Date: 2004-05-19
From: Trent's Campground

To: Pearisburg
Miles today: 23.9
Weather: overcast clouds

Ever have a day where you just piss yourself off? That is what I did today. My day started nicely as I packed up around 9 a.m., bought a coke, and fed my little cat friend a little can of sardines. I¢ll miss that bugger :-). We received a ride back to the trail from a kind section hiker and returned to the trail. Out of nowhere I was suddenly out of it. As I walked I prayed to God. Yesterday at lunch, our ¢fooling around¢ was fun but in ill humor. I have been reading Philippians 4:8+9 and my talk was far from pure or beneficial. Two miles in I went to a place called ¢Dismal Falls¢, but I thought they were beautiful. I sat on a rock perched over rapids __________sing to 6 foot descents. The water ran the bank near me to form serene puddles on the rocky ledge. Here I sang to God for 45 minutes and cried. I let out frustration and meditated on Him. A hiker named Wroly came upon me, but left me to my solitude. When I left I felt so much better. The day seemed gorgeous as I walked beneath a tall canopy of trees and blue sky. By 8 miles I reached a shelter and a spot for my idiocy. Salt Lick, Coyote, and Crash Bang were there. Slowly as we ate I joined the discussion. It was an inappropriate one, but my desire to be humorous was winning over my desire to be godly.   While there were ¢fun moments¢ like when I used the privy and someone threw an old pair of BVDs outside of the door, on the whole I was stupid. We had fun at lunch, but I might as well have just kicked God in the head in regards to my earlier prayer. Less than 2 hours and I was doing it again. Maybe I was not kicking after all; maybe I was driving a nail.As we hiked on it was 2 p.m. I wanted to do 16 more miles and I needed some alone time, so I pushed hard. The climb was straight up and hot, but I covered it easily fueled by my frustration. I was flying and thinking, the trail was rocky and mundane. I decided A) to stop being an idiot B) while Coyote and Salk Lick are cool, I should be careful about my company, and C), I just was not ready to pray yet. So while I refused to pray, I let my thoughts eat at me. I was hot and drinking chlorine water¢¦yuck! Trees, rocks, and any views or flowers just passed me as I rushed in solitude. I was not interested. By the time I had covered 17 miles at 6:15 as I reached a shelter, I was dead. It¢s funny how when you¢re dead and you give in God can finally help you. As I left the shelter feeing beat-up I said a prayer of repentance and surrender. He touched me. It was as though He opened my eyes and gave me new energy. Feeling fresh I covered 2 miles quickly where I was graced with another blessing: I caught up to my friend Dutch. Dutch and I met on day 2 and keep reuniting. We caught up on things and I was able to express to her the frustration of my day. She helped me to reflect and understood how much your company matters. She reminded me however, that I could move on or mope. Before long we were both smiling and talking about being servers. Our pace was slow but it felt like we were flying. Earlier I flew but felt miserable. At 8:15 we were 2 miles out and sat atop a gorgeous mountain view of the valley and town below. As I sat on the cliffs I felt so touched. Dutch and I pushed into the beginnings of night. It was muddy and dark and I nearly killed myself numerous times. Dutch also narrowly escaped several falls. Nonetheless at 9 p.m. we entered Pearisburg, Virginia. I had covered 24 miles. Dutch is a woman, which is how we got a hitch to the nearest hotel at 9 p.m. at night¢¦thank God. The man drove us to the nearest hotel where I asked for ¢Wayne Petrovich¢¢¦Sure enough, Krispy was there. I said goodnight to Dutch and went to find my friends. Krispy and Beartracks greeted me and I requested a space on their floor. They obliged. We caught up on the last 2 weeks and joked (not dirty :-) ). After a nice little reunion I went to have Chinese Buffet at 10 p.m. ¢¦Bad idea. The food looked as though it was cooked at 5 p.m. Still I ate and made a quick trip to Food Lion. Even though it was past 10 p.m. it seems there are hikers everywhere. Krispy, Beartracks, Oxymoron, Mainsesail, Half Moon, P______, & Eagle Eye are just a small few. Now I¢m going to sleep in a room with old friends and catch up with Krispy. I feel far better now than I did 8 hours ago. It¢s cool how God blesses us and always offers grace. Even when we act like idiots like I did today. I will close with a rhyme:         So many times I stumbleAnd need my Savior¢s graceBut every time I¢m humble He picks me off my face.I am so blessed. Goodnight,BEATBOX   ttt