#20 The Trip, Itself

When we travel to a location, we don’t consider that location to be our “destination.”  Instead of a “place,” every mile, every jaunt, of the trip itself is our destination.

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#10b Have you ever held a Bear Claw in your lap?

Our second day at Glacier National Park was a bit more relaxing than the first, as we took a lovely drive and a relaxing boat ride. (Read about our first day here.)

There’s a town far north on the west side of the park called Polebridge, just 20 miles from the Canadian border.

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I Dig Deep

 
Bad news is frightening. The enemy wants me to forget the Lord’s faithfulness to me in the past and His promises of faithfulness in the present and future. Bad news pierces a knife into my stomach. The enemy twists and turns the blade. I’m suddenly nauseous. Discouraged. The outlook is uncertain.  Depressing. Fears enter my tired, worn mind.
 

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If you ask anything . . .

This morning, as I most often do, with coffee beside me and Bible opened in front of me, I review my previous posts on social media, letting the Words of God speak to me again, as they had when I posted them. A post comes before my eyes from 2012, my most painful year. The Word speaks to my heart. Again. And again.
 
Here are bits of that post and present thoughts about it:
One November morning, 2012, I opened my Bible and read: “You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.” My response then was – “Jesus, the precious name of Jesus!” I’ve read those verses, those Words of Jesus, recorded in John 14 and 15, over and over again through the years, before 2012 and since. Today, as I read that very promise, spoken by the Lord Jesus, Himself in the Gospel of John, I praise His name. Not only is His name “precious,” but it is “powerful.” It is the name above all names! The name from which the enemy flees. I speak it often throughout the day – in whispers – or in prayer. He tells us He will do what we ask because it’s for the Father’s glory. He tells us He will do what we ask if the Father is glorified through it.
 
Our son called us last night – from his hospital room. After days – weeks – of suffering – he asked us to join him in agreement for a specific prayer request – all in the name of Jesus. He quoted God’s promises in John 14 and 15. He knows God will grant his prayer if it brings glory to God. The trust and faith of my sick son is strengthening my own! And that very act of faith, I have no doubt, is bringing God glory. God confirms His Word over and over. The Word of God is unchanging. It is alive and powerful. And our Savior Jesus lives – He is unchanging – the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow.
 
On that same bleak November 2012 morning, God used a friend who sent me a prayer from Daniel 9. I read it again today:
“17 Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, O Lord, look with favor on your broken, (children). 18 Give ear, O God, and hear; open your eyes and see these broken people that bear your Name. We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy. 19 O Lord, listen! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, hear and act! For your sake, O my God, do not delay, because this family bears your Name.”
 
“This family bears Your Name.”
Yes, we do.
 
We, our family, are still His people – as we were back in 2012, when my friend – and my God – comforted me with His Word.
 
Now, in this dreadfully disturbing present time, a distant cousin, writes, “Kathi, in my local Bible Study, I’ve just been studying the book of Daniel, and I encourage you. God answers that prayer of His servant, Daniel!”
 
God uses His Word – unchanging and alive. He uses my cousin, Julie, as a faith-strengthener, to confirm His Word. In it all, I recognize His favor – for me, my son, and for all whom He loves. I hope my writing encourages others in the same manner – of God’s promises, His love, and His favor upon us. (I am writing about favor, a post I will soon publish.)
 
Today, as I look back upon His faithfulness to me, I am so very thankful that the Word is in my mouth and in my heart (Romans 10:8).
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Broom Tree Love

“Neighbors bring food with death,” Harper Lee had written in To Kill a Mockingbird.[i] It was a line I had read dozens of times in those last years, as I had taught concepts from the novel in one of my classes. One day I found that statement to be true.

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#28 Smoke Gets In Your Eyes

You know how it is when you’ve gone someplace you were really looking forward to – then you head home. Oftentimes that drive home is simply a boring drive. There’s nothing more to see. Your trip is over and you just want to get home. I did not want to end  this awesome month-long journey in that manner!

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A “Kathi” Space Instead of a “Jo” Space

   I usually rode the school bus home, but when I needed to stay for 7th grade cheerleading practice, Mom picked me up after work at 3:30. The inside  of the old car had soaked up the warm sun of the fall afternoon, and I immediately relaxed as I slid onto the fabric seat. Although far more exhausted than I, having worked all day in the shop , Mom greeted me with a hug and a smile. As she drove, I pulled out my book, Little Women, read all the way home,

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Loneliness. I am not a stranger.

