Adventures in Colorado

I just wanted to share this Flipgram video of my spontaneous adventures in Colorado! I took a literally last minute flight out and spent three days Doing It For The Story! Climbing Castle Rock (the namesake of the city), hiking the Garden of the Gods (incredible rock formations in Colorado Springs), riding world's longest water slide (1000 feet long) and even having time to check out some of the grad schools I'm considering was all in Austin sprit. Something super cool that made me think of Austin was that as soon as I got off the plane, I saw banners all over the airport for "Colorado School of Mines" which, although it's main focus is obviously mining, it advertised coursework and programs in renewable energy and sustainability, it was pretty cool and made me think of his goals in that field! I've had the privilege of going back to Colorado again since than, and I'll be traveling more this month for Law school tours, making sure to Do It For The Story with every adventure I can get my hands on! Click on the link to watch a short clip of my adventures!  http://flipagram.com/f/bUHvptllJu

Love,
Adam Stanton

The Navy a Bridge and Kayaking

OK I know that someone else posted about me kayaking but this trip is different and definitely was done with Austin in mind. Sherri and I went out through HB Harbour and decided to go to the Anaheim bridge. Neither of us had ever gone past it and really wanted to see how close the ocean was and how hard it would be.  We said that he would do it so we should too so off we went. Well we really got pretty far down the channel, passing look out posts and such but still could not see the ocean.  Next thing we see this boat with lights flashing heading right towards us and told us over his loud speaker that we were not allowed there and must return to the other side of the bridge.  We were laughing and trying to get moving that way but he was creating such a wake that it made it really hard.  I mean two 50 year old women are not really much of a threat to national security.  It sure made our day an adventure to remember.

Fast forward a few weeks and here we were kayaking again but with two more people Lianna and Janet.  We were once again out in HB Harbour and low and behold here we are at the same bridge. Hey Janet and Lianna had never been to the other side so Sherri and I thought why not.  Let's see how far we can get before they come after us again - I mean I was wearing my Austin shirt.  Well I guess when a ship is in port they are watching more closely and so we did not get far before they were on us and wanted us out of there.  We all just laughed and worked our way back to the correct side of the bridge and I think now I am done with that. Where can we go next????

Bridge to Nowhere

My name is Oren, I was honored to be one of the recipients for the "Do It For The Story" Scholarship. I've been blessed to hear many stories from many people who knew Austin. I've tried to embody Austin's adventurous and joyful spirit summer by going on a plethora of adventures! One that specifically stands out is when I went hiking with some of my friends to "

Bridge to Nowhere". Located in Azusa, this 10 mile hike in the dry heat leads to a bridge that goes nowhere. Also, under the bridge, there are ponds where one can go swimming in. While the hike is not in the most comfortable conditions, my friends and I decided to embark on this journey and "do it for the story". And it most definitely was worth it! I made some amazing memories with some of my friends that I'll cherish for a long time to come. We even hiked multiple miles inside the San Gabriel River! This experience, along with many other I've had this summer, are due to embodying the amazing attitude that Austin had. I will continue to wear the blue wristband that was gifted to me whenever I go on adventures as a reminder that I should be living life for the story and always be trying new and fun things!

Gaviota Peak

It was so nice this weekend Nick and I decided to tackle a big hike we've wanted to do for a while. It's called Gaviota Peak and it's an uphill climb for the first half mile or so. We had been hearing about the beautiful views of the ocean and surrounding hills. Not going to lie, it was a bit of a struggle for me and we almost quit before we got to the top. Nick asked me if I wanted to turn around about 3/4 of the way up but we agreed no, we had to make it to the peak. Austin certainly wouldn't have let us quit before we made it to the top. Needless to say, the views were 100% worth it and we had a great do it for the story moment. Happy Trails 

-Amy Fealy and Nick Recker

Backpacking through Italy!

"Your life consists of countless chapters. So what if this was a bad one? That doesn’t mean the book is going to be bad, you just have to keep reading.”

Austin’s accident was one of the first ‘bad’ chapters in my life that still stings to reread. Thankfully, a little bit of Austin’s spontaneous, charming memory is pumped through my veins with every adventure I've been on throughout my trip abroad! While I have written numerous chapters since his passing, there are a few notable ones that his memory has really made a huge impact on.

