A Metaphor to Remember

My dad has taught me many lessons in life. He drilled me when I was younger till I spoke with correct grammar, he taught me not to judge people by their appearance or think less of them because of their vices. He's encouraged me to find the meaning in things.

As we parked at the trail head of Picacho Peak and started up all my dad said was "As we're on this hike I want each of you to look for the metaphor as we climb. We'll talk about it when we're done."

I've always loved hiking and since I haven't done it in a while I was glad to be on a new trail. The weather was perfect, two hours till sunset, a slight breeze, and enough warmth to make me sweat. At first the trail was not unusual. The ascent was of a medium difficulty and I enjoyed chatting with my family.

After a little while the trail became steeper as we wound around the base and soon enough we were stepping up boulders and using chains and thick wire to pull ourselves up the rocks. I love hikes like this. About halfway there we arrived at the saddle (shown in the mountain picture below) where the mountain slopes and you're in between the two peaks. At this point the sun was almost to the horizon and we knew we had to move quickly to get to the summit by sunset and then back down before it was completely dark.

When we left the saddle I started understanding the metaphor my dad was talking about. Instead of continuing to climb higher the trail took a huge plummet downhill and we had to hike and use chains to let ourselves down several hundred feet. The whole time I kept thinking "What in the world is going on! When do we start hiking back up again? How are we going to reach the summit climbing downhill?"

Sure enough there was a bend in the trail and I saw the ascent back up. I couldn't believe I had wasted all that energy climbing up, just to climb back down, and now to climb up again!

The trail got steeper and steeper and we had to use gloves with grip on them as we clung to chains and wire. Slowly but surely we were getting there.

Just as the sun was setting we arrived at the top. The view was spectacular. We could see in all directions- the desert, the ostrich farm, the highway, the sunset- a never-ending stretch into the horizon.

The sun setting, however, meant that we couldn't spend much time at the top because we still had to get all the way down (let me remind you that this would involve going down, then back up to the saddle, and finally down to the trail head). Luckily my dad and brother brought their head lamps which was a good thing because in no time it was almost completely dark. Very slowly, almost having to feel every step in the darkness, we led each other to the bottom.

An example of the chains and wire we had to use as we climbed to the top.

Just finding my inner chi at the top

So did you figure out the metaphor(s)?

I'm grateful for the lessons I learned on this gorgeous hike. When it gets dark you have to rely on the voice of others to guide you along the path. In spiritual language, you have to rely on the spirit. There is no possible way to get back safely without His help.

There are many times when we will be making our way to the top and all of a sudden the trail will head dramatically downhill. Whether those slopes come by our own making or simply from a loving Heavenly Father who tests and tries us depends on each experience. The last nine months represents my own battle back to the top after a devastating fall downhill. But, I wouldn't change that battle for anything. You have to fall and then climb up and on to ultimately get to the summit. The beautiful summit where you can see everything.

It's the summit that makes it all worth it.