With the crunch of gravel under our shoes, my young son and I begin the hike out of the large wash bottom, and up the incline of the plateau. The area we were hiking was densely laden with enormous sedimentary boulders and Juniper trees. The geological wonders and variety of the San Rafael Swell never ceases to impress me.
As we proceed up the incline my son periodically stoops down to pick up unique little rocks that he spots along the journey. Several times throughout the hike, his little pockets were bulging. He would simply empty his pockets, and continue on his way gathering more little collectibles as we sauntered along. Each time we stop to rest, this little explorer would climb atop a boulder and look back down the path to make sure he could still see our camp. Eventually reaching the top of the large plateau, we enjoyed the view for a brief moment, before the little guy inquires as to when we will begin heading back home to camp.
What is it inside of us, that no matter where we go, how long we are gone, the treasure we gain, or how much fun we have; it always feels good to return home? When we are sick, we seem to feel just a little bit better when we are able to get home so that we can rest in our own bed. This compass, engineered deep within the core of ourselves, is always pointing us to our refuge of comfort, our place of surety, our home!
Though he enjoyed the hike, the tiny pebble treasures he found, and the view from the top. My little boy was most concerned about where camp was, and making sure we could navigate back to it. As he stood upon the boulders overlooking the hike and down upon our camp, I couldn’t help but think that I should be more like him. We all need to make a certain amount of money in order to function in today’s society and we all want to be successful, that is admirable. But among all this, may we remember that the weighted scale of life should be tipped in favor of the quality of our home and family life. In the hikes of life, may we more fully enjoy the getting there and those who are with us, and not focus too heavily on the treasures that we want to gather. Irish novelist George A. Moore stated “A man travels the world over in search of what he needs and returns home to find it.”
Life is good, enjoy the journey!