We are used to the fact that public spacedoes not belong to us.
We don't necessarily realize it at first, because it's not something we easily become aware of. We're just used to moving aside in the street, making ourselves small, looking away, changing sidewalks and spot the emergency exits.
We are so used to it that we don't even know it, it's disconcertingly natural.
We unconsciously know that outside we are in danger, that we can get annoyed and attacked, everyone knows that.
And even when there is not necessarily any notion of danger, we don't have the right to take up as much space, we are less justified in occupying spaces.
Everything pushes us not to invest the outside, the common, the public.
It has never been up to us, neither in our history, nor in political decisions, nor in our personal lives, to be able to go outside whenever we want or at any time, to go out while being sure that everything will be fine in public transport, in the parks, on the street, at partiesit never belongs to us.
We can be accosted at any time, receive a series of unwanted requests, we can be touched, whistled at, we are constantly assessed, commented on, targeted.
We don't have access to the fundamental freedom of movement, we don't have the right to tranquility.
it allows you to reclaim all of that.
It's not perfect, obviously, it's not all good experiences but it's enough for being different.
Going hiking means being able to enjoy this freedom whatever your sex, your gender, your social rank, your experiences and your difficulties.
We are free to move around again and we are free to do with it what we want.
There is no one to look at us, judge us, oppress us, to make us feel insecure, no one to bring us back to our dominated place.
We can seize space, for ourselves, for others, for our rights, it's one of the rare places where we gain ground.
We must therefore occupy it, take up more and more space and continue to make it a safe place for everyone.
it is also our body that we reclaim.
We are managing to get rid of this notion of the woman object that we have built up over the years.
We can deconstruct, stone by stone, these concepts in which our bodies have become envelopes to be tamed, are there only to please, to seduce, for the gaze of others, obey unattainable standards of beauty and are often hated, devalued, mocked, stalked, subject to a number of diets that destroy health, to finally become a social body, an object body.
Yet they were very useful to us when we were children, whether we were girls or boys.
How long has it been since we paid him some kind attention? That we didn't feel it for what it is? That we didn't feel the sensation of our bare feet on the ground? The feeling of fresh grass between our toes? How long has it been since we climbed a tree to prove to ourselves that we can pull ourselves up with nothing but the strength of our arms? How long has it been since we last had fun running?
How long has it been since we last felt him vibrate with pleasure and joy?
It is even more important as a woman and gender minority, because when we reach teenage years, we are being dispossessedfrom him, little by little, we ends up forgetting what it was used for and we end up no longer fully possessing it.
As we grow up, we end up giving in to looks and expectations, we crumble under the control of a society that wants to do everything to control us.
And without really doing it the choice, we end up shaving for no reason, by being careful, by watching our body and our weight, by putting on makeup, by making ourselves smaller, by being cute and docile, by accepting remarks, hypersexuality
, we agree to compare ourselves, to endure, to adapt, not to disturb, to do less so as not to be noticed, we hide our breasts and everything else, and we end up carrying around tons of complexes and a cumbersome body that we no longer really understand.
Our body isn't supposed to be beautiful, or at least not as we understand it today.
It's not supposed to respond to rules and arbitrary standards and it's not supposed to belong to others.
He's there to carry us, to push us, he's there to sweat, he has real needs and real uses.
He just waits for us to grab him in mid-flight, to use him wisely, like when we were children.
He's waiting to finally be given the leading role again, the one that allows him to make us feel strong, capable and resilient.
Out there, in nature, if you only knew how we don't care.
It's time to let everything stand out, the belly, the fat, the ugly, no matter the shape of our skin, no matter the bodyhair that we don't find beautiful, no matter our face in the morning, no matter the noise we make, no matter the complexes and imperfections,
it doesn't matter what place you take.
it's infinitely political, whether we like it or not.
Because we allow ourselves to reclaim this space, to occupy it, we allow ourselves to exist fully,
we open the way for others, those who can't, those who don't dare.
Even today, all over the world,
not all women have access to the outdoors, they can't go outside as they please,
that's what we are fighting for, that's why we go there.
In France, we believe that there is no longer any need to fight because we have won all our rights
or because, at least, we are better off than elsewhere so that should be enough.
But this is false, they can take this space back as they occupy the street and the private.
Their violence is always there, everywhere, all the time, in the street as well as at home.
And then it remains places like so many others where we are underrepresented
because our history continues to tell us that our place is not there,
that we don't have the right to go outside, that adventures don't belong to us because we are too fragile, too fearful, too sensitive,
and simply not enough.
Even today we have to fight to find a place in the outdoors sports
to be able to challenge ourself and make ourself dream on the peaks, waves, walls and paths.
These wild spaces which allow us to feel more free, we must fight to keep them and continue the fight to seize everything else.
There must be thousands of us tomorrow to rewrite this story and change the course of things.
because I have never felt so strong as with the weight of my bag on my back.
It may be stupid to say like that, but I feel confident because I know that despite the pain and difficulties I am able to move forward and that this act is entirely mine.
I feel confident because I carry with me all my autonomy;
my tent to shelter me, my pot to eat, and everything I need to face adversity.
I feel capable and legitimate to be there in the same way as the others, and the more I advance, the more this is the case.
Hiking allows you, little by little, to gain self-confidence,
to learn to cope, to draw on one's strengths and resources.
It allows you to feel your body sweating, pulsing, quivering, suffering, struggling, it allows you to feel your whole body.
Take to the trails and fight so that one day they belong to women and gender minority around the world.
I hope you will find this article helpful. Don't hesitate to contact me on my socials medias, for any questions, it's with pleasure that I would exchange on this topic and the others.
Wonderful adventures to all !
