And what a nice week it's been. I found it was a kind of surprisingly slow week at work- well, barring an urgent ticket I got on Friday just before I was supposed to head home. That was its own flavor of fun, but not too bad. I also decided to catch up on a Saturday morning cartoon from the 90's that I never got to see. Turns out, despite some cool animation and some story, Mega Man did not age quite so well. But maybe that's a rant for another time, especially since I've only seen a few episodes.
The main fun this week, for me, was going to what we call Nerd Camp. There's two flavors of Nerd Camp for me- the original- which my father and his friends started- and "The Next Generation", which I started with my friends. This was the former. With Nerd Camp, we usually find ourselves going up to Lava Hot Springs and camping the weekend next to the Portneuf River. This year was pretty nice, minus the weirdly very cold nights. I think part of the cold had to do with our position next to the river. But there were a few fun tidbits I really enjoyed. For one, we visited a nearby ghost town (well, mostly ghostly) and I ended up getting to play an actual old pump organ, which was just fascinating! I also got to cook my favorite dish ever- Bikol Express- and thanks to the help I had in preparing it, it turned out fan-freaking-tastic! If you've ever had Asian food with a good proper amount of spice, you might well know the feeling of eating it, having a second helping, and then kicking back and enjoying that warm, tropical feel in your stomach- as some call it, the "afterglow". What a nice sensation that is!
Perhaps the strangest but most personally enjoyable moment I had was on our first night's stay, after watching Kenobi from a laptop and projector we brought, we were all about to turn in. I had strung up my hammock strung between a tree and the fence by the river cliff's edge. I was about to turn in for the night, but instead decided to stroll along and see the stars. Honestly, it was really quite beautiful- so much, in fact, that I looked up to the top of the hill that towered over us on the South, and decided to take an impromptu hike to try and get to the top where the towers were, as it didn't look very tall. It was after 11 PM when I walked past the campground main office and started scrambling up the side of the hill through some of the brush. I probably hadn't gone quite 100 meters or so when I stumbled upon a path that followed the horizontal contour of the hill. I followed this towards the direction of town, with only my little flashlight to light the way. Despite being a little dinky thing, it did pretty adequately on that trail. And I wouldn't realize it until later, but I was following a canal. In fact, I had followed this trail a good ways, and then saw a crossing over the canal. I followed this narrow trail, and it led quickly upward in a fast curve uphill. I ran into another group of hikers- a bunch of teenagers- which was honestly kind of comforting, as I was starting to get a little weary and paranoid, so it was nice to have some small bit of human interaction.
I had passed them after some ways, and came upon a sight I hadn't expected- the letter L that sits on the hill overlooking Lava Hot Springs. I guess I had never before realized it's not only made of rock, but outlined in a string of light bulbs. And so, as I was long approaching it, I thought I was accidentally stumbling on someone's private mansion, or something. Instead, the scene turned out to be frankly quite beautiful. I would have a hard time putting down in words the feeling it put through me, let alone the visual I got to see. The town below was a humble grid of lights, with some distinguishable features, like the springs. Across from the town, and past the highway, the hills on the other side facing me were slighly illuminated by the lights of the town below. The place from which I stood would have been fairly dark, were it not for the glow of those soft bulbs which were just next to the trail. The light and the shadows of that place really just made the scene so very serene and peaceful. I guess to sum it up in one word, "serene" would be it.
Perhaps part of that beauty was due to the contrast of the lonely dark in which I was hiking, compared to the light in which I then stood. I only went a very short distance further before I thought I was beginning to hear sounds, and decided it was best to turn around. By now, my paranoia was starting to get the better of me, and I was constantly checking my surroundings to make sure no unruly creatures were stalking me as their next meal. It got to the point I was singing some songs, both to keep my courage up, and fend away unwanted wildlife. Even still, I did encounter one less-than-fun creature as I was following the canal back, though. I heard a rustling in the bushes, and I made some noise, trying to scare the creature away. I'm glad I didn't make too much more, though, because when I shone my light at the source of the noise, I was greeted by a black little critter with a white striped tail- and I watched its tail start to lift. I backed away slowly from the skunk that was sitting on the other side of the canal. I sniffed the air, checking to see if it had already made its defensive move- and thankfully, it hadn't. The moment I knew it was safe, I made the fastest sprint past it down the trail- and I think it never did let off its scent, thankfully. As I made my way the remainder of the way back, my flashlight had lost some of its brightness, but was still helpful enough. I made it back to camp just fine, and crawled into my hammock.
Although it was obviously unwise to go on a night hike alone, (and I don't think I'd repeat the experience), standing from that beautiful spot was honestly really worth the climb through the dark paths. It's nice when, after we've fought against a hard day, to find an oasis, or a momentary sanctuary, where we can stop, replenish ourselves, and regain the strength we need to keep walking down the road. In life, these can take many forms, and some are much more effective and beautiful than others. These "sanctuaries" or "oases" are vital to our ongoing journey. If we don't stop along our way to let our nerves be calmed, to let light back into our lives, or to simply look up at the stars and remember that the dark void we travel through is still filled with beauty, we not only run the risk, but will inevitably eventually collapse under the fear, exhaustion, or other factors that will break us down. And those things that we choose as sanctuaries and sources of replenishment in our lives can also be very important. There are some places to stop and rest that look very beautiful, but whose resources are merely a front, and will offer little in the way of true help.
As the poet Robert Frost once said, Choose Something Like a Star. Have a good week everyone!