July 10, 2020. Today we set out to hike the “blue” trail at Indian Lake. While approaching the trail head, we saw some intriguing wooden stairs and made a last minute decision to follow them instead.
The sign at the base of the stairs shared history of a chapel sitting atop the hill. My husband, Nick, pointed out that the chapel was built in response to the diphtheria epidemic in the mid 1800’s. The irony was not lost on us as we considered the current global pandemic. It left us all pensive. We began our climb.
We climbed up…and up…and up, with hopeful anticipation. Eventually, we made it to the quaint stone structure. We hardly all fit inside. Yet, as we stood inside, we felt connected to the many people who have packed in and prayed in that space before.
After writing a prayer in the journal, we stepped outside to descend the wooden stairs. At that moment, the kids spotted a path going beyond the chapel. Ready to explore, we followed. The path lead to the most beautiful scenic lookout we’ve come across on our hiking journeys.
We stood there, in awe of the beauty for quite some time. While looking out over the land, I became keenly aware that God is. Often, I feel that God is love. And while I still very much believe that, today I was struck by the awareness that God is. Period.
I’ve written before about the impermanence of things, today, I was cognizant of God’s permanence. Since childhood, I’ve long struggled to grasp the concept of infiniti. I remember asking my mom often, but what came before God? My kids now ask me those same “God-sized” questions. The reality is, my limited human thinking can only begin to grasp the wonder of it all. The wonder of a God that always was and always will be. As I looked out at the scenic view and wrestled with many of our “God-sized” questions, I felt small—but in a good way.
After descending the stairs, we decided to keep hiking. We didn’t plot a course. We didn’t set an agenda. We just started walking. When we came to a place where we needed to turn one way or another, we paused, and picked our next turn together. We went where the wind blew us, just as we’d begun our whole journey that day. We walked with eyes and souls wide open. We watched the butterflies dance in the breeze. We spotted the bald eagle soaring above us. We chatted with those passing by. We spotted little baby toads. We watched dragon flies fly and small metallic bugs crawl. We basked in the healing awareness that God is. What that means? We don’t fully know. But, I suppose…that’s faith.
KNEP Hikes 