Dear Reader,
I went hiking again. Hence the repeat of song title. You might get jealous by the pictures here, but they are much better in person. So you can be even more jealous. The best part is you get to hear me philosophize this time. You missed it so much in the last post, I know.
This hike was done by Megan, Hannah, Jeremy and myself. It was a great time and I want to do it again...just with a little more preparation.
First off, let me tell you how scared I was for my life this time. We went up Bridal Veil Falls in Provo Canyon again, but this time we went as far up as we could. This meant that at few points were literally scaling rock faces and it was almost a sheer drop down the mountain side. I'm glad there were four of us together, two of which have experience mountaineering/exploring. It has been a long time since my adrenaline has pumped so much. I have pictures of the boulders we climbed up, but the pictures do not portray the correct sense of terror I felt going up.
On the other hand, the terror I felt is nothing compared to the pride we all felt when we reached the top. We were able to help each other with navigation, give pointers while climbing and even giving each other a physical boost. It was awesome to be working as a team, especially when we reached a point where none of knew where we were going. It was a true adventure! "Adventure is out there!" (And yes, we were quoting the Pixar film "Up" a lot. I think the only line we did not use from the film was "SQUIRREL!").
One thing I didn't know about going into this hike was the existence of a restaurant that is on top of the mountain. Let me rephrase that. I didn't know about the deteriorated remains of a restaurant at the top of the mountain that has gone through a couple fires, a landslide and years of weathering and erosion. We stopped there for lunch! The waiters and cooks apparently had the day off, but we had a good meal anyway.
The views were absolutely breath-taking! We could see almost across the whole canyon and we loved seeing the different rock formations that were around.
Now, the part you have been waiting for: my profound thoughts on hiking a mountain. You know how people say that being out in nature helps you feel closer to God? Well, that describes exactly what it was like on this trip. The spirit was so strong and it felt like every thought I had was somehow gospel related. Trials, life, beauty, etc...it was flowing through my head at break-neck speed.
As we were climbing the toughest part, I thought about how a mountain is like our path through life. There are parts where the trail is relative easy and life is good. You think you can conquer anything. These times are usually flatter, but you don't really feel like you are moving anywhere special. That changes when you reach a rock face and all you can see is a high wall with just a rope. That rope is your only way up, despite the amount of hope you have of finding another way. The rope is there to help, but it seems really risky. It's like those times in life when you know exactly what you need to do, but you do not want to do it that way. It can be going into a certain major, dating a specific person, breaking up with said person, apologizing to a friend, quitting a job or even taking a class. That one option that you know you have to take, but you it is taunting you. If you find yourself in that situation, grab the rope. You are a lot stronger than you think and you'll make it up. Don't worry about falling.
There was one point on our hike that we decided to take two different paths. My friend Megan and I went straight up the waterfall while Jeremy and Hannah went up a trail to the side. We lost each other for a bit, which made us worry just a tad. After deciding to continue upward, Megan and I heard Jeremy and Hannah off in the distance. We couldn't see them for a bit, but we knew they were there. Megan and I sat down and watched them as they came back to the path we were on.
This didn't pass through my mind while on the trail, but pondering this experience led me to think about friends of mine who have gone different ways or lost communication in our lives. I think it is very comparable to us. I went up one way and thought it was the best way to go, but then decided to try finding those people again. After searching, I heard them from a far. I have sat on the trail, much like the picture to the right, and watched as they come up and we have joined forces again.
In other words, finding the one and leaving the ninety and nine has a totally different meaning in my head now. I always imagined that the Savior knew exactly where the one lamb was (Which He probably did), but the trail to get there was not exactly easy. To find the one, we don't always know where to look or what to do. The best option is to keep going and keep looking. You'll find them.
Ok, I will stop with my profound thoughts now. Mostly I just wanted to show you more pictures and give you a taste of this experience. I probably will not say it was life-changing, but this hike gave me more of sense of what I want to do and what we should feel.
Happy exploring!
I went hiking again. Hence the repeat of song title. You might get jealous by the pictures here, but they are much better in person. So you can be even more jealous. The best part is you get to hear me philosophize this time. You missed it so much in the last post, I know.
This hike was done by Megan, Hannah, Jeremy and myself. It was a great time and I want to do it again...just with a little more preparation.
First off, let me tell you how scared I was for my life this time. We went up Bridal Veil Falls in Provo Canyon again, but this time we went as far up as we could. This meant that at few points were literally scaling rock faces and it was almost a sheer drop down the mountain side. I'm glad there were four of us together, two of which have experience mountaineering/exploring. It has been a long time since my adrenaline has pumped so much. I have pictures of the boulders we climbed up, but the pictures do not portray the correct sense of terror I felt going up.
On the other hand, the terror I felt is nothing compared to the pride we all felt when we reached the top. We were able to help each other with navigation, give pointers while climbing and even giving each other a physical boost. It was awesome to be working as a team, especially when we reached a point where none of knew where we were going. It was a true adventure! "Adventure is out there!" (And yes, we were quoting the Pixar film "Up" a lot. I think the only line we did not use from the film was "SQUIRREL!").
One thing I didn't know about going into this hike was the existence of a restaurant that is on top of the mountain. Let me rephrase that. I didn't know about the deteriorated remains of a restaurant at the top of the mountain that has gone through a couple fires, a landslide and years of weathering and erosion. We stopped there for lunch! The waiters and cooks apparently had the day off, but we had a good meal anyway.
The views were absolutely breath-taking! We could see almost across the whole canyon and we loved seeing the different rock formations that were around.
Now, the part you have been waiting for: my profound thoughts on hiking a mountain. You know how people say that being out in nature helps you feel closer to God? Well, that describes exactly what it was like on this trip. The spirit was so strong and it felt like every thought I had was somehow gospel related. Trials, life, beauty, etc...it was flowing through my head at break-neck speed.
As we were climbing the toughest part, I thought about how a mountain is like our path through life. There are parts where the trail is relative easy and life is good. You think you can conquer anything. These times are usually flatter, but you don't really feel like you are moving anywhere special. That changes when you reach a rock face and all you can see is a high wall with just a rope. That rope is your only way up, despite the amount of hope you have of finding another way. The rope is there to help, but it seems really risky. It's like those times in life when you know exactly what you need to do, but you do not want to do it that way. It can be going into a certain major, dating a specific person, breaking up with said person, apologizing to a friend, quitting a job or even taking a class. That one option that you know you have to take, but you it is taunting you. If you find yourself in that situation, grab the rope. You are a lot stronger than you think and you'll make it up. Don't worry about falling.
 |
| Jeremy was happy to see us. |
This didn't pass through my mind while on the trail, but pondering this experience led me to think about friends of mine who have gone different ways or lost communication in our lives. I think it is very comparable to us. I went up one way and thought it was the best way to go, but then decided to try finding those people again. After searching, I heard them from a far. I have sat on the trail, much like the picture to the right, and watched as they come up and we have joined forces again.
In other words, finding the one and leaving the ninety and nine has a totally different meaning in my head now. I always imagined that the Savior knew exactly where the one lamb was (Which He probably did), but the trail to get there was not exactly easy. To find the one, we don't always know where to look or what to do. The best option is to keep going and keep looking. You'll find them.
Ok, I will stop with my profound thoughts now. Mostly I just wanted to show you more pictures and give you a taste of this experience. I probably will not say it was life-changing, but this hike gave me more of sense of what I want to do and what we should feel.
Happy exploring!
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