And this was the beginning of several "first's" for me! It all started when our oldest daughter felt the need to make a bucket list for her aging mother…since I hadn't seemed too concerned about adventure outside my four walls.
Dennis and I looked forward, with great anticipation, to this past weekend, when we were to go camping with our daughter and son-in-law. Yet, since I had never been camping, I had a few reservations. For one, I do not get along with heat. Five minutes out in the elements of anything over 80 degrees, my whole upper torso becomes beet red and it feels like I am on fire. A true sight to behold.
Don't misunderstand...I love the summer months…if I'm on the inside of a 68 degree cooled down house.
For another thing, I like to look (and feel) as though I've done all I can to make this temporary house (my body), look as great as it possibly can. Sometimes I have to work really hard at that. Can't imagine wearing makeup in the wilderness. Or even finding a place to apply it. All sorts of insects would be drawn to that sweet smelling mess on my face, I'm pretty sure. And forget the body lotion! I'm seeing bugs of all sorts of sizes and shapes sticking right to that. Plus, can you imagine how hot the body would get from having skin moisturizers slathered on it? Can't wear any perfume, either! Bees or wasps would hunt me down.
Camping…well, that's a real mind warp for me. Why would anyone want to sleep with bugs, snakes, mosquitoes, and whatever other creepy crawly things are out and about in wooded areas? And, what about those weirdos who think they have a right to take you out (that's the calm version of slaughter you), just because they can. And, aren't there bears in the woods of North Carolina? Especially in the Appalachian Mountains? Don't they just love camp sites? And, how in the WORLD, do you keep yourself looking anyway but wickedly depleted?
But…there is very little (maybe nothing, actually) I wouldn't do, should either of my girls ask me to consider it. And, seriously…why not? The years seem to fly past us. It's time to experience some things out of my comfort zone. So now, I had the great opportunity to challenge my totally unrealistic fears. Or at very least, my fears.
We stopped for lunch before heading to Grandfather Mountain. Dennis decided to carve our initials in the table. Cute, huh? That's pretty good, after 40 years of marriage. And what better way to start an adventure, than to watch as your husband declares his love for you through a bit of outward expression in a public place?
As any best laid plans usually get side-lined, it was no different with ours, on that Saturday. We were going to the mountains first…to take pictures and enjoy God's designing abilities amongst nature. Upon the mountain there's a wildlife habitat, a mile-high swinging bridge, and plenty of plant life that grows so majestically (one way because of the wind factor) on the most beautiful ridges, and in the crevices of the mountain, you'd ever expect to see.
We got to the entrance and the guard tells us they are closing earlier than usual to accommodate a 5K run. Seriously?!! On Grandfather Mountain? Geez, those are brave souls! Well, we decided to wait until Sunday after our zip lining schedule. I truly think God is quite the funny guy. But, it could be that He just wanted to show me what a great time I could have when I wasn't so concerned with how I look, but I wish He'd forewarned me. Well, in all fairness, maybe He did. Lindsey tried to tell me not to worry how I looked or what I might end up wearing. Should have thought that one through...
Yes…it rained on Sunday. It rained very hard. It rained even through the limbs and foliage of massive tree structure. It rained so hard that Dennis thought my mascara (sorry…had to have SOMETHING to show I really do have eyes) was running down my face. He was wrong however. I only use water proof mascara. What he was seeing, and what no one else felt necessary to tell me, was that I had MUD all over my face. Not just below my eyes. It was everywhere! On my forehead, my cheeks, my nose, my blouse…everywhere! Why could no one see that? Surely they didn't think they were freckles! Or maybe they're so used to seeing people that are mud splattered, they didn't think anything of it. So why was I the only one that seemed covered in the stuff? Yup…really funny, God.
Trusting others has been a HUGE issue with me for most of my life. And it came full circle this past weekend. I hated the game Trust or Dare, that was so popular when my girls were young. Their friends wanted them to participate in that crazy stupid game. Most of the time when someone was asked to trust that their "friend" would be there to catch them as they fell backward (supposedly into their arms), the friend would step back and let them fall hard onto the ground. It stirs me up just thinking about it. Zip Lining brought those memories back to me because you have to trust the cables are not going to let you fall 5,260 feet to a very painful death. You have to trust your ranger guides and the emergency brake knots. Poor Billy (a guide), he became the human emergency brake knot for me. Only once, though. And, in this case, once (out of 10) was enough! Lindsey gave me a new title. "I came in like a wrecking ball" Mary.