The most recent adventure we’ve gone on together was a week and a half backpacking trip through Italy! Our adventure started after about two weeks of being in Vienna; I was sitting on the subway (wearing my favorite Austin tank) with two of my friends when we passed the train station ticket office. Instantly, I had a huge urge to get out of Vienna and see some more of Europe before my schedule would be restricted by classes. The next thing I knew I was back in my dorm room packing my bags with a one way ticket to Venice, Italy in hand!

Here are just a couple of the pictures from our trip! Enjoy Austin Lovers!

Best,
Malia
(P.S. I apologize for my handmade sign)

During a tour of the Colosseum (Rome, Italy). 

Outside of the Basilica di San Pietro after visiting The Vatican & Sistine Chapel (Rome, Italy).

Austin helping me hold up the Leading Tower of Pisa! (Pisa, Italy)

Before our Gondola ride in Venice, Italy (Sorry, my first sign wasn't legible)! 

Out of the city, into the hills

Mariah:

Alright readers: something that I've struggled with and discussed with other Austin-lovers is finding an adventure Austin-worthy to blog about. After a much needed dinner and discussion with Tom and Julie, they helped me realize that the blog doesn't need to be my most epic shenanigans (because those probably shouldn't be shared here), but anything that I would have shared with Austin or makes me think of him. Which, I'm sure most of you agree, would be a lot of things...
Which brings me to this entry. March 12th came around and Julia texted me asking if I wanted to do an Austin inspired hang out. The answer to that question is always yes. And what more cliche of an Austin adventure is there than a sunset hike? I realize that this is probably overdone, but as stated, Julia and I decided that it's not the spectacle of the event, but the fact that we're brought together by him and his spirit.
Our final destination is Blue Hills Reservation. We meet on the T and train on down to Ashmont. Next step, catch a bus to the reservation. This is where Austin throws his first curve ball (think the choppy waves of the paddle out, but less dangerous)...Julia wants to save 6 minutes by taking Bus 12 instead of 240 since it takes the same route. We hop on and as we near the reservation we realize no one has gotten off. Strange. But we are kinda in the middle of nowhere, so we ignorantly press the 'Stop Request' button. 5 minutes later, we've now passed the reservation and no one has beaten an eyelash. Then Julia spots a little crumpled up sign on the front of the bus that reads something along the lines of "THIS BUS DOES NOT STOP UNTIL (someplace much further than we wanted t go) Take 240 for all intermediate stops"....Sooooo, standing and packed like sardines, we laugh it off and have a conversation with a 3 year old African American girl about her best friends and how we can't have her juice. After continuing half an hour out of the way and catching the 240 back after it's passed us and looped around, we finally arrive back at the reservation. Good thing we left early...

If there is one thing I loved about Austin (yes, just one....sarcasm), it was our mutual love for spontaneity. With half a map of the reservation and no plan, we decide to just wing it, walk into the wilderness, and let our Pocahontas-like instincts take over. The trails were cool. We would mark our crossroads with makeshift stick arrows so we knew where we came from as we climbed along. We had two requirements: climb high, and see water. Both of which were accomplished. At what was arguably the highest point, Julia spotted the Boston skyline in the distance. Super cool. Like being in two places at once. We continued on to a reservoir and then circled back, stopping to sit on a rock and chat as the sun set. I think Austin liked hikes because it's a mix of two awesome things: Natural life and a potentially awkward extended amount of time with someone in which you are inevitably about to have a "life chat". If you haven't had a life chat (particularly with Julia in my case), you must. It is the most effective way to get to know someone and usually revolves around both deep and probing questions and shallow, gossipy hook ups. What could be better?
The sun sets and we decide it's time to go. Austin curve ball number 2: we get about a quarter mile from where we stopped on the rocks and the trail opens up into this huge meadow-type deal with a perfect view of the city. whoops. This reminds me of the time Austin and I pulled an all-nighter at Jeff's house to watch the sunrise from the roof, just for the horizon to be covered by trees, houses and clouds. So close. Thanks for rubbing it in...

To top off a wonderful evening, we get to the bus stop and, because obviously we didn't plan anything, we find out that the next bus doesn't come for another hour...curve ball number 3. Did I mention we were in the middle of nowhere? So, we walk along the bus line in pitch blackness towards home, debating hitch hiking, using mother nature's toilet (Julia must have the biggest bladder because at this point Ive had to pop a squat twice. TMI?), and sharing beloved Austin stories. 7 hours later, we finally make it home. Full day. Which is always a great day.

