As I have mentioned before, (like here and here), I was blogging before there were blogs. Before Blogger or Type Pad or WordPress, I journaled events online to share with the other few hundred people online who knew what the Internet was. Sadly, many of those posts are long gone (with their respective hosting companies) but a few poss I had saved to floppies, which is how I restored the ones linked in the posts above. (Others I will save until an appropriate reminder.)
ANYWAY - the point of this post is less about blogging, and more about my dad and how proud I am of an accomplishment he just made this month: his first solo flight on his life long quest to become a pilot. He just sent the family the poem below to try and answer the oft asked question, “WHY FLY?” I love the poem and am proud of my dad, but I teased him that he left out the time he took me up for a flight, and he replied that he doesn’t remember it, and to send some “proof.” Which is why I mention the ancient blogging, as I blogged the adventure was back in the early ninties, pre-Y2K!
The orginal post is here: AIR DAD, but I include a few pictures here for those too lazy to open yet another window. Just ignore the contact info on that page, as it’s a tad bit outdated!
But first, the poem:
WHY DO I FLY?
By Doug Bastian
12/20/08
It’s a question you’ll ask me,
I have asked myself, too.
A clear day pulls my gaze up
And my day-dreams turn blue.
Back in grade school I wandered,
Since my bike set me free,
To the airfield on Broadway
Lots of airplanes to see.
Walked around them, peeked inside,
Wondered how each one flew;
Found some books to explain it,
“I can do this!” I knew.
Years of dreaming passed by me,
Just a ride here and there
With a pilot acquaintance
Lifting me in the air.
The first ride was with Welman
Over Lansing near by.
Then, a cross-country junket,
Mountains, desert, and sky.
Moody Church had some workers
Flying missions and such;
Stayed with David in Haiti,
Flew the island so much.
David once was on furlough
And he offered a trip
Out of Midway…took Jordan,
Overflew school he skipped.
Came the time I was lonely
And my kids took a cue,
Bought me one airplane lesson;
I was hooked for a few.
I became the Red Baron
In son Karl’s view;
We flew South Chicago,
Then he blog’d me so cool.
Later, Jeff was my blessing,
A full CFI, too.
This bush pilot could teach me,
So, real lessons I flew.
Now my logbook had hours,
But, the time was not right.
Many years would flee past me
Without one single flight.
Finally had to decide it…
“To give up, or give in?”
Dash the dream, impossible!
I would try, lose or win.
Now I’ve crossed the first threshold,
I have soloed my plane.
I can do it…I know it.
Life will not be the same.
Have I answered the question
That of, “Why do I fly?”
I can’t think of an answer.
Got to run…”Coming, Sky!”
My dad promised to add a stanza about our trip if I can send some proof of the flight, so this post is my proof along with the pictures from when I had to explain to everyone who saw it, what a “digital camera” was! (’You mean there is NO FILM?!?!) I love being on the edge of technology!
Is that proof enough that your eldest son once flew with you? I love you, Dad, and I’m proud of you!
UPDATE: Even though I was only teasing, my dad added the verse in bold above, and also sent along this picture of him as a little boy just beginning his dreams of flying, a picture I’d never seen before!
December 18, 2008 at 9:12 pm · Filed under Adventures, Humor
I was shocked when someone sent me the link, but it’s true, here it is:
I’m so excited! Why oh why did we buy those season passes? I can’t believe they didn’t notify me before they posted this on the Disney site and broadcast on the news! Whoo-hoooo! I’m trying to figure out now how to call and claim the prize.
Thanks to Trisha Joy who let me know about this via Facebook, you made my day!
It might surprise you that I am famous in a town that I’ve only been to a few times. Well, Karl Bastian is famous anyway! In fact, if I go around town and mention my name, people stop in their tracks and say, “Really? Are you really?!? Nice to meet you!” and shake my hand!
