The Odyssey Ends

Yesterday at about 11:30 pm EST my time on the mountain ended as we boarded our bus to return to Alabama. It had been an emotional evening with the banner signing and the fire of friendship ceremony. There were lots of hugs and lots of tears. The task now-- not just for me, but for everyone who was there-- is to take the lessons we learned and the new discoveries we made about ourselves and find ways to apply them t our lives away from Blue Ridge. I am reminded of Thoreau, when he said in "Walden" "I went to the woods to live simply sinply." I understand it now. Things are different there. You learn what you truly need, what things are really important and exactly how much is merely consumerism that we can do without. In my case, I went to the woods to rediscover myself and I hope that I have done just that.

Climb Every Mountain

Yesterday, at approximately 5:15 pm EST, exhausted and exhilarated, I completed a six mile, three hour hike/ climb up High Top and High Windy Mountains in Black Mountain,NC. This is a feat I would not have been able to accomplish one year and fifty pounds ago.

Approximately 75 of us started this climb. Two had to come down early due to injuries sustained during the climb. Parts of this climb involved literally pulling ourselves along using whatever roots and branches we could reach. Sometimes the path was steep and muddy. At three separate stages we had to climb areas of sheer rock face-- grasping to find foot and handholds where ever we could. On our climb was a teenager afraid of heights. One of the most remarkable things I saw was how the people-- and a couple of guys in particular-- helped her along the rough every tear and panic attack she had. She made it. This brave young lady, who I called my niece, Cecelia Price, accomplished a task she never envisioned.

At the beginning of the hike I had earphones in, but as we progressed, I realized that I needed to be able to hear the others. All along the way we gave words of encouragement, advice and support. And we made it. Some of us slower than others, but we made it. Some people say the spectacular. views from the top are your reward. I disagree.

Your reward is your sense of accomplishment after you have finished. I may have many spiritual and mental mountains left to climb in my life. I may never climb another physical mountain. But just this once-- I did.  Shout out to Dorian my fellow explorer and Sonny Cho from Prattville for getting Cecelia up that mountain. Shout out to D'Vonne for the words of encouragement and all the "selfies"! And especially to Miss Crystal who,like me, lost a lot of weight in the past year and saw this as a challenge she had to conquer.  We did it Crystal!  I know your trainer was proud.

Leaving It All Behind

Today was a very long and exhausting day. Somewhat emotional. The kids spent as lot of time in their families this morning. Meanwhile the Explorer's and Y's Guys prepared for "The Wreckoning"-- a team relay race / free for all in which you are guaranteed to get dirty, messy and sticky. Later in the afternoon  we had to help execute our well laid out plans. After dinner we returned back to our Explorer home base to talk about quality and service and how they impact the people we encounter in our Ys and the young people we serve. The night ended with a devotion in which Bob talked about weathering the storms of life. While he was doing this lightning was flashing over the mountain-- symbolism that I don't believe was lost on anybody. Then a fire was lit in which the delegates all burned a slip of paper on which they had written their biggest regret, henceforth and forever leaving that baggage in the past.

Black Mountain, North Carolina

Today was our first full day at the 2014 Christian Values Conference. We arrived after an eight hour bus ride yesterday. I immediately set off to explore my surroundings for this upcoming week. These mountains are part of the Appalachian chain and there are numerous hiking trails around here.

The delegates were divided into their "family" groups and had a "getting to know you" session. I am part of the adult volunteers called the Explorers. We do breakout sessions and we "test run" activities that will be done before the larger group. It's a lot of fun. I feel like I'm at camp myself! Last night there was a mixer for the delegates. The theme was Around The World. There were some truly outrageous costumes.

This morning I went for a hike in the woods. If I were to stay here for a longer time my legs and glutes would look fabulous. These hills are WORK! Being an early riser also gave me time to practice yoga outside on the balcony with only the trees as my company and a babbling brook in the background as my only musical accompaniment.