The Journey

Yesterday I returned back to Camp of the Cross following my first-ever week of camping in the beautiful North Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park. We stayed there Monday-Friday, and the weather was beautiful pretty much all week. We brought 6 campers with us, and we spent all week either hiking, swimming in the Little Missouri, or playing cards (I'm serious- we played more than 10 hours of cards).

Of course we had ambitious ideas of long, difficult hikes coinciding with overnight backcountry camping under starry skies, but we first had to asses the abilities of the campers. They were grades 8-12, with five guys burgers and fries and one girl. The first day we were at the park, we hiked a nature trail and off-trail up a medium-sized butte. It was clear from the get-go that four of the guys and the one girl were going to be fine. It was also clear that one of the campers was going to struggle on any of the more difficult hikes, because he had a lot of trouble climbing up hills. We eventually decided that differentiating hikes was our best option, because we all walked the Caprock Coulee trail on the second day, and we had to split up during the rugged parts because we were simply holding some kids back (and we needed to get back to move out of our single campsite by noon so we could go to the group campsite).

On the third day we were planning on hiking the Buckhorn trail to the northeast Prairie Dog Town. It was a couple miles of uphill hiking out, lunch at the Prairie Dog Town, and then we would head back. We split up into two groups, one of which immediately started plowing down the trail, the other staying back and taking it nice and easy, with plenty of breaks in the shade along the way. I was with the latter of the two, and I brought along some informational supplies a local Pastor (hat-tip to Pastor Paul for the books) gave us, and I spent quite a bit of time identifying different prairie plants.

I must take a moment to say- it was BEAUTIFUL. We walking along the sides of the ridges, half of it through trees and brush in the shade, the other half of it in the open with stunning scenery all around. I know for a fact that if I would have been with the first group, I would not have enjoyed the hike as much, because I'd be spending more time watching my footing and less time looking up and around. In fact, at one point we were traversing a 300 foot climb with no switchbacks and halfway up we decided to sit down and rest for a little bit so the campers could catch their breath. We honestly just sat there in relative silence for ten minutes enjoying the amazing scenery.

When we had made it to the Prairie Dog Town, had lunch, and turned around to come back, the first group again took off. It took them 40 minutes to get back to the vehicles, and it took my group 90 minutes. On the way down the hill, the camper who was most struggling on the hike admitted that he enjoyed the slower pace. He said that he wouldn't want to walk as fast as he could anyway, because then he wouldn't enjoy the hike as much. "I mean, isn't that what hiking is all about anyway?" he said.

Woah.

I would imagine that sometimes people want to hike hard to see how far they can get, but I want to relate this to running because that's what I know. Often it's easy to ignore what's going on around me when I'm running and focus instead on the running itself. The road becomes an object to be conquered, and the weather is my enemy, forever fighting against my will. The sunshine is trying to cook me, and the sound of prairie disappears. I become a prisoner to my mind. What I need to remind myself at times is that life is too beautiful to simply run past it without looking. The road through the country is a beautiful means of my travel; the weather is different every day and can be learned from and appreciated; the sunshine is something we all need for life; I have ears to listen to the beautiful sounds of the prairie, too.

I would agree 100% with the camper that we need to slow down and enjoy what Creation provides for us, even when we are seemingly too busy to see it. I have two statements in the my running locker that each needs a 'yes' answer for it to be considered a good day:
1.) Did you do everything you could to be a better runner today?
2.) Did you have fun today?

I'll tell you what- this last week while I was slowly hiking through the badlands and thinking about everything I'm trying to do to shake off this IT band problem, I realized that both questions were answered with a 'yes'. To me nothing else can be done.

...well a little prayer can only help too :)

Take some time to enjoy your work today, because if you allow it to, the journey can be just as good- if not better- than the destination. Blessings!