Me at the source of my Indiana fame
Here I am at the source of my fame… the Gas City Fire Station. Why am”I” famous here? Let me tell you the story in a fun way… a few years ago, I was in Sweetser, Indiana to visit a friend, Ryan Frank’s, church for a Kidology seminar. (which was really just an excuse to visit Ryan, a guy who shares my passion for reaching kids and encouraging and equipping others who minister to kids, just check out his magazine, K! which he started a year ago for that very purpose.) But I degress…
Ryan with a collage of his kids
When we had a few hours of free time, I told Ryan I wanted to go for a drive, but I didn’t tell him where or why. And I shold mention, I often teased him about being from Indiana, little did he know my roots go back to just a town or two over from his home town. So we headed over to Gas City and the Fire Station, which was locked up because in such a small town, it is a volunteer department. So we headed over to City Hall. I walked in and introduced myself to the receptionist, “Hi, I’m Karl Bastian.” She about dropped her pencil and said, “Really?” I said, “Yup, and if possible, I’d like to get into the Fire Station.” She said, “Certainly! Go over to the Public Works building, just behind here, and they should be able to help you out.” Ryan seemed a little surprised by the welcome I got, but I still didn’t explain anything to him.
Next we walked back to the Public Works building, which was pretty simple and had some various people working at desks, and no one person seemed to be a receptionist, so I finally kinda just spoke out as politely as I could, “Um, hello, excuse me, the receptionist at the City Hall sent me here and said someone here could probably get me into the Fire Station… my name is Karl Bastain.” Everyone stopped and looked up at that point and either said verbally, or with their looks, “Really?” And one person said, “Certainly, let me call the police.” At this point, I was really enjoying Ryan’s surprise at the welcome and recognition I was getting. Soon a police officer arrived and said, “Is it true? Are you Karl Bastian?” I said yes, and asked if I could get into the Fire Station, that I was visiting my friend here from Sweetser and was hoping I could show him inside the Fire Station, and the officer said, “Of course you can. I’ll get a fireman over there right away, sorry I can’t take you myself…” (he had some obligation, I forget exactly) “… but head over there and someone will be there as fast as possible.”
We drove over there and by now Ryan was bugging me to tell him why everyone in Gas City seemed to know who I was when as far as he knew, I was from waaaay out of town. But it wasn’t time yet to tell him. We waited outside the station for no more than ten minutes when a red pick up truck arrived and a man got out and walked up to me and said, “Are you really Karl Bastian?” After I said yes, he heartly shook my hand and said, “It’s an honor to meet you.” The look on Ryan’s face was priceless, but he would soon learn the secret of my fame in Gas City, Indiana.
Karl and Karl
Once we got inside the simple office of the Fire Department, I took a picture off the wall and showed it to him and said, “This is why I’m famous here… check out the name on the bottom.”
“In Memory of Karl C. Bastian”
Gas City Chief of the Fire Department
The family legend (and I call it that to acknowledge that all I have is the family story passed down to me, unconfirmed by outside sources, which are welcome if anyone reading this in Gas City knows more about his story) is that this Karl Bastian died as a hero when he went on an emergency call even though he was retired from being the Fire Chief, and was attempting to save a mother and child from a fire, when he was overcome by smoke and died. He died on May 6th, 1960. He is listed as an American hero on supportingheroes.org even though there is very little info recorded there. On the wall next to the picture is a newspaper article about him that I hope to get a copy of someday.
Oh, and I should probably mention he was my Great Grandfather, and I got his name when I was born on his birthday, September 19th, nine years after his death.
Wondering what he was like…
The story goes that I was to be named Brent Camdon Bastian*, but since I was born on my great grandfather’s birthday, my father changed my name to Karl Douglas Bastian, since my dad’s name is Douglas Karl Bastian. (*if you have read my novel, you now know the source of the main characters name, Brent Camdon!)
Karl Bastian, An American Hero
So if I am ever in a position where I really need a job, I think I’ll head to Gas City and run for mayor, I’ll probably have a good chance at winning! And while the painting is hanging where it belongs, in the Gas City Fire Station, I do hope that someday it can come into my family or at least I hope I can get a copy of it. This painting is the only picture I have of the Karl Bastian from whom I got my name.
I never got to meet him, but I’m proud to share his name.