                                                        Julia:
So yeah, Mariah summed it all up quite well! Great day with a great person. More summer shenanigans to come! All I have to add is what I wrote in my journal at the end of that day: "Quality adventure today with Mariah! We set out looking to have an 'Austin adventure' and upon arriving home, I wondered if we met our goal. Then I realized that an Austin adventure is anything that entails enjoying the company of someone you care about and being fully present doing whatever you're doing. So today definitely counts. I want to be who is capable of making any day an adventure, certainly something that can be said of Austin."

The Great Wheel

For those of you who don't know me, I am Brittany and Allison's mom. Prior to moving to Bellingham, Washington in 2010, we lived in Huntington Beach, California for over 20 years. One of the great joys of living there was watching our girls grow up with such wonderful friends. During high school Austin was a frequent presence in our home. My memories of him are ones filled with joy and laughter. I always knew when Austin had been there because he took great delight in unscrewing the bedknobs off of Brittany's bed and hiding them in imaginative places all over our house. It often took us days to locate them. If Brittany's bed had the bedknobs missing I knew Austin had been there! Like everyone who knew him, he is always in my thoughts and my heart. I am happy that the last time I saw him was when he came with Brittany to our home in Bellingham. He was a joyous presence here as he always was in HB.

Austin was very much in my thoughts last week as my husband and I traveled to the east coast. Along with having a wonderful visit with Allison and Jeremy in New York City, we also traveled to Boston. As we walked in the city I could feel Austin there. His spirit was with us as we traveled in this city that he loved. We came back to Bellingham the day before Mother's Day and of course the first anniversary of the loss of Austin.

Brittany and I drove down to Seattle on Mother's Day. We had a great day of shopping, eating delicious chowder and buying bunches of flowers at Pike Place Market. Last June a 175 foot ferris wheel called "The Great Wheel" was built at pier 57 at the Seattle waterfront. The wheel extends 40 feet out over the water and on a clear day you can see the city skyline including the Space Needle, the Olympic Mountains, Mount Rainier and beautiful Puget Sound. I have been trying to get Brittany to go with me since it was built. I am definitely not the most adventurous person in the world, but I thought this was something that I could actually do! Well, we did it on May 12 and the view was amazing. I marveled at how blessed I was to have been able to stand on both coasts in the span of a week. To look at Boston harbor and think of Austin there. Then to look down from The Great Wheel at Puget Sound and remember this day one year ago. As we were leaving Brittany said to me, "a little better than our shopping trip last year, huh?", recalling our vain attempt to mark Mother's Day on that horrible weekend one year ago.

She was absolutely right. While our hearts still ache, this is exactly where Austin would want us to be, high atop Puget Sound taking in the view and "doing it for the story". It was "a little better than last year". And I pray for all of you who loved Austin, that you can find joy in each day and that gradually it will get "a little better".

-- Genie Koenker

A Weekend in the Whites

This past weekend I went up into the White Mountains in New Hampshire with the BU Outing Club. We made it to the summit of two mountains, Mt. Pierce (4,310 ft) and Mt. Jackson (4,052 ft) on our 7 mile loop with a total of 2600ft vertical gained. Every hike (or tramp, as they are called in NZ) I've ever been on there's this amazing feeling that hits you when you first come up above treeline (or maybe its just the strong winds up there). Up there you can leave anything you want to behind, below among the trees. It's a peaceful escape up above the world, weather permitting. I got really into hiking/tramping while over in New Zealand with Austin and I brought my passion for everything outdoors and spending quality time with quality people on adventures back to Boston. I've met so many amazing people on my past hiking and camping trips, and I'm always excited to meet more. I've learned its all about the people we surround ourselves with, and I, as I am sure many of you do, keep Austin close to me always, especially on adventures.

