When Nature Calls

Hazel and I took a few days this past week to get away from things and clear our minds. OK, so maybe it was just me getting away and Hazel was along for the ride. Either way, we had three great days and two great nights of camping out at Mistletoe State Park last Wednesday through Friday.

I'd been thinking about it for a while and the weather and circumstances seemed to align for it to finally happen this week. I realize that I'm technically alone 90% of the time, anyway, but is anyone really ever alone anymore? While I do get lonely some, since Hazel isn't the best conversationalist and answers almost everything with a nose lick (which is actually helpful, sometimes), I'm always seconds away from almost any interaction (or distraction) I could want with HDTV, high speed Internet, and a cell phone. I really just needed to get away from all of that for a few days, refocus, and hopefully come back with a clearer mind. So far, I'd say, "mission accomplished."

This was my first time camping there, so I didn't really know what to expect. The ranger guy who checked us in explained the campsite options and we chose a "normal" site. That meant we had power and water hookups (which we didn't even use) and were in amongst other tents and, mostly, big RV-type things. We did a drive-by at all the site options and decided that #34 was the best one. Not only because of this guy, but it was right at the water, had a real fire pit area with stones already made up, and had no one at either of the adjacent campsites. That's win-win-win right there. Someone actually backed a motorhome deal into #33 about an hour later, but it ended up being fine.

In general, we spent the mornings hiking, afternoons reading, and evenings sitting by the fire thinking and praying.

Wednesday and Thursday I read until all the daylight was gone. I finished up Crazy Love, by Francis Chan and Mere Christianity, by C.S. Lewis. I can recommend them both and have a copy of each for lending if anyone is interested. It'll be a little like buying a used textbook in college, though, as I tend to underline things that move me and/or strike me as important. I also read through all of Exodus and enjoyed it, for the most part. I really enjoyed the story and history of it, but it seemed like at least 20% of the book was repeated verbatim towards the end and, honestly, that got a little boring.

After the sun had fully set I lit the fire and spent the rest of the night thinking and praying. It was really great. If I'd been at home, I'd have gotten in 45 minutes to an hour of reading/prayer ("quiet time") in the afternoon and then spent the rest of the night watching TV. Here I got to have great, honest, heartfelt prayer without distractions and it was awesome. I certainly had specific areas and people to focus on, no doubt, but I also just sort of let go and drifted for a while. One thought would lead to something else and next thing I knew I was praying for people I hadn't talked to since high school (as one example) and have no idea what's going on with them. I just went along with my flow of thoughts (stream of consciousness, so to speak) and it felt great.

Overall, it was an awesome time and I hope to go back soon. On one of our hikes, we went up into the "walk-in" camping areas. Here you park your vehicle and hike into the woods ~200 yards to find a campsite. I think we might do this next time. It's half the price, still on the water, and there's no big RVs around. Who calls that camping, anyway? We'd be willing to share the next adventure, so let us know if/when interested parties are available.

I took a few pictures here and there and uploaded them online for your viewing pleasure. Most have captions that cover what was going on. Click here for the pictures.