Karl Douglas Bastian
Son of Douglas Karl Bastain
Son of Ronald Victor Earl Bastian
Son of Karl C. Bastian
Just when I wonder if I spend too much time on Twitter or Facebook, I have an experience that makes me glad that I stay connected and accessible via the Internet. Case in point: Recently I traveled to California to speak at a Spanish conference and so I took the family along so we could introduce our son to Mickey Mouse in person while I was there. As I often do, I was posting my adventures (including my lost luggage!) via Twitter which auto-matically updates my Facebook status. Next thing I know, I hear from a Kidology user, Kristy, who’ve I met at CPC Kidology Gatherings:
Turns out, I am available on the 9th - and so got the privilege of heading up to beautiful Sierra Madre for an afternoon of teacher encouraging! Good thing I have good prayer support, as you can see, I was really suffering for Jesus that afternoon.
Notice the turtleneck! Funny thing was, it was in the 60’s and I was enjoying what I thought was a beautiful warm California day and yet the kids and some adults were commenting on how “cold it was.” Ha. These poor people don’t know what cold is!
The church has several building right in a nice downtown area with the community park across the street. I learned that the “Old North Church” is called old, because across the street is the “New South Church.”
It’s “new” because it was only built 100 years ago! Across the street next to the “old” church is a new children’s ministry building. Really, truly, it is new. In fact, they had only been in it for six weeks the Sunday I visited. Now what are they going to call the “New South Church?” The “Not As New, But Still Newer Than the Really Old Church.”
After seeing the view, I immediately wondered if Kristy should consider retiring and giving me her job! Such a beautiful area, and, oh yeah, so “cold.”
Inside the “Really New, Really” building, they had Easy Risers for their seating. (I love those!) and the rooms were all creatively decorated and kid-friendly. While they are new in the building, I like a clean, neat, attractive simple look that simply communicates that this area is for children.
One of the perks of being in “cold” California, you can meet outside in the frigid weather for class!
I love visiting churches and seeing what creative things different children’s pastors have come up with. And I LOVED this idea! All the students have a personal folder that they bring every week to church. Here is a close up:
They keep their notes inside, and on the outside they go home with the verse and a challenge. (These pockets are empty because this was taken before class.) They also earn “tallents” for various things, including bringinfg their folder back, which can be spent in the store that opens monthly, which happened to be the week I was visiting.
Some things never change - “stores” are a great incentive for kids to be engaged and work toward goals so they get some tangible benefit for thier hard work. While there is a popular trend agaist extrinsic motivators, until I meet an adult that is completely intrinsicly motivated, I think there is a place for rewarding children for hard work. And I’ve seen it work in both the long and the short term. Kids form habits while they are young that remain long after they outgrow the “store” or need for the simple toys and prizes.
Here is Jordan finding out how much he has to spend in the store. He was there early and ran to the store when it was time. After hanging out with him for awhile before church, I found myself thinking ee was one of those kids you say, “I hope my son turns out like him!”
Kristy has a lot of energy and does a great job not only relating to the kids, but equipping and encouraging her volunteers too. I lost track of how many times she said something postivie about a volunteer or expressed the potential in a young helper. They’ve be blessed to have her for eight years, and it doesn’t look like I’ll be getting her job anytime soon. Besides, it’s too “cold” there!
Besides being a wonderful CP, she is teachable and committed to encouraging and equipping her volunteers. She asked me to do my favorite workshop, “Kidology 101″ and I as she introduced me I got to hear a wonderful story of how it impacted her eight years ago at her first CPC when she was a brand new children’s pastor. That’s what it’s all about. You never know who you are impacting, and sometimes you don’t find out for years. Many times, you never find out. And that’s O.K. But thanks to Facebook, I got to find out this story, and minister to some kids in children’s church and volunteers over lunch. It was a great day!
And she wasn’t “late” with the Mountain Dew, but I was looking for some caffeine to combat the frigid temperatures! A Dew in need, is a Dew indeed!
Thanks, Kristy, for the update, for connecting with others who love kids, and for a great opportunity to minister to your kids and volunteers, it was a great day. (Oh, and for the Dew too!)