Love Always,
Julia

109m high, 60 m of free fall, reaching 150Kph with a 200 M arc

So I am incredibly scared of heights. I used to avoid them when possible, however, I have wanted to overcome my phobia for ages now. Fortunately, the perfect opportunity presented itself to me in Queenstown, NZ when I was offered a Canyon Swing. At 109m high, 60 m of free fall, reaching 150Kph with a 200 M arc I thought what a better way to conquer my fears. So on 3/20/2013 at 3:15pm I got on the bus with a few friends and rode up to the canyon that I sould be throwing myself off of. I would love to say I was brave enough to do it solo but I wasn't, so my friend Rob helped me out by going tandem with me. We decided to go backwards which has a 4 underwear raitng and is described as very scary on the (poop your pants) rating scale. The ment responsible for our harnesses joked around with us saying that things looked alright, asking if there was more duct tape but there wasn't and "oh well, it's good enough", saying he was still a little drunk from lunch...It all seems funny now but I wasn't laughing then. They had us inch over to place our heels over the edge and at this point my whole body was shaking and I was nauseated. They lean you back for a photo and tell you stay nice and stiff and just lean back. Then they bring you back to standing at which time you count down from 3 and jump. I knew that Rob was going to jump and when they counted down I had to just shut my eyes and go with the flow. My eyes remained closed for the three seconds of free fall but then I opened them up to the amazing view. I was still very shaky and was just kind of laughing at the fact I just jumped off of a cliff. I am glad I did it but will probably not be doing it again. I kept thinking about Austin's bungy jump video to find the courage to do this and it definitely helped. I am still a little scared of heights but now I have a new perspective and I am better for the jump and for knowing Austin.

-Rebecca Crastnopol (Austin's Water polo coach at BU)

Our Catalina Adventure

Back in June, Tom and I were driving home from Northern California when we passed a sign that said you can go to Catalina free on your birthday. Well it was June 17th which is my bday so a bit late for that but Tom's was coming up on the 23rd. I said, "You know they have parasailing in

Catalina and I told Austin I would do it someday". Tom said, "Let's go" and that is how it started. Next thing you know we decide that we should all go and so Matt drove down for the weekend and off we went........

We had the earliest boat out because that was all that was left when we decided to do this but that was ok, it just meant we had lots of time to play. Tom got his "Birthday boy" sticker which he wore proudly.

It was still a bit to dark and cold for water sports so we decided to go mini-golfing (bday boy was free). If you have ever gone mini-golfing with any member of our family you will know that we are a bit competitive. Well get all of us playing and what can I say - it made for an interesting morning. We all had our Austin shirts on so we know he was joining in as well. There was an older couple behind us so we offered to let them pass us since we had 5 but they said they were really enjoying watching us play. We are quite something.............

After that we were starving from our strenuous game so we found a good breakfast spot and chowed down. Next we headed over to the cove and decided to

go snorkeling for a bit. It was a little cold but most of us went for it anyway and had a good time. The bday boy watched our stuff and took pictures which meant he did not feel like getting wet and cold. I mean that is all part of the adventure right?

NOW it was time for the thing we all came for................. PARASAILING!!! It had sounded like such a good idea until it was really time to go. I kept thinking about the conversation with Austin where he told me to try skydiving and I said, "No way, maybe I could handle parasailing but never sky diving". He said, "Then do it mom, really just go and do it". So here we were all 5 of us getting ready to "just go and do it". First up was Nicole and Travis 

and it was fun watching them up high and getting dipped in the water. They were yelling and cheering so were we, it really looked so cool. Here are some of their pictures. 

 But when it came time for Tom, Matthew and I am was really starting to second guess the whole 

thing. You get strapped up, sit down and next thing you know the boat pulls away and up you go. IT WAS AMAZING!!!!!!!! We were laughing and screaming and loving every minute of it. We got brought down and dipped in the water and up again. It was over way to fast. I would do it again sometime but Austin would say there are so many other things to do.
After the highlight of our day Nicole took some time to relax and lay out, Matt & Travis went out kayaking and Tom and I headed off on a 2 person bike (never again). Biking was fun but I think we each need our own bikes in the future. We finished the day at a great local Italian place and the food was delicious. We enjoyed each others company over a great meal and then just wandered back over to the boat. We had the last boat of the night for the same reason as the early one but it worked out great for us. The day was great and it was because we decided that we needed to be more adventurous, be more spontaneous, be more like Austin and really learn to 

 enjoy life. 

As Tom and I sat in the row behind the kids talking about our day we looked at their 3 heads and 4 seats and knew that one very important person was missing from all this and felt his loss so strong in that moment. Things are hard and sometimes scary but for Austin we will continue to "Do it for the story".   

