His Eye is on the Sparrow

It was a different sort of year -a different sort of vacation.  My husband, our youngest daughter and I ventured into a new area -well new to us at any rate.  Also, it was the first vacation that the 3 of us had taken by ourselves.
It started out nice.  We stopped in Oklahoma City to visit an amusement park.  It was fun.  We rode unlimited rides, joked and played.  But late in the day, the rides started making me queasy.
We left the park and began driving toward the Rockies in Colorado.  We made it to the Southern range early in the morning and after finding a campsite for the night spent the day exploring on bicycles and on foot. I was very tired and a little dizzy but we pushed on.  The night was restless for me. I was trying to shake off the monster growing inside.
We packed our camping gear back into the car and after visiting several scenic locations in the area, set out on the next leg of our trip.  We had a planned destination for that night, but found ourselves spending it in a rest area while I churned in my frantic broken sleep between bouts of throwing up.  I had a raging fever and my poor husband tried his best to comfort me and rest a little in between.
Finally, I drifted off and we got back on the road early.  The fever had broken.  He was tired; I was weak.  Our daughter was oblivious as children often are.  Our next camp was in a small campground above Creede on the headwaters of the Rio Grande.  Since I was still quite weak, we stayed fairly close to camp while taking short hikes or bike rides to explore the fascinating geological features of that area.  A mountain with towering blue rock formations lay to the north of our campground.  We picked about it, climbing up steep loose rock until we were stopped by soaring cliffs rising above a lush bench where we found a lair that caused us a little concern that the animal that had dragged the former owners of those large skeletons up that steep mountain into the protected spot we were exploring might come back.  A deep gorge with churning water and interesting rock formations lay to the west.  We spent several days just wandering and taking it in.
There was a place on the National Forest map that looked like it might be worth a visit.  We would need to drive several miles in to a parking area and then ride our bikes up a trail to the Wheeler Geological Area.  Finally when we had only a day or two left before we would head back to Arkansas, we decided to try it.  I had some materials that described what we might encounter there along with historical information about the area.  It sounded quite interesting and after checking with the proprietors of a small supply store on the main highway, we decided to ride our bikes.
The next day we packed the day packs we would carry with snacks and water, loaded the bikes on the van and set out.  Generally I took it upon myself to load the packs and check to make sure all the necessary emergency equipment was in place.  But that day we all pitched in.  It was a little later than we planned to leave, but we felt we still had plenty of time from the information given, plus we would be riding bikes instead of walking the whole distance.  We set out in good spirits toward the unknown.
The road was long.  The hiking trail was a fraction of the distance.  We chose the wrong one.  We were able to ride our bikes for about 3/4 of a mile and then the trek got rocky, steep and difficult.  We hauled our bikes more than we rode them for the next mile.  A couple of times, we almost chained them beside the trail.  The day wore on.  The trail was 2 1/2 miles.  The road was 14 miles.  Believe me, the road would have been much faster on bikes.  We made it to the primitive camp ground at the Geological Area about 6 PM that evening.  We both realized how late it was, but decided that since we'd come all that way it would be ridiculous not to go in and look.  What a look!  The formations had at one time caused the area to be given the assignment of 'National Park'.  But its remote location and  lack of facilities had caused the powers that were to reclassify it as a National Geological Area instead.  A system of trails led you around and through various features.  It was definitely worth the trouble to see.
On a good weather day, you can drive the road in a 4-wheel drive vehicle very, very slowly.  The Area is fairly high in altitude and subject to quick temperature changes and harsh conditions.  It was nearly 8 PM when we got back to our bikes.  The area was completely deserted.  The evening was already cooling drastically.  We decided that we would need to take the road back instead of the trail.  Sadly, we realized that the packs were very poorly supplied.  We had fruit and granola.  I had a sweat shirt but no pants to cover my legs clad in shorts.  Louis had an extra pair of socks and a light jacket, but he was also lacking anything to cover his legs.  Amanda didn't have even a jacket and between the three of us we had one flashlight and no matches.
Never had we been so ill prepared for what we were about to face.  We rode as quickly as we could until the dark and cold began to surround us.  My small framed thin daughter began to shiver.  I was already very cold and between that and worry was losing my rationale.  My husband stopped to put his extra pair of socks on Amanda's hands and arms and wrap his light jacket around her to keep her from losing so much body heat.  I felt deep inside that I should head on down the trail and look for a place to bed down and conserve body warmth before it got too dark.  We would not make it back to the van that night.  It was already dark enough that it was hard to ride.  I began praying for help to get through the night.  Later, my husband would share that he too was praying non stop for help.  We only had one emergency blanket between the 3 of us and no plastic and as I've said no matches.
I was a good bit ahead of the other two when I saw a light off to the right of the road.  At first, I feared that the cold was causing me to halucinate.  But there it was and I heard a voice.  Weak and shaking I lay my bike down and began running through the undergrowth between the road and the light.  I was trying to cry out, but like in a frantic dream, no sound would come.  I heard a woman's voice say "There's someone out there."  And a man's voice replied, "No one is out there.  A person would have to be crazy to be out here in the dark."  Then a light shined my way and the man cried, "There is someone out there.  It's a woman."  Suddenly I was pulled toward a large canvas tent as another light came on inside.
I protested in a hoarse whisper.  "My husband and daughter are on the road behind me."  A younger man emerged from the tent and headed out, flashlight in hand, toward the road while I was escorted, still protesting, into a warm light-filled tent.  The man returned fairly quickly with my daughter and husband who were shaking as badly with the cold as I.
The tent was huge had wooden beams and a large wood stove inside with a pipe going up through the roof.  Several people were bedded down in sleeping bags on the floor  We were offered hot chocolate and a snack and a child's sweat suit was pulled out that fit my daughter passably well.  They had a supply tent outside that they quickly cleaned out and a couple of sleeping bags were pulled out from under floor palettes.  The 3 of us snuggled down into the two zipped together bags and shared warmth through the night.  Even with the bags, it was a cold night, but we were not complaining.
The next morning, we returned the sweatsuit, drank a cup of hot liquid and started out in the morning sun down the road toward our waiting van.  Our hearts were grateful for the sun and the beauty and the intricate timing that had provided our protection the night before.  Had we been earlier, we probably would not have seen the camp, for it was well off the road in the trees.  Had we been later, the light would have been off and we would have missed it.  Had the elderly couple not come back out from the large tent to brush their teeth and take care of last minute bodily needs, we would have never known of their existence.  Yet there they were, the answer to our prayers.
We made it back to  the van in pretty good time and wished we had just biked the road in the first place. Yet had we done that, we might have missed that awesome chance to see the love and provision that would be spread before us in the wilderness.