The annual pass to Brookfield Zoo has turned out to be a good investment. Free parking. Free admission. Free soda. (good on the wallet, not so much on the waist!) Free shuttle ride. Free shows. Too bad it takes about $20 in gasoline for us to get there and back!
Of course, we saw all kinds of animals! (Took the ones above from the tram!) I enjoy taking pictures of the animals - I do not enjoy smelling them!
However, it is not the animals that Luke enjoys the most. Oh, sure, he likes them. He’ll look at them when we point, and can even identify several by name. But there are other “creatures” on display at the Zoo that he will run to! And he’ll spend more time with each of these “animals” studying them, than he will on anything with fur or wings or hooves. Yup, you guessed it, the Cars on display from various dealerships.
Oh, yes. The cars. When we said we are going to the Zoo today, Luke’s answer is, “See Cars?” But our favorite thing about the Zoo is not the animals or the cars… it is being in a safe place where Luke can run around and enjoy a rare form of freedom to lead us around for a change, and for me, it is a wonderful opportunity for my hobby - “Luke Photo Journalism.” Here are some of my favorites from today. (Thanks for indulging me!)
Luke enjoying the playground. It’s a tunnel!
Luke behind bars… “I’m innocent!”
Luke, the fashion model.
Luke, the old fashioned greeting card.
Eager to get on the carousel.
Around and around with Dad.
Proof that I take pictures of my wife too!
It was a great day hanging out with the family. One of my good friends, Alan Root, said recently at Kid U, “Every day God gives us a gift - he gives us today. That is why it is called the Present.” It was a good reminder to live in the moment and enjoy TODAY. As Jesus said, “Tomorrow will take care of itself.”
I’ve seen the Chicago Marathon out the windows of Moody Church for years, but this was my first time participating. No, not as a runner, but as an official volunteer! Why? Because my brother was running it as his first marathon and some friends from church were volunteering. I thought it would be cool to not just watch him run, but get to serve him and the other runners as well. It was a long but fulfilling day. I was up at 3:30 a.m. to begin my adventure! Check in downtown was at 5:30 a.m.
Me, Deb, Judd and Jason - friends from church.
Our job was to fill cups of water and then serve the runners at the first water station. Notice it is still dark out! We were set up by 7:00 a.m.
Here we are ready to serve! If that looks like a lot of water, it IS! over 1400 cups! Soon the runners would be arriving, and we were prepared! The race began at 8 a.m. Soon runners would be arriving!
Followed by the elite running women, who seemed to have more photographers for some reason.
And then the masses!
But finally MY BROTHER CAME BY! I was eager to get to hand him the water, but didn’t know when I’d see him. And I had to serve other runners too. I had my mini-video camera going and was hoping to get him coming, taking the water and passing, but he appeared just as I was grabbing another cup so I almost missed him, but I did get to give him water and catch this short video:
GIVING WATER TO MY BRO:
After he passed, I retired the camera just passed out water for over an hour - it is mind-numbing how many people ran by… over 40,000 runners one after another. I wondered if we’d have enough water, but as it turned out, we had MORE than enough!
In the 2007 marathon water ran out and it got serious for the runners. Volunteers were buying water in the stores to pass out… so this year (with Olympic aspirations no doubt) Chicago made sure there was plenty of water. Turns out, we only gave out the top level of cups as did all the other tables for two city blocks. What did they do with the extra water?
Watch this video to see:
Deb and Judd show how strong they are!
Now came the huge job of cleaning up more cups than runners in the race!
Official Trash Compactor of the Chicago Marathon!
Once we were all cleaned up (and that was a huge job) I was free to just be the official Jordan Bastian Photograher. So I hurried down a few blocks to get ahead of where all the runners I had served would be arriving around the 14th mile point. Now I was able to take more pictures. (see full gallery)
They came waving flags…
juggling… (there were two jugglers)
this guy had a cup on his head and my sister saw it still there 20 miles later!
George Washington must be in good shape!