A visit to HB

Over winter break I decided to make my first (and definitely not last!) visit to Huntington Beach, CA! I had met the Brashears before but other than them, I had never met the people I was flying across the country to hang out with for a week.

This story begins with the longest it has ever taken me to get through airport security. Maybe next time I’ll listen to the suggestion to be there 2 hours prior to departure time. Oops. But it was all good because I was in my seat with minutes to spare before take-off.

When I landed in LAX, Brittany and Sage picked me up from the airport and of course we had to go eat. They took me to TK for a burger, crossing the first place off of the to-do list of places I had to eat at. After spending the afternoon at the Brashears Sage, Brittany and Cole took me to Ruby’s on the pier for dinner. Other places on the list were Taqueria, In-N-Out, and Harbor House. Yum! And of course I had to take a “first time at In-N-Out pic” when we finally ate there.

While on the topic of eating, Julie cooked us some great dinners and of course we devoured her famous bread and jam! And yes, I did do things other than eat while in Huntington.

We had a game night at the Brashears, where everyone was defeated by Tom at Fruit Ninja. We also played Scattergories, Catch Phrase, and the game where you put a famous person’s name on your forehead and you have to figure out who you are. There was lots of good natured arguing because it’s a particularly competitive group of people.

I spent the nights in Sage’s top bunk, sometimes sleeping but mostly talking about anything and everything. So many life-chats.

One of the days Mariah joined me for a dip in the ocean even though it was 52 degrees. I could pass up a swim in the Pacific Ocean! We had a lovely photo shoot with Brittany’s underwater camera. That night we returned to the beach for the sunset, which was beautiful and Catalina
was exceptionally clear that evening.

Going to Knott’s Berry Farm with Nicole, Sage, Mariah and Chelsea is another highlight of the trip. I definitely to freaked out about Xcelerator and Supreme Scream to everyone else’s amusement. Then I pulled myself together for the rest of the rides. Ghost Rider, the classic wooden roller coaster, was the best and last ride of the day! That was such a fun day of rides and plenty of time for story telling while waiting in line.

And, I spent the last day of my trip at Disney! A magical way to end an amazing trip. Found out just a couple days before that Anne, who was in NZ with me, and Andy, a kiwi visiting from NZ, were also planning to spend the day in Disney. It was really great to see them too and crazy that our plans worked out to meet up.

I felt so at home with a group of people I had just met. I love you all! I cannot thank you enough for how welcoming you were! Such an amazingly loving group of people!

Hey Austin, thanks for helping me meet such amazing folks and make a bunch of new friends!

Love Always,
Julia

Adventures

Hi!
Just wanted to say that this Do It for the Story IS THE GREATEST IDEA EVER. My name is Mia, I am Tori Pinheiro's little sis and had much great fun with Austin. You might like to hear that this Do It for the Story inspired a friend of mine to start a similar concept for another adventurer at UVM that passed last year. I'm sure Austin would love to know that he's still inspiring people all over in big BIG ways. I included my adventure too:

There it was, the grand finale of summer. Packing my parents van with a mixed knot of emotions tangling in my stomach, shutting the door and waving my see-you-later’s to the ocean, I was off on my most grand adventure to date: leading a group of UVM freshies forty some-odd miles kayaking down Lake Champlain for orientation!

We went through training week, getting paddling lesson from kayakers who had circumnavigated Japan, learning how to cross a white water river by foot and spending quality time camping with the fifty other leaders who were going to take out all sorts of trips! I was ecstatic when the freshman we had been preparing for began to arrive for the excursion. Me and my co-leader Liza named our group the “Alluring Vibrant Islanders”, and had ten fresh man to bring on this grand kayaking escapade down Champlain, to arrive in style to UVM, by kayak. Our kayaking guide was ben, he is a super experienced guide and actually has a peg leg. We were dropped off on the Northside of the lake, with all our food/gear/clothes/tents packed into our kayaks. Packing was tight and we were only supposed to pack two non-cotton shirts, but I successfully smuggled in my TEAM AUSTIN tank and wore it often. 