The word lonely has different implications for all of us.

Some are lonely because they are truly physically alone. They sit at home – or shop the grocery aisle – alone.

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#23 Oh Give Me a Home Where the Buffalo Roam

Ron’s greatest desire was to see the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. Mine had been to see Grand Prismatic Spring. Both of our highest priorities had been met in those first two days in Yellowstone, and in doing so, we had  seen and learned more than we had possibly expected.

As soon as we entered this magnificent park, we knew it would be impossible to cover all the areas we desired – spend all the time we wanted. We had to choose. Now, on this third day, we had to choose between going through the south entrance to The Grand Tetons or to the northernmost side of Yellowstone to Lamar Valley. We chose Lamar Valley.

It was a long drive – nearly 100 miles – and not typical driving at that! You can see our route in gold on the map, and photos taken along the drive follow, as well.

(Did you know you can click on each pic to enlarge it?)

The roads differed from those we’d traveled in the middle of the park, in that they were sometimes tight and curved with short stretches in mountainous areas. We were glad we weren’t pulling the travel trailer.

We saw Obsidian Cliff and stopped at a kiosk where we observed some obsidian close up. I picked up a few flakes from the ground where people had chipped the beautiful dark volcanic glass, although they had been asked not to. Original peoples had used this rock many years ago for tools and weapons.

By Acroterion – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=12213799

And we were amazed at an entire mountainside covered in steam vents: Roaring Mountain

This National Park Service video explains more about Roaring Mountain. It’s short. Click here. 

A short walk along The Artists Paintpots was like walking along a painter’s palette:

Certainly this drive had already brought many delights, but reaching the main junction of Mammoth Hot Springs brought us something we hadn’t yet seen anywhere:  Travertine Terraces of steaming hydrothermal features, always changing. They were beautiful:

Continuing east, we saw the beautiful Undine Falls, a three-step waterfall, which had once been on the cover of National Geographic

A petrified tree fascinated us, as well:

And antelope (pronghorn)

   Although we saw buffalo here and there on this eastbound route along the north edge of the park, we began seeing them in herds. (Yes, my friend, my reader, I do realize that these beautiful creatures are called “bison” in Yellowstone, and I do respect that, but after a lifetime of referring to them as “buffalo,” I can’t help but use that name in my writing!) 

Although it might look closer. Ron is at least the 25 yards from the buffalo, as required.

Soon we entered a massive open area, a valley larger than Hayden – a valley larger than any we had ever seen. We parked along the road to take it all in. As far as we could see – left to right – east to west – were buffalo – thousands of buffalo:

And as we drove further east, this scene continued for miles.

In this valley, of course, A River Ran Through It. And  men fly-fished in the river, the buffalo grazing a short distance behind them. 

When you’ve seen buffalo and deer and antelope, how can you help but not sing, 

Oh give me a home where the buffalo roam,

and the deer and the antelope play,

Where seldom is heard a discouraging word,

and the sky is not cloudy all day.

As we began the long drive back to our campground, the roadside flowers, as they had throughout the last three weeks, welcomed me. Today, they softly sang  Oh give me a home, and it felt a bit like this valley really was my home. 

Click here to read the next  post in this series, “We’ve Hit It out of the Park”

Click here to view a wonderful video from the National Park Service about bison (buffalo) in Yellowstone. 

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#22 The Living Rainbow

In every walk with nature, one receives far more than he seeks.

~ John Muir

Oh yes. John Muir is spot on.  We are receiving far more than we had expected in today’s “walk with nature” here at Yellowstone National Park.

(I hope you have the music audio turned on! It might be located at the bottom of the page.)

We stand before Excelsior, once the largest geyser in the world. Its boiling water bursted 300 feet high and just as wide before the 1900’s, but with the exception of a two-day eruption in 1985, is now dormant as a geyser. One can only imagine what those monstrous  earlier eruptions must have been like. But I am fascinated  with simply observing it as it is today – a massive, boiling spring:

(Did you know that you can click on each pic to enlarge it on most devices?)

In his book, Our National Parks, John Muir wrote,

“Near the Prismatic Spring is the great Excelsior Geyser, which is said to throw a column of boiling water 60 to 70 feet in diameter to a height of from 50 to 300 feet, at irregular periods. This is the greatest of all the geysers yet discovered anywhere.”

As he continued, Muir referred to Excelsior as “incomparable” and that “nothing in the world” could match it.