But, of course, I was waiting to see my brother again. Let me just tell you, it is MENTALLY EXHAUSTING to be focusing on hundreds of people every minute looking for one person. I knew after the water station he was wearing a blue shirt… but so did a bunch of other guys! But finally, after about a 45 minute wait, I spotted him!
There he is, number 13572, and he hasn’t spotted me yet…
Then he sees me!
I was able to snap some shots as he zoomed by…
and then he was gone, back into the crowd. I studied the race map and figured out I could get to the finish line before him if I raced to Grant Park. It was a hike, but I got there well ahead of him and scoped out a place to spot him again.
I’d never SEEN so many bananas!
There was over a mile for the runners to walk after the finish line to cool off, filled with food and other stations related to the race. But as I got near the finish line I saw:
Thousands of medals just waiting to hang around the neck of the runners.
And then it hit me! I could actually present my brother with his medal!
By the way, having the official volunteer hat, jacket and volunteer badge got me access inside tall fences where the runners and volunteers were. Everyone else was packed outside trying to peer in. I enjoyed volunteering at the water station, but I had no idea how much it would help the rest of the day to have the “official” gear on! It streamlined my walk and I could go anywhere for pictures… and even to greet my brother and give him his medal.
But first, I had to spot him in this vast crowd. You can’t imagine how hard it is to look for someone in this throng! My text message updates sad he was estimated to arrive in the 3:55 crowd, but I knew it might be longer as he slowed toward the end. It was getting REALLY hot out, but then, maybe he’d get a burst at the end and come in early? So I ended up watching the crowd intently from 3:40 (in case he was early) to 4:30 when he arrived. I was starting to wonder if I’d missed him, which could have happened, but I didn’t want to give up, and I hadn’t gotten a text message yet that he was done. So I stood on a table and studied the 20,000+ faces that came before him… but FINALLY I saw him! I quickly jumped down, gave my camera to a complete stranger already recording a video and asked them to record me presenting Jordan with his medal, and here it is:
I know YouTube quality isn’t that great, you can download it here. (QT 15mb)
Here is the Champ reunited with his wife, Kelly. He chose Flat Top Grill as his celebration restaurant and Kelly’s family and our sister Melissa’s family and I enjoyed a post-marathon meal. I think we were as exhausted as him, well, ok, almost.
WARNING: Sentimental content ahead.
I can’t end this post without saying how proud I am of my little brother. While he’s grown to be much stronger than me, he’ll always be my little brother. I was bursting with pride today to see how much my little bald buddy has grown. I was thirteen when two days after my birthday I got what is still the greatest birthday present I ever got: a brother. While much of his childhood Jordan can’t remember (just as we all lose much of it) it feels like I can remember all of it. Jordan was my best friend and only being a dad now comes close to how much I enjoyed our relationship during his childhood.
While his childhood is over, I love him as much now as then and am so proud of how he has grown up. When he was a little boy, he would often point to me and say to people, “He’s my Big Brother” as though Big Brother was a title of honor. Today, I couldn’t be prouder to instead point at him and say to people, “He’s my Little Brother.”
October 12, 2008 at 5:09 am · Filed under Adventures
I’m volunteering at the Chicago Marathon because my little brother is running it for the first time. Trying to live Twitted updates but having some connection problems. (Seems downtown Chicago has even worse AT&T coverage than the burbs!)
But try following at: http://www.twitter.com/kidologist
Here is one picture of the hundreds of cups of water we filled. Hopefully I’ll get to hand one to my brother! We’ll see, there are over 40,000 runners!
For our 15th anniversary we are spending a week in Lundington, Michigan. There are lots of pictures still to go through, but I wanted to blog our highlight today, on our actual anniversary. What a fun day! (click on any picture to view larger, then browse back to pick up where you left off!)
Luke was just eager to get going on our 1.8 mile hike to the Big Sable Point Lighthouse which is only accessible by hiking in.
If you squint you can see a little black and white dot in the upper left hand corner of this picture… that was our destination. Would Luke make it, that was the question!
