Joscelyne Hauseman
Central Pennsylvania. That’s where I hail from. A beautiful state—one of rolling Appalachian Mountains, winding rivers, and the most diverse seasons on the East coast. I grew up in a small town smack-dab in the middle of the Keystone State. My family resided on the side of a mountain just a few miles outside of our little town. It was there that I spent most of my wild childhood and adolescence, and I absolutely loved it.
I grew up an adventurous spirit—with endless acres of forest as my play ground. I guess you could say I was a “nature child,” a little girl who loved making mud-pies and playing in the woods more than any Barbie doll
or Disney movie (don’t get me wrong, though—I still love Disney movies!) My mother would tell you that of her four children I am the “fearless explorer.” Nothing ignites my soul more than setting off into unknown territory, ready to inhale what life blows my way. So when I found out that my boyfriend got an Environmental Engineering job in Charlotte, I was ecstatic. This was a new and promising adventure.
About 12 years ago, I visited North Carolina as a young girl on a family vacation to the beautiful Sapphire Valley in Cashiers. I immediately fell in love and decided North Carolina was a top three place I’d like to live. Well, my wishes were granted, and on November 1, 2015, my boyfriend, Juniper our kitten, and I made the 10-hour journey from Pennsylvania to Charlotte.
Moving is tough. Anyone will tell you that. My first few months here were rough (although the weather was unreal compared to what I was used to). I was away from my family and had to start all over again. I had no friends and knew no one. It was just me, my boyfriend, and Juniper for a long while. And then, one day in December, I decided to go exploring.
I found myself in the Piper Glen shopping center, and decided to go into this little shop called “Run For Your Life.” How clever, I thought, for I am a runner and indeed run for my life, health, and spirit. The people inside were some of the kindest I’d met, and welcomed me to Charlotte with open arms. After talking for a while, I was shown all of the running opportunities in the area—the run groups, greenways, and places to go that are “roadie friendly.”
It was great—for the next few months I was running with the Run Far group and had increased my road mileage by a landslide. I was stronger, could run longer, and was making friends. But something was missing. For months I could not figure it out. There was an emptiness that I couldn’t put my finger on—a void in my heart that left me anxious and quickly doubting any possibility of happiness in the Queen City. Then one morning I overheard a running friend talking about his hiking trip to a mountain just outside of Charlotte. My eyes lit up. That was it. I missed, no, needed the mountains. I needed my refuge, my peace, my home.
That weekend my boyfriend and I made the trip to the mountain. To avoid the crowd of people, we decided to take the “Backside Trail,” which was basically empty of all human life except for us. I understood why—it was really steep, and even walking up could be exhausting for most people. But we embraced it and ran at an easy pace up to the crest. As we neared the top, I noticed to my left that there was a wire fence that had been bent and rolled up, leaving just enough space for a body to crawl under it. Naturally, I went for it. And not-so-naturally, my boyfriend followed. “You’re crazy, you know?” he said, uncertain of the path that lay before him. “Crazy is subjective,” I retorted, “Now where’s your sense of adventure!” In the spirit of the great Robert Frost, we took the road less traveled. We scaled the side of the mountain, climbing almost vertically with our hands and feet gripping into the earth below us. Finally we reached the top, where giant boulders reared their mighty faces at us, silently beckoning us to “climb on up. You know you want to.” So, we did. And then I made it to the highest boulder and overlooked the amazing view. At that moment tears filled my eyes. My heart was pounding. I sat on the edge of the cliff, feet dangling above the sheer drop below, and took a deep breath. A sense of calm entangled in an immeasurable amount of happiness came over me. As I looked out over the miles of green valley, I realized I found what I was looking for. I was exactly where I needed to be. I was home.
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Joscelyne recently moved to Charlotte from central Pennsylvania. She graduated from Penn State University with a Bachelor’s of Science in Marketing and a minor in Communications. She lives in Ballantyne with her boyfriend, Steve, and cat, Juniper. Joscelyne loves running, climbing, and anything outdoors!
