Camping Weekend 3

So this is all long overdue. I've done a lot of camping this summer, and didn't slow down enough to document it all here, so I'm going to fill in the gaps as well as I can now.

In may my housemate and I joined some guy friends for an overnight/weekend at a buddy's "cottage" on the lake a little ways north of us. It was a great opportunity to test out my Coleman stove- which I bought a couple summers ago at a garage sale. I had to do a little repair work, but now it is a fantastic piece of gear for any car camping trip.

Night came and we spent a lot of time around the fire, talking about deep stuff- everything from spirituality and the Bible to politics. Smores were had, of course, and it gave me the opportunity to try out the "S'moreo". 

Just a roasted marshmallow added to the center of an oreo. It was fantastic, by the way. I highly recommend it. But it was a beautiful night, and it was great to be by the water in the quiet still of the night. I'm finding more and more- maybe I've said this in a recent post? But I'm finding more and more that being by a large body of water sort of reminds me of who I am somehow. It's a reminder that I'm small, and that God is big, and his works are vast and mighty.

So while it was a cottage, there wasn't room for everyone, so I knew I'd be sleeping in a tent. It was pretty late when we all turned in for the night, I was pretty beat. It rained through the night some, which I find to be really comforting, actually. I love the soft sound, as long as it isn't leaking into the tent. But I woke warm and dry the next morning, and made some cocoa on my Coleman stove.

Though it was sprinkling a little, the host of the trip and I went out on his boat for some morning fishing. He knew some good spots, but none of them brought us any fish- though I'll be the first one to tell you that fishing isn't all about catching. A lot of time it is about conversation shared with good company and connecting with God in the quiet. And what better note to end this post than that? Make sure you take time and be still. God is good. 

New posts to come soon...

The summer has been packed full of adventure for me, and I have a lot of updating to do, but for now, I just want to post this GIF I made from my photos of the full blood moon last night!

It was a beautiful thing.

Rebuilding Nepal

I’m going to Nepal!

A week ago, a friend of mine came to me with a last minute opportunity. He wanted me to go with him and a group of other men on a trip to Nepal to help rebuild homes and schools for people affected by the recent devastating earthquakes. It required that I be able to go soon (I had 10 days to prepare), and that I be able to leave work/life/responsibilities here for 2 full weeks.  Amazingly everything has fallen together, and at 3:30am Saturday, I’ll be headed out.

The details of the trip are hazy, because we don’t really know what to expect when we get there. Our partner there will have better details about exactly what we’re doing once we’re there. What I do know is that we’ll be camping in tents at about 10,000 feet at the beginning of the rain season. We’ll be helping people in the more remote parts of Nepal that are harder to get to with aid.

So here’s the part where I ask for help. I need financial help to make this happen and I need people to join me in prayer. If you can spare some money to help me get there, I would be eternally grateful! But even more, I need people to be praying for Nepal and the people of our group.

If you want to help me financially, you can give online here:
https://kensingtonchurch.org/nepaljunegiving

If you want to be praying for my team and me, here are a few suggestions:
- Strength and endurance for us in the long hours of work ahead
- Flexibility for the unknown challenges we’ll be facing
- Safety from injury and disease

- Safety travelling

- Help for the people of Nepal- pray that we would be useful
- Pray that our attitudes and work would speak to God’s love

Sidenote- how appropriate that I'll be camping for 2 weeks in Nepal during my summer of camping. In light of this trip, my "summer of camping" banner seemed out of place, so I present to you: Nate's trip to Nepal. If I get wifi along the way, I'll try and post here.

Camping Weekend 2

So I'm already finding that some of these camping weekends will be grander than others. This one was one of the grander ones. My dear friend Casey Butler is on his way (or already arrived, perhaps) out west to New Mexico to join several of our old friends at a summer camp. He'll be working as a summer staffer for now, but I wouldn't be surprised at all if he ended up out there long-term. One thing I've always loved about Casey is his love for adventure. He understands a side of me that many people do not.

So he told me he and a couple others might be doing a camping trip in Canada before he roadtrips out to NM and I was instantly on board. It was an appropriate sending off, in my mind. So Here's the recap.

The trip was eventful from the start. We'd been in Canada only for a few hours when a tire on the car blew. We were fortunate to have a spare and took the next exit to get a new tire on Tom's car. We had to stop at a Tim Hortons (our 1st of many Tim Hortons stops along the way) to get directions to a tire place. We also bought a map of Ontario since GPS was a little unreliable in Canada. You can see (above) Casey and Tom arguing about directions in the classic "map on hood" pose. This photo marked our 2nd stop at a Tim Hortons. 