Fortunately, some friends of our who live in Ludington, who we visited with on Tuesday evening, “just happened” to give us a kid-backpack. (God is indeed sovereign, and He likes to prove it over and over!) So when Luke got tired or decided he wanted to walk in directions other than forward, we had a way to make progress without losing too much time.
But we were in no rush, so we stopped often to rest and enjoy the beautiful scenery - a strange combination of sand, water and evergreens. (I’m sparing you all my nature photography!)
Luke definitely takes after his father in having this strong irresistible urge to wander off the well marked path! Keeping him on the trail was a constant struggle! Little explorer that he is! Oh, the fun we will have in the years ahead wandering around like Lewis and Clark!
Just had to post this one - is that one beautiful boy, or what? (note the shirt!)
Once we hid from mom off the side of the road when she wasn’t looking, but she soon found us!
“Does this road ever end?” Luke asks. “We’re not sure,” we answer!
But FINALLY we arrive and enjoy our sack lunch on a bench under the shade of some trees looking out over Lake Michigan. The lighthouse behind us and the roar of crashing waves around us. Luke seemed thrilled to have arrived at our destination and is eager to explore!
Soon he is off to see where all these wooden paths lead to. Treasure? Cookies?
He finds a steel wall with steps leading up to… to what? What could BE on the other side?
It’s water! As far as the eye can see. (Luke absolutely loves water!)
Luke ponders how there could be so much water in one place. (I don’t even try to explain that this is only a lake and that oceans are even bigger.)
He decides he likes this place very much, but he doesn’t like the big steel wall!
So he finds his way around it to the BEACH! And points so I know where he wants to go!
Soon he has found a UBPT. (Universal Boys Play Thing) Also known as “a stick.”
And what do boys DO with sticks, you ask?
Why, THROW THEM, of course! (this was only one of his many victims who were cast into the sea*!)
But then it was time to do what we came here to do - CLIMB TO THE TOP OF THE LIGHTHOUSE! Luke made the height requirement by less than an inch so he got to go on an adventure to new heights, literally!
Every twenty steps or so there was a window with a ledge big enough for him to sit on, and he absolutely loved sitting there and taking in the view. There are quite a few of these pictures, though the lighting was tricky for pictures to get both the view inside the fairly dark tower and the outside. I was able to get it by opening up the aperture pretty wide to get the outside in focus and not lose the inside. Until I figured that out, either you got nothing inside (like below) or the outside was washed out and all white. (TMI for most of you I know, but my photo-friends will appreciate it!)
This shot shows when we spotted mom from around 50 steps up in the lighthouse!
Not even half way up yet, and already the view is getting spectacular. (Yes, that’s mom in the pink!)
We waved and waved and suddenly Mom actually SAW US in the little window and took this picture!
We went rather slowly, but I was so proud of Luke. He did the entire thing all by himself! Here he is passing the 100th step. (and this is the only time I wasn’t immediately behind him)
Yes, that’s me and Luke 130 feet up in the air at the top of the Big Sable Point Lighthouse!
The view was wonderful and the sky was perfectly clear. It was pretty windy but it felt great.
The lighthouse was pretty busy with a steady stream of visitors and yet, when we got up there, we had the whole thing to ourselves for about ten minutes. It really was a gift from the Lord. Luke had absolutely no fear at all. The funny thing was, the only thing that scared him was some orange streamers they had hanging from the two hatches you had to come through on the stairs. They were blowing in the wind and really freaked him out. I had to hold him as we passed the orange streamers. Silly, but sweet too.
Can you spot us up there at the top of the lighthouse? Good thing mom was too scared to come up, she was able to take some fun pictures from the bottom.
Here’s a zoomed in version of Luke at the top of a historic Michigan Lighthouse!
VIDEO: Watch Luke at the top of the Lighthouse
All good things must come to an end. In this case, all good things have another hour long walk before they come to an end!
Not that all of us had to walk the whole way, at least one of us got the royal treatment for most of the trip back. But as I said on the walk, even as my legs and back were aching, if he rests his head on mine, I could walk a thousand miles.
