It's A Beautiful World!

Sandra & Sonja get A+'s for planning a great trip! I highly recommend them to anyone needing travel planning assistance.

My goat hooves are disappearing and my web feet are returning-Welcome home to Louisiana.

What a wonderful trip and how beautiful is God's creation! We all made is back with only minor injuries and pains. I told Sonja & Sandra that there was no way that they could have ever prepared us for the beauty of the mountains nor any way that they could have prepared us for the physical requirements of the hiking.

The first day I thought I had made a big mistake and that I would never be able to do a week of this. The first two days especially were like the physical requirements of running a marathon, but stretched out over a long period of time. Up and out of the bed at 5:30 and most nights not back to the hotel until after supper and 9:00. Long days and much gasping for air for these flatlanders!

A few recaps of happenings of the week:

When driving away from the airport Sonja told Sandra to look for a restaurant on the right side of the road. Sandra pointed to the right side and said, "No, I would feel better if we pulled off to the left." Your other right, Sandra!

When coming down from a pass one day, a hiker pulled up behind Sonja and said, "Did you hear that really weird animal on the top of the pass?" When Sonja replied she did not, he said, "It made a really funny laughing noise." We all cracked up. Sonja's laughter brought joy to all of our hearts!

One of the first days a hiker came up to us at the top of the pass and said, "I told my wife way down the mountain that you all would never make it when I heard you laughing and talking." We Ruston Girls can cut up and move onward and upward with the best of them. A little physical exertion never stopped us from having a good time.

How many of us would have hiked up a mountain on narrow, uneven trails that are often rooted or slick with mud knowing that we would have to come down with a stiff leg to make it? Lisa did and never complained. NOT A FUN WAY TO COME DOWN THE MOUNTAIN!

POOR JIM! We sent him to pay for the bus ride up to Sunshine Village which we thought was $15 per person. When the person at the counter told him it would be $49 per person, after staring at her with a pensive look, he said, "We don't want the deluxe trip, only a bus ride (school bus-mind you) up to the top."

The glaciers, the mountains, the meadows, the wildflowers, the waterfalls, and the lakes, there are no words to describe! I have been to the mountain top and I have seen the glory of His creation!

Wonderful fellowship, good times, strength stretching hikes, and glories beyond your imagination describe our week together.

I will post my picture sight as soon as I get it downloaded. They cannot do it justice, but will give you some idea of the sights we beheld!

I will continue to post this blog and tell you of our training, runs, etc.,but that will never compare to this past week.

PS-When I was putting medicated Vaseline on my lips to try and get them well, I remembered a long ago incident that brought a chuckle. I once was rather chaffed in a very sensitive area and had the brilliant idea that I would put medicated Vaseline on it for fast healing. NOT A GOOD IDEA! This is the first and last time that I did the Russian dance where you are kicking your legs out and plunging into knee bends-all in an effort to get some COOL air on the burning chaff! I am sure it was quite a sight!