these moments.

i had a goal as we set out on our wilderness adventure. 

i will never have these moments again. live them. embrace them. knowing that God is taking care of me. 

our backs are aching. feet begin to hurt. we are walking on this trail. i have this moment. 

the dogwood trees are blooming. as we gain elevation we look down upon a sea of white. i feel the breeze. i see how these woods that were brown a month ago now are bursting with life. i have this moment. 

we stop for a break. the sun is shining. the birds are singing. i am tired. i lay down on the side of the trail. maybe i fall asleep for a few seconds. this moment. i will never have again. 

i watch as our five ranchers stand around the map. we mentors have been here before. we know the answer to the confusion. yet we stand & watch. their teamwork. this moment. 

our little campsite nestled at the base of the hill. a fire. a little stream. the supper of mac & cheese.  sunset. in this moment i am happy. 

standing away from camp. washing our cooking pots a rancher looks at me. i see panic in her eyes. a long embrace. "Lord thank you for helping me in this moment." 

songs around the campfire. laughter until tears. prayers as the temperatures start dropping. i have this moment. 

a tickle fight with a rancher at a river side break. this moment. 

a campsite by the river. i pitch my tent right next to the water. i smile for this moment brings me joy. 

i fall asleep listening to the water rush beside me. as the morning nears i hear in my head 

"ms. tif, look outside." the sky is being painted by the Great Artist. i watch as the soft glow turns brilliant red & then fades back to soft pink. & then the moment is over. God is taking care of me. 

 the list could stretch on. . . all the moments. given to me by God.

so more on this wilderness adventure. 

the trail. butterfield trail of devil's den state park. length. about16 miles. our trip was three days. two nights. fun fact about this trail. ms sam. ms jera. & i came & hiked it in one day over home stay to see if it would be a good place for this adventure. it was really funny to be back on the trail & not rushing to complete it in one day. 

night one

we set up camp just before the six mile marker on the first night. it was a cozy little site at the bottom of a hill with a few of us almost tenting on top of eachother. about 60 steps away a little stream ran down some rocks a perfect spot for water filteration.
the temperatures really dropped this night & i had a very hard time sleeping. 

i woke up & started a little fire it felt good when my toes finally started to be able to move again. 

a breakfast of instant oatmeal was had. a cup of coffee was drank & camp was taken up. 

this day held much warmth. the sun beat down upon us & the breeze & shady spots were much appreciated. we hiked at a pretty steady pace. a fun little break by the river. & then off to junction camp. shortly after the mile 10 marker you come to a crossroads. one trail leads to the end of the journey the other a steep descent down to the river about 1/4 of a mile below us. we turn
left to head down to camp. as we near the bottom i realize that we chose a good place for night. a cute little campsite was claimed & then it was time to cool off in the river. after our cool down session camp was set up. i claimed a tiny piece of level ground right beside the river. the group definetly heard too much about my precious little tent spot. it was so perfect. we have quiet time. we all take this time to do some writing. i sit & listen to the river. i think about the moments. & how God has been taking care of me. supper is had. laughter is much. & a few songs are sung before we pray & the girls head off to their tents. us mentors stay out by the fire & do some talking. the cold was not as cold this night & sleep was better. 

the sunrise moment. there in my tent the last morning in the woods i am reminded that God is taking care of me. i have the song God Will Take Care of You pinned to the bottom of the top bunk back at the ranch. as i lay there i often read the words. "no matter what may be the test God will take care of you."   it has been my song. often in my head. a reminder that He indeed with me all the way. 

i stumble out & start a fire. then take a trip down to the river. the cool water upon my face made sure that i was awake. today we journey out of the woods.  it felt at times as though the pace was much faster then it had been on the previous days. we take multiple breaks. our packs feel lighter as our snack supply gets lower. we stop near marker 14. its at the top of our descent that takes us to our lovely white van. we talk about our goals once again & say our theme verse. the group goal was "to practice quietness & find God in nature." a rancher mentions how she has seen God in the hills. suddenly our little group is singing His Great Plan. that moment. i am gonna keep it.  we spot the mile 15 marker but stumble off the path to spend some time with our feet in the water. that last stretch of trail seemed to be quite long. when the chariot was at last in sight permission was given for the ranchers to run. i look at ms. sam " i love our girls" 

we spend some time on the nice green grass. having a little snack. stretching. & ms. sam & i attempt to teach a rancher to do a cartwheel. our permit is dropped off at the office & a very quiet van full of incredibly stinky girls wanders its way back to the ranch. a feast had been prepared by mr. dougs & then it was bed time.

so now i take the moments from this trip. i write them down. i know that they were lived out to their fullest. i smile knowing God really did take care of me. 

till next time 

ms. tif. 

" the Lord shall fight for you & ye shall hold your peace " 

exodus 14:14