It was a wonderful way to spend our 15th anniversary. Several people have seemed surprised when they found out we took Luke on our anniversary trip - but when you waited as long as we did for a little child to love, he is the highlight of our celebration and the joy of our times together. (and he does take naps)
The Big Sable Point Lighthouse can be seen for 19 miles out into the Lake. I’m so glad that on this 19th of June we celebrate that we know the Big Savior who made a Point of being the Light we can build our House on! When the storms of life hit, we don’t rely on some rusty old retainer wall to hold off the erosion of time that pounds against our lives relentlessly - we can rely on the grace and mercies of God which are new every morning! Praise God!
*for those who e-mail me my typos, the use of the word “sea” here was figurative, not literal. OK?
Don’t miss the video at the end, and click any picture for a larger view.
It’s hard to believe the Yosemite Summit 2008 is over. It’s been several weeks, but it still feels like a part of me is still there in the Sierra Nevada. It’s been fun sorting through the 5000+ pictures we took and reliving the fun memories. Not only the incredible PLACE we were, but the awesome friendships that were formed and will continue to grow in the years ahead.
It was an amazing time together and God did some incredible work in our lives. For me, my soul comes alive in this place and I finally feel truly free. We started our first day watching the sun rise at Glacier Point. The views are simply spectacular!
It was a time to leave the busyness and noise of normal life behind and just listen to God. There were times we could just sit and soak our souls in the presence of God as well as walking with Him on the incredible hikes.
There is just something powerful about reading God’s Word and praying when you are in a place where His handiwork is so much on display. The rocks indeed did cry out - God is real, and God is here.
The hikes themselves were indescribable. The first day we did a solitude hike (each separated by about five minutes so we could hike alone with God) and then on the second day we did the Panoama Trail which took us on an incredible hike around the rim of the valley, through many types of landscape and ended with the Mist Trail which goes to the top and then down the side of two thundering waterfalls. In the picture below we are near the starting point and in the background you can see the waterfall we would be at some seven hours later!
By the third day we did some easier hikes that had incredible views of the valley, some with a few straight down of seveal thousand feet! Below is one of the few railings due to the incredible drop straight down over 3500 feet!
The hikes were challenging - but the views breathtaking and like nowhere else on this continent. Not only can you not believe what you are seeing is real, but when you are hiking, you can’t believe “I’ll be there in a few hours” or “I was there yesterday?” We hiked through areas that at times looked like Narnia in winter - under the shadow of huge trees walking on several feet of snow while at other times we were out on barren rock checking out lizards. The scenery and climate changed constantly. We’d be hot and enjoying cold water to cool off, and later getting drenched from the mist of a raging waterfall. Like I often say, “This is the place God just showed off.”
I have been to MANY National Parks and NONE have the views and variety and splendor of Yosemite. I’ve often said the Grand Canyon is a yawner if you’ve been to Yosemite. We ran into some guys who were at the Grand Canyon just two days before (doing a cross country hiking trip) and they said Yosemite outdid anything they had seen at the Grand Canyon. They were in awe and said Yosemite far exceeded even their high expectations!
Yosemite is a photographers heaven. My wife was a little worried that I’d fall off a cliff in pursuit of a great picture and end up in real heaven. So I told her any time I saw an awesome, but dangerous, photo opportunity, my motto would be WWSS. (What Would Sara Say?) That motto cost me many potentially incredible shots… but also brought me home alive.
I have been dreaming of doing some of the serious hikes at Yosemite since I was a boy. Coming on this trip, and bringing a group of fellow children’s pastors with me was a dream come true. At one point I asked Yosemite had lived up to my grand descriptions of Yosemite before we arrived - and they all said no. One guy said, “You didn’t do Yosemite justice. You can’t begin to describe this place.”
There were people there from all over the world. (I was surprised there weren’t more Americans - or are we too used to having entertainment pumped into our homes?) I don’t know how anyone comes to this place and doesn’t leave with an awed sense of having been in the presence of the Creator. Everything here points to one thing: GOD.