On this 10 wire tour, where humans are shot for great lengths over never ending tree and rocky cliff filled valleys…hanging by a couple of belts that are attached to a cable, (that you must hold onto...oh my, my heart is racing as we speak), you travel as much as 35 miles an hour. You are required to wear gloves with leather palms on the hand you use the most. That is the glove that helps you slow down when coming in for a landing at the next platform. You can't grab the cable…you must press down on it, behind you, to slow yourself down. Yet with all the rain, the cables became very hard to control. I could feel the heat from the friction when trying to slow this heavy-weight down. Most of the time I did pretty good, until that last one. I may have become a little cocky. Or maybe I was just anxious to get the last one under my belt, and back onto solid ground. I don't know what happened, except that I couldn't slow down, no matter how hard I pushed down on the cable. My hand felt the friction and like it was on fire as the skin ripped off the underside of my fingers. Coming in, I yelled, "I can't stop! I can't stop!" as the tree became bigger and bigger. Billy was trying to take a picture as I came within inches of my death. The speed of my decent was too quick…too fast…too so not okay. He dropped the camera and used himself, instead of the emergency rope, to block my certain demise. Maybe he really just wanted to save the tree…who knows. He had warned us, earlier, that should there be a need to use the "rope", it would not be pretty. Like hitting a wall…I will forever be grateful that he took a hit for me.
CUTE, EH? Look at that wet deck! That was wayyyy up in the trees. I have no idea how far up it actually was…but it was far enough. Dennis says I look Chinese.
See…cocky! Just when I was getting the hang of it, I was put back in my place by a much too slippery cable. However, Dennis was waaaayyyy more cocky than I was. He was called "the sleeper". Sorry, don't have that pic just yet. Both hands behind his head, he kicked back as though he didn't have a care in the world. It was during a relatively short cable (compared to the others), so he posed for the camera.
THE CAMP GROUNDS (at our camping spot), at Honey Bear Camping Grounds in Boone, NC.
AND OUR RESTING PLACE for Saturday Evening. Todd and Lindsey gave up their sleeping bag for the old folks, and used a much smaller one for themselves. What great kids! The flap you see in the back, actually zips down all the way, to let air in, but not creepy, crawly things, or flying things. The night got pretty cool as the rain came in. Had to zip the lining up just a bit, and snuggle deeply in the flaps of our sleeping bags.
During the night there were a couple of note worthy happenings. It was around the 1 a.m. time, that I heard what I thought was a camper preparing his lair for fowl play. I heard the fire crackle, only minutes after sounds of a shovel moving dirt from one area to another. The clanking sounds of the shovel hitting rock, and then the soft sound of dirt against shovel, caused my mind to paint various scenarios. A grave perhaps? Was he planing to burn his victims first, before throwing their remains in a shallow grave? What was he up to? I very quietly raised up on my knees to look out my little vent screen. Yes! The fire was blazing high. Ironically, the wood was making a beautiful sound as the flames leapt into the air. There he was…covered in shadows mostly, but none-the-less, he was visible as he stood poking the fire. Where was the open grave??? Shaking just a little, I decided I should just calm myself down. What if he saw me looking at him? Yikes! As I tucked back into my sleeping bag, I took a deep breath and it started to rain. This could either turn into a horror story, or a very soothing and relaxed sleep. What's it gonna be, Mary? I chose to let the raindrops sooth away my worries. And...he may choose Dennis instead of me.
About 3 a.m. I had a bladder emergency. Our bath house was up the hill, across a lot, down a trail, and finally up a slight incline…about a 3-5 minute walk time in the dark. What to do, what to do? I'll try to hold it. But I knew right then that wasn't going to be possible. I also knew it would be fruitless to wake Dennis and ask him to go with me. I look at the time on my phone and see it's been long enough for the neighboring camper to have chosen his victim and done his deed. So, up I get…slip on my flip-flops and sneak very quietly behind the tent, off just a little towards the creek, and drop my undies under the tree covering. Ah…sweet release.
I only have one more thing to say, for now. My body found ways to twist and turn, contorting in ways I never knew it could, until this past weekend. And for the record, my right bicep is tremendously sore today. Yes, I tried very hard to stop being a speeding bullet (that's a cannon bullet) on a wire, with a tree (and small human) as the target. Pressing down with all the strength in my arm, I found that I would not brake in time. I also tried to reason with my mind and my body, that the camper was not out for blood, nor me. I found that I could not raise from a position on my back, to an upright position on my butt. I had to roll (I was already dropped), and fold in order to get on my knees to peer out the tent.
Oh the joys of new adventures. Of first times. Of being loved and believed in. Of second chances.
So, this is enough of me for one blog entry. Wrapping it up, I thought you would enjoy this shot Lindsey got of me on the way home. I know some were wondering if I would survive. I was one of those people.
I did…and here you'll find me, as usual…in Mary's World.
