Beautiful Logarska Dolina (Logar Valley)

On the way

I arrived back in Texas on Tuesday of this week. I have come to spend several weeks with my family during what is most likely the last few weeks or months of my mother’s life. It is both a sweet and sad time. I want to relate a story that happened to me a few weeks ago. A new Croatian friend, Zoran, took me on a hiking trip in the Kamnik Alps of Slovenia. I told him before we left that I love hiking but that I don’t like technical climbing. I don’t do well with both high and very open and exposed places. It freaks me out. He said everything would be fine. All started out well, but I knew I was in trouble when at one point he pulled out this helmet and told me to put it on. Suddenly the trail turned into about a 12-18 inch wide shelf on the side of a rock face, with several hundred feet straight down on the left side. There was a steel cable attached to the rock to hang onto. At some points it was scrambling straight forward up and over the rock, with steel spikes in the rock to both hold onto and put your feet on. Needless to say, I was quiet scared for this last 30-40 minutes of the hike. It was one of the hardest things I have ever done.

Our campsite, with the rock face we traversed on the left

We did make it to our campsite on the ridge top, and it was beautiful. As we made our camp for the night and had dinner, Zoran looked at the map and said that the easiest way back down was going to be the way we came up. I didn’t know how I was going to do it, having to back down, and therefore, having to look down. I prayed a good part of the night for God to help me and take away my fear. We awoke the next morning to rain. I was going to have to go back down that rock face, but now in the rain, and over slick rocks. But we started out…and it was actually easier! It was still not comfortable for me, but this time I did not feel the terrible fear I did going up. God answered my prayer in an amazing way. Through this experience I felt the Lord speaking to me, “See how I have been with you and have helped you through this hard experience? Likewise, I will be with you and your family and will help you through the coming hard times, having to let go of your mother.” It was truly a great gift to me.