We paddled about 45 miles over the whole week and stayed at a different island pretty much every night! We snuck in a sunrise paddle to one of the islands and on the last night we had to do a paddle from New York to Vermont under the stars due to implement weather conditions predicted for the next day. It was epic! (and a bit scary) Friends were born, miles were paddled and stories were told, you can bet I told Austin’s. Who is Austin, my friend asked me. Austin was an adventurer, and he is coming with me. Austin lead orientation for Boston University and I can only begin to imagine how STOKED the freshman at BU must have been after having all that spunk show em’ the ropes. I think he gave me a bit of his spicy spunk to share with my own adventuring freshies, so thanks austi-pasti, we had a rockin’ good time (:

Happy adventuring, Mia
Peace Love and Adventures

Namm Naa La

Hello! For those of you who we haven’t met, Assalaamalekum! Our names are Stephen and Jenny. We are both students from Boston University who were fortunate to be friends with Austin. This world seems so small sometimes, as we both happened to end up in Senegal. Stephen graduated in May and got a volunteer position in Thies, Senegal with an NGO called Tostan. Jenny is spending the fall semester of her senior year in Dakar, Senegal.

In our overlapping time thus far, we have been lucky enough to meet up a few times. It’s such a strange but wonderful feeling to see someone from home in such a foreign place! This past weekend, we set out to spend a day at one of the beaches here, La Virage. However, we ran into some trouble with the locals harassing us Toubabs (white people) and couldn’t decide what to do. Then we made a spontaneous decision to crash the pool at the hotel nearby…but of course, felt too guilty to actually follow through. We ended up asking if we could pay to swim in their pool, and 5000 cfa later (almost $10, a hefty charge in Senegal!) we were splashing in the pool in true American fashion. Between work and school, we haven’t had any time to truly relax and be amongst friends, and this was the perfect way to spend the day. Austin’s presence was truly felt, with his bracelet on Jenny’s wrist and Stephen’s red Orientation backpack poolside.

When two Wolof-speaking Senegalese people see each other for the first time in a long time, one will typically say to the other Namm naa la which is often translated as ‘I missed you’, but, ask any Senegalese person and they will tell you that its meaning is much deeper than that. It refers to nostalgia, in the strongest sense of the word, nostalgia for times enjoyed together in the past. The response, Maa la raw, or ‘I missed you even more’, is a testament to those good times. Our afternoon at the pool in the immense capital of Senegal not only allowed us to unwind a bit, helped us to reflect on many of these good times we shared together with Austin and our many friends back home in Boston.

Love, 

Jenny and Stephen 

I walnut stop...with the tree puns

alternative titles:
"Maple we should leaf the puns aside, and get to the root of this post..."
and "Willow you appreciate more ash-tonishing jokes? Oak then"


Bet you can't guess who came up with those titles? Anyways, as you can see in the post before this one (here), my sister recently married her high school sweetheart at a beautiful ceremony in Aurora, OR. The day was an unforgettable celebration for us all and I was lucky to have Sage and Cole with me to experience it. For months the three of us had been talking about getting tattoos together but we struggled to find a time when we could all be together in one place. Lucky for us, Allie and Jeremy's good friend, Joe, is an incredible tattoo artist at a shop in Portland called Artwork Rebels. He worked with us on designs and managed to squeeze us in the morning after the wedding before Cole had to be at the airport to head to Australia.

Brittany:
The tree that Joe designed for me came out exactly like I imagined. Like several other people, I drew inspiration from the song that we sang at the service.

"Take a breath and soon I bet you'll see

Without you I would never be me

You are the leaves of my family tree"

I had never felt as alone as I did in the days immediately following the accident in New Zealand. I was up at school in Washington when I heard and I wanted so badly to be down in HB with family and friends but unfortunately it didn't work out that way. As difficult as the day of the memorial was for all of us, singing that song surrounded by such an incredible group of friends was the first time I felt like things might actually be okay in time and it helped me to realize how strong we all were. This tree was my way of not only keeping Austin with me, but also all of the people who came together to form such an incredible family in the face of such a tragedy.

This tree, to me, represents life. Austin has always had such a positive impact on my life and he continues to with each adventure he inspires me to be a part of. When I think of Austin I want to remember the remarkable way he lived his own life and not its end. It is too easy for me to dwell sometimes on the unfairness of this situation but in those rare moments of clarity, I feel incredibly lucky for having ever been able to call him one of my best friends. 

