When David and I were asked to go on TREK as a Pa and Ma, we were thrilled about it. It was an experience we both had wanted to be a part of for a long time because we heard it was amazing. But I'm not going to lie, I was also very nervous. I'm not that young teenage girl who used to sprint up mountains anymore. I really didn't want to be the Ma who held everyone up because I was too slow or out of breath. Both David and I worked hard on getting in shape for this and being ready physically as well as spiritually. It all paid off because it was amazing!
It felt like a full time job getting ready for trek. Everything from clothes to supplies had to be just right. And everything had to fit on a 5 gallon bucket.
But the day finally arrived and we got to meet our amazing "family". They each were so unique and added different aspects to our family. I was grateful for each of them!
We had to "build" our handcart before starting.
And then get everything to fit. By the end of the trek, we were professionals at packing that handcart just right. In the beginning, not so much. We didn't travel very far before everything started falling out. It was a learning experience for all the families.
This was our families BEFORE picture.
And then we were off!
But didn't make it far before we had to stop and wait for other families who were having difficulties with their handcarts.
This was our first big stop, in Western Town. We had to take a picture with the BEANS sign.
This was the next morning after a terrible night of sleep. I had slept in wet clothes that were so muddy from the day before, but I was saving my clean clothes for later that night when we got to take a bath in the river. We also had gotten in after midnight and still had to get up very early. But we still gathered for family prayer and scripture study before starting the day.
The Women's Pull was an awesome thing to watch. The girls had to pull the handcart up on of the hardest sections of the entire trail. Our boys were super though. They would fan the girls and others would carry heavy rocks up the hill and throw under the wheels when the girls needed a break. Our girls were fantastic up the entire hill.
And this was the view at the top of the women's pull hill. It was worth the effort.
We crossed a lot of water, at first we wanted to take our shoes off before crossing, but eventually we had been through so much mud that we didn't care anymore. Our feet were wet the entire time.
Most of the trail looked muddy like this....It only rained on us one time, but it had rained the entire previous week, so the trails were completely muddy. It was kind of a catch 22 - either the trails were dry in the meadows, but no shade, like the above pictures. Or they were totally muddy but in the shade of the trees.
These berries grew all along the trails and were such a special treat to grab a few and eat them along the way.
These last pictures were our final descent before reaching "Zion". This part was so emotional. We all gathered at the base of a hill and lined our carts up shoulder to shoulder. Then together we all crested the hill where we could see the parents waiting in the distance. We could hear their cheers for us and we sang Come Come Ye Saints as we descended down the other side of the hill and up the trail to "Zion". The overwhelming feeling of joy and relief and gratitude filled me heart! That moment made the drudgery of the prior few days all melt away. It was suddenly all worth it! The mud, the hunger, the exhaustion, the sweat, and yes sometimes tears all seemed worth it at this point.
Our AFTER Picture
Prior to trek I had heard from folks that went on Trek as a youth
about 8 - 12 years ago. Every single one of them said Trek was the
hardest, the most memorable and the most spiritual of their youth
conferences. In all honesty, I knew it was going to be incredible but
thought they may have been romanticizing it a bit or being a little over
the top with drama. I now understand and believe this to be my
favorite youth conference that I have had the privilege to participate
in. It was fun, difficult, sacred and reflective.
The
night Trek ended and these days that have passed since - we
cannot help but think about our family youth from Trek, carry a prayer
for them in our hearts and hope that they will remember the special
impressions and experiences they had during Trek. We often find
ourselves talking about particular youth that were in our family. I
believe the families that we had during trek were indeed inspired. I'm
grateful inspiration such as this is in our lives and that our local
leaders are inspired in such ways.
I left incredibly impressed by
our youth. We truly have amazing and kind youth in our stake! The
future is indeed bright. I also left impressed by the pioneers of old
and what they went thru. Another gained insight was that of the
handcarts and particularly the wheels - they left me floored by the
pounding they can take!!
I
loved trek, I loved being around everyone and feeling their spirit
and vigor for life. I loved being in the outdoors enjoying God's
creation. This was an amazing experience that helped me grow as a person,
helped my testimony grow in different areas and helped us as a couple
to grow in new areas as well.
What
a blessing it was to be a part of this. How great it was to do
something difficult together and to have amazing experiences together.
The Bean family loved it and would be nothing but thrilled and thankful if ever asked to participate again.
No comments:
Post a Comment