Veering off the worn foot path, walking towards the north, I placed one foot in front of the other, thinking I was walking in a straight line. But the wooded floor sloped gentle down and the rolled back up again, and a large fallen log blocked my path. Stopping after 50 yards I was already disoriented. The twins, trailing behind, eagerly hoping we’d quickly reach their destination, were anxious with uncertainty and hollered “Mom, are you sure this is safe?” Quickly looking down at the GPS coordinates, I realized I had gone entirely wrong, too far south and towards the east, not north-west like we needed. How could that have happened I wondered? And then I realized what I did wrong. I was allowing all the wrong things to guide me. Instead of turning towards the sky, and looking at the sun, instead of using the GPS, I simply found an arbitrary land mark on the ground as it lay before me and headed for it, presuming that just because it looked right, it was.
Once I allowed the sun and GPS to be my guide, we found the cache quickly. The children happily exchanged their treasures for ones contained within the hidden box and then chatted excitedly, skipping, pointing out trees, woodpeckers, and milkweed plants, talking about the fairy houses they want to build, and the excitement they had throughout the day finding all the hidden treasures as we ended our Geocaching adventure.
As I reflect back on that moment in the woods, I realized how people get lost. They choose the wrong source of guidance. I am struck by the poignancy of that analogy for my own life. Rather than allowing faith, hope, and love to guide my me, steadying my stride, allowing me to firmly walk towards the path of righteousness, I instead, frantically ran away from fear, sadness, and pain, looking over my shoulder more than I looked ahead, as if trying to out run a beast, straying from every path I crossed, too scared to think. Once I finally stopped running, it was as if I were standing in the middle of a wooded forest, unable to see the sun, with no way to know which direction was true north. I stood, no longer running, but lost and disoriented, confused and unsure, tired, cold, and hungry. No visible path in sight, what is a person to do? No longer being chased by a monster the immediate threat of mortal danger had passed, but wandering lost and alone in the woods is surely another way to die.
It all seems so clear to me in hindsight, exactly how this happened, and how I’m finding my way. I got on my knees and prayed. I allowed my faith to be my compass, and now I’ve stopped looking for a treasure and running from beasts. Instead, I walk, one step at a time and allowing (or trying at least) my path to be the treasure itself. The fact that I am alive, that I can soak in the sun and breath the crisp autumn air is a treasure indeed. My pace has slowed down quite a bit since the days or running frantically away from my pain. Some days it seems I’m getting no where fast, but yet I still notice all the things that I missed before while rushing about. But most importantly, by slowing my pace and turning to a wise and safe navigational guide, I know where true north lies, and I am finding my way. I know there will be obstacles that block my path, like a deep ravine or gushing river, but those will be challenges brought on by life and not ones that I’ve caused or made worse for myself.
leighcannon 