It seems the scars on my side have healed a lot faster than the scars of losing Austin, but it helps to know that I am a part of this family tree that is not only full of leaves, but an overwhelming amount of love, support, and of course adventure.

Sage:

For years I watched people get tattoos and wondered if there would ever be anything that I wanted to have on my body for the rest of my life. Until May 12, 2012, there was nothing that even came close. A couple of days after we lost Austin someone mentioned tattoos. I knew right then and there that this was something I could live with forever. In fact, it started to feel like I couldn’t live without it. I didn’t know what exactly yet, but something that would remind me of Austin, the struggle of losing him, and the strength it’s going to take to keep moving forward.

Deciding to sing I Won’t Give Up by Jason Mraz at Austin’s service was one of the easiest decisions I've ever made. It was the very first song we listened to and we knew instantly that it was perfect because of the message to stay strong, stay positive, and move forward in every way we can.

 I was so struck by four words that come up repeatedly and are ultimately the last four words of the song: I’m still looking up. To me, these words said it all. In the midst of the worst thing that has ever happened to me, I somberly realized it would probably not be the last tragedy I would endure. I couldn’t fathom feeling any more pain than I had been feeling, but my strongest emotion was somehow still positivity (or at least some contorted form of it). I wanted to be okay. I wanted to keep moving forward with my life and adventuring and more than that, be better at everything. I wanted to make more of an effort to make each day count. I wanted to find a way to remember the happy times with Austin first and try to make the fact that he is gone a second thought.

I decided to put the words on my foot very simply because that is how I move. Whether I’m going backward or forward, it’s my feet doing the moving and now it’s usually my Austin foot propelling me forward.

The words from the second song we sang at the service "Without you I would never be me, you are the leaves of my family tree," were so perfect because we knew that no matter where our lives took us, we would be bound by this pain and this love forever. Undoubtedly, I would not be the same person I am today without the influences of Austin and the other members of my Family Tree. We have all lost one of the leaves ofour tree and while that is something that truly never goes away, it is something we can help each other cope with.

I'm in love with my tattoo and the way it has reminded me that I can do anything I set my mind to because I am strong and because I have the best support system in the world. <3

I am so proud to be a permanent, lifelong member of Team Austin.

Best.Team. EVER.

Cole:

I've been dragging my feet writing this for a little over a month now. Not because I had nothing to say, or time to write it, but because I'm selfish. When I had Joe etch my wonderful, beautiful, painful tree into my ribs, I knew that forever and always you would be right here with me, and that little piece of you, was mine, and only mine. I could talk to you whenever I wanted, I could show you courage whenever I wanted, I could be scared with you, I could laugh with you, and cry with you: but most of all, it was a constant reminder that you were with me. Anyone who shared the memories we did, the time, the laughs, the adventures, would know that I'd get along just fine without a "reminder" but every time I look down and see my tree, my Morm tree, I love that I have something tangible to touch and feel, something that I can never lose, break, wear out, tear, my tattoo will be with me as long as I'm around. So cheers to you my friend, I think you finally got what you wanted, at least 4 girls, now permanently have a tattoo of you on their body! I know you're getting a kick out of it : )

With lots of love for our amazing family,

Brittany, Sage, & Cole

Wedding Crasher

A little over a year ago, Austin took one for the team and offered to ride with my sister on her road trip back to college after winter break. Volunteering to ride in the car with my sister for 20 hours speaks volumes about Austin's character, but that's another story. On their way from sunny Southern California to gray and chilly Bellingham, they stopped in Portland to recoup over night at the apartment that I shared with my boyfriend Jeremy. Jeremy hadn't spent much time with Austin prior to that visit, but he still talks about how much fun we had that night. You can read Brittany's post on oyster shooters for the whole story (http://doitforaustin.blogspot.com/2012/06/mmmtasty-but-sandy.html), but we all shared a lot of laughter that night over oysters and video game sword fighting.

Fast forward a few months...Jeremy proposed, I said "yes", and the wedding planning began. Brittany was there helping me all along the way, the perfect Maid of Honor. Jeremy and I had told her from the start that, "Of course you can bring Cole as your date" and "Sage is part of our family, you know she's invited". At some point I realized that I had forgotten to tell Britt that Austin was welcome to come. I called her right away to tell her to make sure Austin knew he was invited and that's when Britt said, "He was planning to crash the wedding anyway, but now he doesn't need to bring a lawn chair!".