I still have a lot of photo and video editing to do to create the “official” highlight video, but I decided to give you a small taste of what Yosemite Summit was like. It was truly a time of experiencing God in a place where his creative power is on full display and where his Voice is more easily heard. Men, as you watch this video, whisper a quiet prayer asking God if He is calling you to join us next year for Yosemite Summit 2009.
I just booked the lodge for 2009 and updated YosemiteSummit.org with next years dates!
Today was Sara’s Birthday. (I’ve been forbidden to say which one!) So I took the day off and we celebrated the day my wife was born by first having a Micky Mouse breakfast (sorry, no pictures, it was before we were in any state to be blogged!) complete with pancakes, eggs, bacon, juice etc. served on Mickey plates and glasses and then it was time for Mickey Mouse gifts I picked up when I was at Walt’s Place* earlier this year. Then, after nap time the real adventure of the day began, it was off to:
(click on any images to view larger)
We purchased a membership to Brookfield Zoo this year since it’s just under $100 and pays for itself in just two visits. (Free admission and parking and some other benefits) We figured with a two year old it would be a good idea this year. Today would be Luke’s first visit to the Zoo in his entire life!
So, of course, we invited Grandma and Grandpa to come along, who were also free because members can always bring a free guest and they give you six free additional free guest passes in addition to all the free passes in all the mailings we’ve been getting trying to sell us the membership!
We decided to have WILD DAY at the zoo to celebrate Mommy’s birthay!
While this picture of a camel isn’t very exciting (remember, you can click it to see a larger version!), it is the first big animal Luke got to see at the zoo. He even said “Hi” when he saw it! Just be thankful I’m not posting all the pictures of animals we took!
I managed to get this giant kagaroo to stand still and let Luke pose for a picture in his pocket. This picture is worth clicking on to see the adorable look on his face.
Luke enjoyed the animals but he REALLY liked all the cork and sticks on the ground!
Probably the highlight of the day for me was the trip to the Lion’s lair. Not because of my childhood memory from this zoo, but because of what happened today. (Kids from my past ministries and camps have heard the TRUE story of how I was attacked by a lion at this zoo as a young boy, but I will blog that story sometime later this year after another visit to the zoo, until then, you’ll have to just ask a kid from my ministry to tell you.) As for TODAY - as we were talking toward the Lion’s area, Luke actually spotted the lion in the distance before I did and before I had a chance to tell him where we were going he pointed and said, “LION!” I was shocked! I guess those Baby Einstein videos do work after all! The lion even started roaring for us. I was going to toss up a flash video I captured, but it’s really not that exciting to watch, though he did roar for over thirty seconds as he settled down for a nap. It was kinda a “I’m here, I’m bored, I’m a lion, and You’re Not” kinda roar” rather than “I’m going to eat you for dinner” kind.
Which was a good thing, because he probably could have if he’d wanted to. He was pretty big. It was fun to see Luke taking the animals in since up to this point large animals like this were things he’d only seen in books or videos. (Though he has seen a lot of deer in our neighborhood!) He has seen cows on some vacations and that would explain why he called a few animals cows!
This was one of my favorite pictures that Sara captured as father and son walked around the zoo. MAN (or should I say ‘animal?’) did it STINK in that Pachyderms House! I couldn’t wait to get out of there! Whew!
Zoo Boy with Birthday Girl!
I’ve had the privilege of being in front of hundreds of kids entertaining, but I’m enjoying more just introducing one little boy to the wonders of this world. Just pointing and saying, “Look at that animal God made….” and “I wonder why God made that that way?” “Hey, Luke, check this out….” Being able to expand his world is the most incredible joy. Fatherhood is beyond anything I ever imagined it would be.
Mommy and Lukie stop for a much needed rest after so much walking. This mom is blossoming into the most wonderful mother. She is so patient and tender and caring and selfless. And for Luke too.
On the way out, Luke gave the Buffalo a kiss good-bye. (where’s the wet wipes?) We ended Mom’s special day at her favorite restaurant, TGI Friday’s before heading home with a very sleepy boy. It was a great day with the little family.
* AKA “Walt Disney World”, just called it “Walt’s Place” to see if Steve Tanner reads this post and goes ballistic in comments.