Now we are watching the boiling  turquoise water of Excelsior spring up from deep within this crater and discharge 4000 gallons per minute into the Firehole River. It is amazing to think of the volcanic atmosphere underground.

Yes, John Muir, this Excelsior Geyser Crater is “incomparable.”

As we entered the park today, we had again followed the Madison River, but unlike yesterday, today we  turned south. It seems every road in the figure-8 loop of Yellowstone and those extending beyond the figure-8 loop follow rivers. Our ancestors and those original peoples of this area did the same – traveled beside the rivers. Today, we travel along the Firehole River, suitably named for the boiling water that feeds it. Here and there, a short distance below the boiling discharge from Excelsior, we see people wade and swim in its waters. Yesterday, we had seen men fly fishing in the Madison. (Click here) Not only does this park belong to its wildlife, it also belongs to us – the people of this country. And I am honored.

You’ll see today’s route in blue:

When you travel this area of Yellowstone, hot spots of this Yellowstone Volcano are even more visible than in other areas of the park. You can see them on either side of the road – for miles.

Planning for Yellowstone, Ron’s greatest desire was to see the Grand Canyon, which we had done yesterday. (Read about it here.)

Today,  we will view my greatest desire at Yellowstone – what I’ve most been looking forward to. And as awesome as I find Excelsior Geyser to be, I am most enthralled with the beautiful, colored spring behind it: Grand Prismatic Spring:

The center of the spring is near-boiling, and as the water reaches out to the edges and cools, colorful bacteria fill its waters. It is 300 feet long and 160 feet deep. The water in the center is 188 degrees! “The hot spring has bright bands of orange, yellow, and green ring the deep blue waters in the spring. The multicolored layers get their hues from different species of thermophile (heat-loving) bacteria living in the progressively cooler water around the spring.”

It’s not surprising this spring is called a living rainbow. 

We have arrived mid-day. Having read that the colors are best if the sun is shining, we’ve pretty much hit it perfect! I am blessed.

Ron spots buffalo prints and a “cow pie” it left in the crusty geothermal area between the boardwalk on which we stand and the spring itself. We humans are forbidden to step in this area, for our own safety. Temps had dropped to 40 degrees last night, and a buffalo had come here to warm up. The few rules of Yellowstone do not apply to those who call it home – its wildlife. 

Before we leave, we stand and stare. Others move past us, but I am still, standing and basking, trying to push this scene of the Grand Prismatic Spring deep into my long term memory. The photos will help me to remember, and later I am pleased by their quality.  

When we finally leave, we drive just a bit further on this road, around a curve to the trailhead that will take us to a lookout point of the Grand Prismatic Spring. And along the short distance, we see one single buffalo – between the huge hot springs and the trail to the lookout. This is the big boy who visited the hot spring in the night – I am sure!

We hike a half mile uphill to see Grand Prismatic from the overlook. It’s challenging on this hot day, but oh so worth it. Can you tell from the looks on our faces? 

Finally we hike back to our truck, parked along the road. We enjoy a few minutes of air conditioning as we drive further south on this Grand Loop, following the signs for Old Faithful. Amazingly, we find shade in the outer area overlooking the geyser.

So we sit on a log to picnic, awaiting the eruption, and within the time frame predicted, Old Faithful erupts! Afterward,  we browse the buildings in this “tourist attraction” – both old and new – and have ice cream on the porch of the Inn.  Old Faithful most obviously attracts thousands of people a day. At least that many are here for this one “faithful” eruption. The number of people makes this spot so different from others throughout the park. Throughout the afternoon, we see smaller geysers erupting in this area. 

 

All day, I thank God I am here in this place of the yellow rock,  Mi tse a-da-zi , which I wrote about yesterday. I thank God for the opportunity to be here and for the good health He has given Ron and me to hike these paths. I thank him for my travel mate of 50 years, my Ronnie. But most of all, and continually, I breathe spoken prayers of praise to my Father, for His amazing creation and this tiny bit of the original magnitude of that creation and a foretaste of what I will see in heaven. 

At the end of this second day, we again follow the Madison River toward our West Yellowstone exit, and today, our eyes are fixated on Mt, Haynes, named for the first official photographer of the park.  Mr. Haynes might be appalled at the quality of my photos, but I am thankful for each one. I am already reviewing them with joy as I send them to our children, while we drive back to our sweet little travel trailer for the night. Tomorrow is another day in Yellowstone!

 

Click here to watch a video from the National Park Service : Yellowstone’s Restless Giant