Time away from my computer is a good thing, but it means I'm a bit behind. I wish I could wave a magic wand and import my hand written journal entries from the past week and a half, but this amazing Adventure of life keeps moving on, and so I must as well!
Ragnar was SO fun! Highlights include running with my most fabulous Dad again in the evening (it was dark but not too late yet - relative right! We ran all night!) up his huge hill! It says his stretch is "moderate," but it is constant up! I got discouraged riding in the back of the truck when we thought he was almost done, and turned the corner to see the last huge hill he had to climb. I jumped out of the truck, and ran with him. I love to follow in his footsteps! Thanks Dad for wonderful memories together!
We had a great team again this year! My Sr. team and their friends filled one car, and we filled the other car with fun friends.
This year, our car (#2) had quite a bit of time at East Canyon Reservoir in the late afternoon. It was fun to see L. there. She is expecting in August just like K.L.! She was not running, but there a support for her husband and brought the boat for a wake board pull in the late afternoon. It was very peaceful for a couple hours there resting, preparing for our runs through the middle of the night!
Lesson - at one point in the run, I was told that I should get into the car and rest, preparing for my next leg. It made me consider the advice, and ponder as I ran, the lack of truth in that mentality. The story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:33-37) or the Warm & Fuzzy story is this very situation. If I sit in the truck, watching as others struggle, and hoard away what I have, unwilling to help, it is not reaching out, helping and following the advice of the Savior to "Go and do likewise." I ran that leg, and did feel stronger after my next run because during my entire run I thought about multitude of blessings I receive from Him. I can give to Him! He carries me when I trust Him! Thank you my friend, for helping me always!
Through the middle of the night I ran a 9.7 mile stretch, beginning at 11:20 p.m.. It was a beautiful leg from the outskirts of Henefer (home of my father's pioneer ancestors) past the tall rocks Grandma O. used to help us pretend were a milk jug, salt & pepper shakers, up into Echo canyon where those faithful people gathered to protect themselves against the coming threat of Johnson's Army, and then all the way around one side of Echo Reservoir. It was very dark for most of that leg, not many street lights. Often I was all alone on the road running, pondering, learning, thanking my Father for His tender mercies. Beautiful memories made that night! It was really chilly, and I started that leg with a coat and long sleeve shirt on, quickly shedding the top layers down to short sleeves, working hard. I finished well ahead of my goal and was touched by the blessings available when we trust in Him. Thank you Father!
The dramatic part came near the end of the race. I struggled through the grueling stretch "You've got to be Kidding" (walking most of the way with my Beautiful little ones joining me up [thanks to my most wonderful Mom - see below] the gravel road towards Guardsman's Pass). I love being part of a team cheering, encouraging each other on to accomplish seemingly impossible feats. H.D. ran the "Ragnar Wall" a section of about 4 miles which is so steep! She did a great job - smiling all the way! At one point D.D. insisted that being the gentleman that he was, he would help her and run a mile of hers. She gladly accepted the offer, and took a break. D. was the next runner, and given the prior discussion about trusting in our Father to make up the difference, he truly lived up to the test. His section was a Very Hard, mostly downhill pounding, long, stretch into Deer Valley. It began to rain during my section, but being mostly in the trees and on the dirt road, we considered it a blessing to keep us cool. Last year on those two stretches, we sprayed water and dumped it over the runners, keeping them cool. This year, I was asked if I wanted water over my head, to which I held out my hands and said "It's falling lightly from Heaven, His blessings just for me!" It sprinkled lightly for H. as well, but when it was near the top and D. was running, it began to downpour. We had one leg after D's which B.D. was to run. She really didn't want to run in the rain. We all knew she would, but it was difficult to be excited about getting out of the car! While a runner from that car is running, we drive ahead, stopping when we feel the runner might need a support/aid station. We went to the points we thought D.D. would need a drink, encouragement, etc. He was strong and doing great, despite the heavy rain, inching ever closer to B's section. Finally sitting in the parking lot where the exchange was to take place, just prior to B getting out, we offered a prayer that the rain might be eased for her section. It immediately began sprinkling, and before D. could finish his section, the rain stopped. Thank you Heavenly Father! B.D. later at the finish line said she would gladly run on our team anytime, and that she was going to hang out with us more knowing how our kind, wise Father was watching out, answering our prayers! I am so blessed by Him! Thank you Father! The finish line was fun.... we all got down on our knees and crawled for the last 20 feet. I love being a part of amazing teams! Thank you team mates for the wonderful life lessons we witnessed together!