When I heard about the accident-- among many other emotions--I couldn't help but selfishly think about the loss I would feel at our wedding. I knew that if Austin, Britt, Cole, and Sage were all at the wedding they would be the life of the party and they would have a great time because they were together. On wedding day there were multiple moments when I would suddenly think of Austin and how much I wished he'd been there, but here's the proof that nothing could keep him away.

We miss you Austin and I hope you were watching us from your lawn chair.

- Allison

Bridal Veil Falls- Not your everyday hike!

Well, I've been looking for something spontaneous and epic enough to post and during my entire stay in Utah i think this one by far takes the cake. Truly an Austin epic experience. Last friday I caught a break from work and i came home to my roommates packing up to hike bridal veil falls and camp at the old abandoned restaurant at the top of the mountain. I looked out the window, saw the clouds looked back at the roommates and they said "we'll be fine" i shrugged my shoulders and then said "why not", packed up my things in 20 min and we were on our way.

15 Minutes up the provo canyon and we were already at the base of the mountain. Its weird to think that I live 15 minutes from what id soon find out to be one of the sketchiest hikes of my life. From the very start in my head i thought it would have been a hike Austin would enjoy a lot. The hike itself was only about 5 miles, but it was 5 miles of straight up hill switchbacks filled with rick climbing up waterfalls hanging on to ropes and wire left from the few previous hikers that have actually hiked bridal veil. 3/4 of the way through the hike we came to a point where we needed to scale a 10 ft rock wall with a 30 lb pack on my back to get to the rope to pull myself up and scale another 35ft straight up to continue on the trail, so gnarly. Right when i though that i had just climbed the sketchiest point of the hike we'd get up another switchback and then there would be another point of the hike where id have to scale something suspended over 700 ft in there air. 

But i know without a shadow of a doubt Austin was there right behind me giving me that little extra push placing my feet and hands on the mountain where they needed to be so that id be able to summit the mountain. Unfortunately all the parts I mentioned i was unable to document due to the sketchiness of the hike i didn't have an extra hand to take a picture haha. We finally get to the end stretch which was a steel cable leading about 100 yards up the mountain at an 68 degree incline, everyone started to put on there repelling gloves but the girl in front of me decided not to so i thought to myself if she will be ok then i should be as well....big mistake. the wire was frayed in numerous places and its not something i could just let go of without rolling down the hill. After we finally get up that incline its about a quarter mile hike and the trail was 3 feet wide with mountain on one side and a sheer drop on the other side, and this was the mellow part of the hike. The destination we hiked to was an old restaurant that burned down and there was just the warped metal scaffolding left and a slab of concrete.

We all hung out hammocks we were going to sleep in crawled into them and tried to sleep because by the time we had got up there the sun had just set. I didnt get more than 30 min of sleep when I heard the first clash of thunder that woke me up. I looked over to my roommates Nolan and David and they both woke up too the lighting was a few miles away so we didnt worry too much that we were 1000 ft up on a mountain surrounded by metal at this point. So we all tried to sleep again while the rain drizzled down. The next time I woke up I was startled by thunder and lightening and this time the rain was POURING! We counted the time between the lighting flash and the sound of thunder to determine how far away it was actually striking, after a few minutes of trying to figure out if we needed to move or not we got down to about half a second in between lighting and the thunder clap well all unanimously hurried to a cave we spotted before setting camp to be sheltered from the rain and hopefully not have to worry about getting struck by lightening surrounded by metal haha. 

So that night in total all of us prob averaged about 1-2 hours of sleep at most. The next morning we woke up to beautiful sunrise over the mountains with partial cloud cover.....Then it started to rain again. So we decided we needed to go now or never because the storm was only about to get worse. We then hiked down what I thought was gnarly before, but now that everything was wet it was even 10 times harder. 

We got to to our first repel and i was soooo pysched there was a beautiful waterfall to the left and 

So we got to repel 200ft down it. It was such an incredible experience something id like to share with you all. I can picture me explaining this to Austin in much greater detail telling him how sketchy and how crazy fun the hike was and i cant imagine his response would be any different than "lets do it". I love you buddy miss you tons and ill keep on going on adventures and trips and anytime i have any doubt that ill be able to do it or if im being lazy or get pysched out ill always think to myself, Austin would go.

 Love Jeff