a man’s living spirit is his passion for adventure.” ~ Christopher McCandless

You might think Chris was dumb. Why would he throw it all away and burn his money, just so he can become homeless on his way to Alaska, where he plants to survive in the wilderness?! I can hear my parents voice echo in my ears… They would never understand. I always seen my parents very alike to the parents of Chris. And I recognized myself in Chris. Maybe that is why his life and choices touched me so deeply. I saw my own future in the predictions of his own, and I saw the death of my soul with it. Even now, more than a decade later if I re-read the book or re-watch the movie it moves something in me. I could be in the middle of my biggest adventure, I would still feel the urge to set out on another, greater one and it never fails to remind me of the greatest life lessons:

  • “Happiness is only real when shared”

The now famous line Chris wrote on the margins of his book of Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak are truer than anything. Not even the introvert in me can deny this. I love solitude and spend time on my own, but the best memories of my existence are linked with other people: my family, friends and loved ones, but even strangers I met just for a day and never seen them again.

Yet it is easy to get caught up in the wrong type of relationships and companions. Here is where quality over quantity matters. We are constantly surrounded and connected in this digital world. And yet… we are miserable and distant.Everyone has inherent need to have their alone time, away from people and phones. We need time for solitude but also for good, quality companionship.

  • Material things are just material things

Chris’s left a life full of privilege and wealth and became a homeless “Supertramp” with basically his shirt on his back and it’s hard to believe that it was a voluntary choice. Our society  determines our personal worth based on what we own. It is  difficult to let go of this material mindset that turns us into a gatherer of objects. We’ve been programmed to think our possessions will make us more… more valuable, more happy…  But the more things we own, the more our things end up owning us. You are more than your material possessions.

  • Don’t worry about the opinion of others

I keep wondering if Chris ever listened to the opinions of those around him, would he ever set out to live alone in the wilderness? Or did he choose this path because of the opinions of others? Probably both… but the lesson is:

Never allow the thoughts and negativity of others control you and your actions.

  • Trust before you give the benefit of doubt to people

Might sound contrary to the previous point, but Chris blindly trusted so many strangers: for a ride, shelter, food, employment… He showed courtesy, honesty, and hard work, even to those who disagreed with his plans and world view. But they all helped him. Give everyone you meet compassion, love and respect as default and you might see where it takes you. This is something I just started to learn and my boyfriend is a great example in this one to me. I often find myself not trusting people around me based on my previous bad experiences, with welcoming strangers in such a way, he proves me wrong almost every time and this leads us to magical experiences.

  • Get out of your comfort zone

Conformity is stunting us. We end up taking very little risk and sticking to routines. You don’t have to drop everything like Chris did and sort of run away from your life but more like opening yourself up for adventures, even if it is as simple as booking a vacation alone or starting to learn the violin after dreaming of it for 40 years. Life is too short to re-live the same day over and over again. We are too comfortable making excuses for ourselves to stay in our comfort zones.

“Don’t hesitate or allow yourself to make excuses. Just get out and do it. Just get out and do it. You will be very, very glad that you did.”

“You will see things and meet people and there is so much to learn from them.” ~ Christopher McCandless

  • Stop and smell the roses

In his last letter, Chris wrote to his friend, Ron that he can’t believe he passed by the Grand Canyon, one of the greatest sights in the world, often in a rush to get home. He was astounded that Ron did not once stop to observe the beauty of the world. The  Grand Canyon is a sight that every American should be able to see at least once and here is Ron passing by it all the time without truly visiting it once.

“The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun,” ~ Christopher McCandless

We are so caught up in our daily life, if we challenged ourselves every once in a while to live unconventionally, we would discover something entirely new and  beautiful.

  • Get out of your own way

In this above mentioned letter Chris wrote to his friend that everyone has the ability to be their own light at the end of the tunnel. Society pushes us towards the idea that we are never enough or not good enough or we are not complete (like the idea of your lover being your “other half”), truth is we are entirely complete beings on our own and we do not need anything external to us, we have all what we need already within us.

“My point is that you do not need me or anyone else around to bring this new kind of light in your life. It is simply waiting out there for you to grasp it, and all you have to do is reach for it. The only person you are fighting is yourself and your stubbornness to engage in new circumstances.” ~ Christopher McCandless

Right now, we are all on a journey to somewhere; everyone we know is a part of it. Make it count.

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