At the finish line we signed up again for next year! It was a great race, we loved participating in! J.H. was a bit sad at the end as we signed up for team 119 for next year. He will be 19, eligible to be in the mission field on April 19, 2010. This may mean his call will take him to other fields someplace far away for the race. I will miss him, but just for today, I am treasuring the time we have together!
We were blessed with about 45 minutes at the finish line to visit together, celebrating especially with the C. who had come from Colorado to allow O. to be on the team in car 1, before it began again to rain! Thanks for the miraculous window Father!
I need to acknowledge my wonderful Mom, without whom I would not have been able to participate in the amazing events like this! She is the ultimate cheerleader, and I am so grateful for her beautiful example! She brought my Jr. team to cheer us along the trail, taking them to her Heber Home for the night, where we joined them around 5:00 a.m. after we (car 2) finished our round 2. At the final finish line, when it started raining during D's leg, she opted to take the kids home rather than come in the rain. Thank you Mom! I love and appreciate you!
Thank you for miracles! Thank you team mates for outstanding life lessons learned and applied during this difficult challenge!
Thought: This quote is one of B's favorites - he rattles it off often. I include it here for my easy reference. Quoting Elder Marion D. Hanks CR April 1968 here (see this link as well):
A thoughtful editor has recently written these words: "The human potential is the most magical but also the most elusive fact of life. Men suffer less from hunger or dread than from living under their moral capacity. The atrophy of spirit that most men know and all men fear is tied not so much to deprivation or abuse as it is to their inability to make real the best that lies within them. Defeat begins more with a blur in the vision of what is humanly possible than with the appearance of ogres in the path or a hell beyond the next turning. (Norman Cousins, Saturday Review, February 6, 1965, p. 18.)
We know well that character is an achievement, not a gift, yet all men to some measure, most of us to some considerable measure, and too many of us to a tragic measure live below our moral capacity, are willing to accept a plausible lower view of mankind and of ourselves than we should or need to, and fail to "make real the best that lies within" us.
The Lord wants us to be our best; he wants us to achieve our highest possibilities. This is the purpose of the gospel. He died to give us that opportunity. What principles are involved in our succeeding? What problems keep us from it?
Ragnar was SO fun! Highlights include running with my most fabulous Dad again in the evening (it was dark but not too late yet - relative right! We ran all night!) up his huge hill! It says his stretch is "moderate," but it is constant up! I got discouraged riding in the back of the truck when we thought he was almost done, and turned the corner to see the last huge hill he had to climb. I jumped out of the truck, and ran with him. I love to follow in his footsteps! Thanks Dad for wonderful memories together!
We had a great team again this year! My Sr. team and their friends filled one car, and we filled the other car with fun friends.
This year, our car (#2) had quite a bit of time at East Canyon Reservoir in the late afternoon. It was fun to see L. there. She is expecting in August just like K.L.! She was not running, but there a support for her husband and brought the boat for a wake board pull in the late afternoon. It was very peaceful for a couple hours there resting, preparing for our runs through the middle of the night!
Lesson - at one point in the run, I was told that I should get into the car and rest, preparing for my next leg. It made me consider the advice, and ponder as I ran, the lack of truth in that mentality. The story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:33-37) or the Warm & Fuzzy story is this very situation. If I sit in the truck, watching as others struggle, and hoard away what I have, unwilling to help, it is not reaching out, helping and following the advice of the Savior to "Go and do likewise." I ran that leg, and did feel stronger after my next run because during my entire run I thought about multitude of blessings I receive from Him. I can give to Him! He carries me when I trust Him! Thank you my friend, for helping me always!
Through the middle of the night I ran a 9.7 mile stretch, beginning at 11:20 p.m.. It was a beautiful leg from the outskirts of Henefer (home of my father's pioneer ancestors) past the tall rocks Grandma O. used to help us pretend were a milk jug, salt & pepper shakers, up into Echo canyon where those faithful people gathered to protect themselves against the coming threat of Johnson's Army, and then all the way around one side of Echo Reservoir. It was very dark for most of that leg, not many street lights. Often I was all alone on the road running, pondering, learning, thanking my Father for His tender mercies. Beautiful memories made that night! It was really chilly, and I started that leg with a coat and long sleeve shirt on, quickly shedding the top layers down to short sleeves, working hard. I finished well ahead of my goal and was touched by the blessings available when we trust in Him. Thank you Father!