Traffic was backed up for miles (or kilometers if you prefer...) at one point because of this overturned semi. 

We finally arrived at the campground but there was no staff around to help us check in, so we wandered around until we found the campsite Casey had reserved online. We were fortunate that few other campers were around, we had a large area to ourselves. We arrived later than we had planned on, so we set up camp, gathered some wood and got going on dinner. Mac and cheese with hotdogs was the main course. S'mores later, obviously. None of us slept very well that night, it was colder than we had anticipated, so I was thrilled when the sun came up. 

    

I got up and got the fire going again. As has become my tradition, I heated up some hot chocolate over the fire. Breakfast was bacon and eggs. Good hearty food for men on an adventure. I also started experimenting with cookie s'mores, which can only be a good thing. We were exhausted from a long night of poor sleep, but went on with our plans to go on a hike at a nearby park. 

                 

The hiking trip was great- except that it revealed how grossly out of shape I am. Beautiful views, fresh air and good company. 

        

On our way back from the hiking trails we stopped at a house that advertised maple syrup for sale. We each bought a bottle. Then proceeded to toast with it and each took a swig. We had a long laugh with the Canadians. 

  

We had lunch at a strange little family owned diner on the side of the road. I ordered the appropriate drink (Canada Dry).

        

After a brief naptime back at our campsite, we headed to Toronto for some poutine. Casey and I had never had any- it was delicious but we took no photos of it, apparently. If you didn't know, it's french fries with cheese curds and gravy. I got some bacon bits added to it, which was the greatest decision of the night. A cute girl at the poutine place was whispering about us- whether it was about our rugged good looks or the fact that we reeked of campfire will forever be a mystery. We had fun in Toronto but headed out since it was getting dark and we still needed to get a campfire going. Above are photos of bagged milk- it's real, as well as a photo of the sunset as we left Toronto. 

Our final morning was filled with maple/milk scrambled eggs and what was left of our bacon. We then packed up and hit the road. The camping was great, the company was great. Lots of memories. More camping to come! God is good.

PS. Thanks to the guys (Tom and Casey) for most of the photos. 

Camping Weekend 1

Part of my Summer of Camping will hopefully be photosets and descriptions of each camping experience. Since I've done a couple already, I'll have to update you on them just to catch up. So, here's camping weekend # 1:

We arrived late evening at Lakeport State Park, and set up camp right away. My children friends got busy looking for a playground as I got the fire going. Dinner was quick to follow. Then came stories, s'mores and sleep. (Note Huron in through the trees)

I'd been struggling with a bit of a cold, so a little cough syrup helped knock me out. I woke early (as I often do when camping) and decided to get up and enjoy the morning. First I got the fire going again, then made some hot cocoa, then I watched a beautiful sunrise over Lake Huron.

I wandered the beach for several hours picking up shells, fossils and sea glass for my niece and nephews.

I hate when people say stuff that is poetic and puffery but doesn't really mean anything- that being said, I find it hard to express what I felt out there. The wind, waves and solitude awoke something in me, reminded me in a way of who I am. I don't know for sure whether it's the reminder that I'm so small, the comforting sounds or smells of nature or just the lack of background noise, but somehow camping makes me feel closer to God. It was refreshing and energizing.

Got my first taste of sun for the year. Great weekend. Looking forward to more camping. God is good.

The Year Ahead

It's comical that year after year I make posts in this blog (and others) and each time I think "from now on I'll do it more regularly". Even now I'm posting after a year, and I still think I'll do it more regularly from now on.

Here's a quick recap of the last year:
I completed my 4th full year working at the same church.
I wore lots of flannel.
I was in a couple of weddings.
I grew my hair longish (I called it the college professor cut), then cut it back.
I bought another Jeep Cherokee.
I missed my Dad.
I moved into a new house with old friends.
I went to Florida and Disney with my family.
I Saw the Atlantic Ocean.
I broke my phone near Florida and Disney.
I picked blackberries with some friends and made a pie.
I did some writing and sketching.
I turned 30.
I ate a lot of chips and salsa.
I bought a star trek mug.

I have tried to stick to my goals- taking advantage of every interaction, seizing the day, doing things that make me feel alive...

On that topic, I'd like to present: The Summer of Camping.

Since it is such a life-giving thing for me, I've decided to do as much as I can this summer. I have already done 2 camping trips this spring, and I've got several trips yet to come. So if you're interested in camping, let me know.