Into the Woods

This past Memorial Day weekend, I ventured into the woods with my dad. It was supposed to be a weekend camping/hiking trip, but just ended up being a hiking trip. 

Dad didn't arrive until after 5 on Friday night, and it was going to take us an hour and a half to get to Burrells Ford to go set up the tent. We weren't even sure if there would be any spots, so we decided to try the local/closer areas first. We went to Paris Mountain first, saw there wasn't any camping spots left, then decided to head over to another park. As we were driving away, we started discussing our options. We didn't have a reservation anywhere, most places I had checked were full, and by the time we got to Burrells Ford, it would be close to 7 and we still weren't sure if they had any open camp spots. So, we decided we wouldn't camp and would just go back to Paris Mountain to go hiking instead since neither of us had ever been to Paris Mountain. As a Greenville resident, I felt it was past time I went there!

Dad and I returned to Paris Mountain State Park and hiked the Mountain Creek Trail and part of the Sulphur Springs Trail. According to my GPS watch, we ended up hiking a total of 4.5 miles. Even though we ended up not camping, we still ate our planned camping dinner of hot dogs!

On Saturday we had a late start to the day and headed over to Jones Gap. We got there right about 10:15 am and there was a line of about 4 or 5 cars in front of us. The park ranger came up to our car and said it was a "one car in, one car out" rule as the parking lot was full already due to the holiday weekend. He said it would only be a 30-45 minute wait, so we thought why not.  Neither Dad nor I had ever done Jones Gap before and we wanted to try it out. While waiting, we looked over the map and planned our day. We waited and waited, while 2 cars in front of us gave up and left. After 30 minutes, a car came out and the car in front of us got to go in. We waited some more and still no cars. Then, a car came out, but it was only a tease as it was a camper and not a hiker. At the 45 minute mark, Dad left to go to the restroom and we decided that once he came out we were going to leave.  After he returned and we talked to the ranger for awhile, we had been there almost 1 hour and 15 minutes and still no sign of another car leaving. We asked the ranger about other options near here where parking wouldn't be a issue, and he recommended Trail #23 of the Mountain Bridge Wilderness Area - The Mountain Bridge Passage Trail. It was off a side road about 5 minutes away from where we were. As the ranger explained how to get there, one more car came out but was a camper again, so that sealed the deal for us. On to our next location! 

The Mountain Bridge Passage Trail is considered to be one of the "very strenuous" trails as it is a one-way 4 mile trail that heads up Campbell Mountain. It is a newer trail to the Mountain Bridge Wilderness Area and is actually part of the Ashmore Heritage Preserve/Wildlife management area run by the SC DNR. Once we made it to the top, we then headed back down to do the loop around Wattacoo Pond. The full pond loop was 1.46 miles, but we couldn't quite figure it out and went back out the way we came so only did about 1 mile. And just like any trip into the woods with my dad, I learned something - how to identify Yellow Poplar trees by their leaves and flowers. We also spotted a gorgeous Scarlet Tanager (bird) and a Mountain Pitcher plant. Unfortunately, I couldn't get a clear picture of the bird, but it was absolutely gorgeous. In all, we did about 9 miles on Saturday.

We learned our lesson on Saturday, so were up early and arrived at Jones Gap by 8:30 on Sunday morning. We were the second people in the parking lot and feeling good. We were a bit sore from yesterday, so we decided to take it fairly easy on Sunday before Dad left to go home. We hiked into Jones Gap and then up to Rainbow Falls. We stopped for a snack and photos at Rainbow Falls and then headed back down to the Jones Gap trail. Back at the trail, we decided we would head up to Jones Gap Falls and then call it a day.  We were the only ones at Jones Gap Falls, so we took some more pictures and then ate lunch.

All in all, it was a great weekend to be in the woods!

Some falls along the Mountain Wilderness Passage Trail

The Mountain Pitcher Plant

The Yellow Poplar Leaf

 

Selfie at Rainbow Falls

Jones Gap Falls

Dad was fascinated by this tree along the Jones Gap Trail.

 

My Call to Serve

On the first Sunday night in May, at the last "official" Forge of the year, I told my 10th grade girls that I would not be their leader next year. It was a very bittersweet night for me as I have grown to love these girls and my co-leaders tremendously and will miss having them in my life on a regular basis.

It was not a decision I made lightly. In fact, it was a year-long decision making process. I had started a new job the May prior to coming to lead Forge and I had already been serving in the Special Needs ministry at that time as a shadow and assistant coach. I started traveling for my job quite a bit and had an evolving role in the special needs ministry, which lead to a lot going on in my life.

Being a Forge leader is so much more than just showing up on Sunday nights. Its being in constant prayer for the kids, connecting with them, spending time with them in one-on-one or small group settings outside of our regular meetings and being there whenever they need you. With being gone several Sundays for work travel and then a lot of the times I was there, I was so exhausted that I wasn't there mentally, it was hard to be the Forge leader I wanted to be and the girls needed me to be.

As a single-not married-no kids individual, I have built a mentality around/for myself that because I don't have those commitments, I should take up any call to serve. "What's my reason to say no? Nothing."  is a question I asked myself far too often.  It's hard for me to say no because I want to be able to do it all for others, but at the same time I do it at a cost to myself without even realizing it.

From the end of the earth I will cry to you. When my heart is overwhelmed, lead me to the rock that is higher than I - Psalm 61:2

For the last year I prayed about what to do. I talked to my community group, the Forge women's leader, the special needs ministry leader and others trying to seek out knowledge and to let them know I was struggling. I was tired, stressed, and over-committed. It took awhile for me to realize that rest is just as essential as serving when it comes to my relationship with Christ.

During this entire time, I was wrestling with the thoughts of "Do I just need to step away from one ministry? Or, do I need to take a break completely from serving?"  I didn't want to step away completely from serving, but I knew I needed more rest in my life in order for me to continue to grow in Christ. Through many weeks of prayer and direct conversations, it became evident to me what I needed to do.  I've always had a passion for the Special Needs ministry (it is part of the reason I ended up at my church- read about it here) and through prayer and discussion, I was shown not only what my gifts are, but how well they are suited and used in that ministry.  With Forge, I wasn't able to fully commit and give the girls all they needed as a leader. I could be there on Sunday nights and speak truth to them, but they needed more than that from me. With those revelations, the decision to step away from Forge was how I felt called. And when I acknowledged that call, I felt the weigh being lifted off of me.

I sought the Lord and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears - Psalm 34:4

This last year, while difficult, was a good year for me. I spent a lot of time in self-reflection and really seeking out the Lord. I learned its ok to have to step back, and that was something I wanted to make sure to impart on my girls as well that Sunday night when I told them goodbye. I also told them that I would still love them, be praying for them and checking in on them. (I think they're all a bit terrified that I will show up when one of them is out on a date and have some questions for their fellas).

Even though telling them goodbye was done with a heavy heart, I left that night with a lighter heart knowing I was seeking rest and still following God's call to serve.