The dramatic part came near the end of the race. I struggled through the grueling stretch "You've got to be Kidding" (walking most of the way with my Beautiful little ones joining me up [thanks to my most wonderful Mom - see below] the gravel road towards Guardsman's Pass). I love being part of a team cheering, encouraging each other on to accomplish seemingly impossible feats. H.D. ran the "Ragnar Wall" a section of about 4 miles which is so steep! She did a great job - smiling all the way! At one point D.D. insisted that being the gentleman that he was, he would help her and run a mile of hers. She gladly accepted the offer, and took a break. D. was the next runner, and given the prior discussion about trusting in our Father to make up the difference, he truly lived up to the test. His section was a Very Hard, mostly downhill pounding, long, stretch into Deer Valley. It began to rain during my section, but being mostly in the trees and on the dirt road, we considered it a blessing to keep us cool. Last year on those two stretches, we sprayed water and dumped it over the runners, keeping them cool. This year, I was asked if I wanted water over my head, to which I held out my hands and said "It's falling lightly from Heaven, His blessings just for me!" It sprinkled lightly for H. as well, but when it was near the top and D. was running, it began to downpour. We had one leg after D's which B.D. was to run. She really didn't want to run in the rain. We all knew she would, but it was difficult to be excited about getting out of the car! While a runner from that car is running, we drive ahead, stopping when we feel the runner might need a support/aid station. We went to the points we thought D.D. would need a drink, encouragement, etc. He was strong and doing great, despite the heavy rain, inching ever closer to B's section. Finally sitting in the parking lot where the exchange was to take place, just prior to B getting out, we offered a prayer that the rain might be eased for her section. It immediately began sprinkling, and before D. could finish his section, the rain stopped. Thank you Heavenly Father! B.D. later at the finish line said she would gladly run on our team anytime, and that she was going to hang out with us more knowing how our kind, wise Father was watching out, answering our prayers! I am so blessed by Him! Thank you Father! The finish line was fun.... we all got down on our knees and crawled for the last 20 feet. I love being a part of amazing teams! Thank you team mates for the wonderful life lessons we witnessed together!
At the finish line we signed up again for next year! It was a great race, we loved participating in! J.H. was a bit sad at the end as we signed up for team 119 for next year. He will be 19, eligible to be in the mission field on April 19, 2010. This may mean his call will take him to other fields someplace far away for the race. I will miss him, but just for today, I am treasuring the time we have together!
We were blessed with about 45 minutes at the finish line to visit together, celebrating especially with the C. who had come from Colorado to allow O. to be on the team in car 1, before it began again to rain! Thanks for the miraculous window Father!
I need to acknowledge my wonderful Mom, without whom I would not have been able to participate in the amazing events like this! She is the ultimate cheerleader, and I am so grateful for her beautiful example! She brought my Jr. team to cheer us along the trail, taking them to her Heber Home for the night, where we joined them around 5:00 a.m. after we (car 2) finished our round 2. At the final finish line, when it started raining during D's leg, she opted to take the kids home rather than come in the rain. Thank you Mom! I love and appreciate you!
Thank you for miracles! Thank you team mates for outstanding life lessons learned and applied during this difficult challenge!
Thought: This quote is one of B's favorites - he rattles it off often. I include it here for my easy reference. Quoting Elder Marion D. Hanks CR April 1968 here (see this link as well):
A thoughtful editor has recently written these words: "The human potential is the most magical but also the most elusive fact of life. Men suffer less from hunger or dread than from living under their moral capacity. The atrophy of spirit that most men know and all men fear is tied not so much to deprivation or abuse as it is to their inability to make real the best that lies within them. Defeat begins more with a blur in the vision of what is humanly possible than with the appearance of ogres in the path or a hell beyond the next turning. (Norman Cousins, Saturday Review, February 6, 1965, p. 18.)
We know well that character is an achievement, not a gift, yet all men to some measure, most of us to some considerable measure, and too many of us to a tragic measure live below our moral capacity, are willing to accept a plausible lower view of mankind and of ourselves than we should or need to, and fail to "make real the best that lies within" us.
The Lord wants us to be our best; he wants us to achieve our highest possibilities. This is the purpose of the gospel. He died to give us that opportunity. What principles are involved in our succeeding? What problems keep us from it?