Our weather forecasting in these parts are a bit lacking. I was told to prepare for cold temps, down in the low 30”s . I took this into account when I selected my piece of real estate last night. I parked away from the bluff and found a sequestered spot tucked away in what I call mangroves. I’m not sure if they are but they look all gnarly with red twisted bark and waxy green leaves. Anyhow they protected me from foreign invasion, no mice, no bears, no tics and no freezing temperatures.

Feeding the Hungry

When I took off today, my original plan was to hike into “Around the Bend Hostel.” Unfortunately, there was no room at the inn. Instead of getting a motel room in Hiawassee, I decided to position myself to reach the Hostel early tomorrow. This will give me a Nero as we say, little miles on a town day. My only dilemma is I’m out of food. Actually I still have a package of miso soup, some summer sausage and coffee but not enough to sustain my belly for the next The Crusaders for Christ came to the rescue. On my way to Deep Gap Shelter, they left provisions for me. Two bags of Top Ramen and BBQ Chicken. A hikers dream dinner. I’m set for one more night in the woods.

Glorious Woman

Today the women came back to the trail. I met several gals, all thru hiking and camped at Deep Gap. I so enjoy the company of other females, especially ones that are filthy dirty and stinky like me. We all talked about our lives back home, our families and what we want to eat when we get to town. There were quite a few hikers that showed up as the day grew on. Close to 12-15 which is the biggest bubble I’ve been in. Most have been hiking 6-7 miles a day. Just taking it slow and working up to bigger miles as the weeks go on.

Mexicali Reach out

It was a fun evening and I had a chance to share my grandson’s Sid’s experience in Mexicali over Easter Break. He went down there with our church to help build homes, interact with the children and deepen their faith in the Lord. Sid came back a changed young man, became part of an accountability group, and made new friendships. At church last Sunday, they talked about the teens and their long days. They’d get up early in the morning when the sun came up and would be in evening worship late at night. They had a picture that showed up in Sunday morning worship of one of the teens sleeping through the service. The blonde with his eyes closed and mouth wide open is my grandson! We all need rest from time to time.

Sabbath

Today was my sixth day of hiking without rest. As I was walking today, I was listening to a Audio Book about Spirituality that a dear friend shared with me. It talked about rest, and how in the Ten Commandments, a day of rest is the longest verse. It shared a story of Pioneer’s who were moving across America and as the trip became longer, and winter was getting closer, they argued and quarreled about pushing through without their practiced Sabbath. Half of the group continued with honoring their day of rest, even though winter was quickly approaching. But the second group pushed through tired and weary, trying to beat the changing weather. The faithful group made it safely to Oregon, as they were able to travel longer during their work days because they had adequate rest weekly. The others did not fare as well.

I am going in for a Sabbath tomorrow. My body is ready to recoup, relax and praise the Lord for getting me this far. It was not my planned day off trail but it is well needed and God-honoring. There are many times I push myself to the point of exhaustion. What good is that and what does it serve? Only pride and dishonor of the Lords’ desire for us. Even God rested after he created the heavens and earth. And so shall I.

““Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.”
‭‭Exodus‬ ‭20:8-11‬ ‭NIV‬‬