We did the bus tour today at Glacier National Park. Took the Highway to the Sun to Logan’s Pass – at 6,646 feet in elevation. I don’t like heights – at all – ever – anywhere – anytime. When we planned our road trip – we included Glacier National Park, and hopefully Yellowstone on the way home. Grand Canyon in the Fall. I knew this, felt safe with it because it was months (and states) away. When we did our first Alaska trip in 2000, I crocheted an entire afghan while Bill drove Sheep Mountain (and it didn’t take more than a day)! That kept me from looking out the window – and when I would sneak a peek, I just started crocheting faster.
We opted for bus tour instead of doing the drive ourselves. Bill would be the one driving if that happened, and that meant he wouldn’t get to see anything. Also, we would have an interpretive guide, so we would learn more. Yesterday we drove to the park to see about getting tickets for the tour. The Western Alpine Tour sounded the most appealing to me, and was only 4 hours – I mean, you can do anything for 4 hours, right? On the way to the park, I started having a serious discussion with God. It was pretty one-sided, and I tried to cover all my bases. It kinda went like this: “Okay God, you know how I feel about heights. I really want to see what I’ve read about – it sounds magnificent – and you made it – so it’s got to be good. So, if this is what I should be doing, I know it will work out. If we can’t get tickets, I’ll know it wasn’t supposed to happen. And, if it does happen, we need to discuss bravery. Like, I need a lot. Faith – I know having faith is important – and I will try. So, ball is in your court.”
Wouldn’t you know…we went to the concierge desk as directed. The young man working asked us what day we were looking for. We told him Sunday (today) – and he just sort of shook his head and told us that they were most likely all sold out since it was next day. But, he double-checked his schedules, smiled and said “Wow, are you lucky. We have 4 seats left on our Western Alpine tour tomorrow at 2:30.” Okay God, game on. We went home, I dug around and found my big girl panties and laid them out so I could pull them up this morning and take the giant step.
Maybe you have heard of the “negative voice inside your head” idea? It’s there – it’s the part of you that tells you all the reasons you can’t, you shouldn’t (or should), and all the things that can go wrong. It tells you it’s okay to stay where you are and not want more. Let me tell you – mine went into overdrive this morning. I spent time yesterday reading about what we would be seeing today. I really wanted to see it – and I knew the only way to do that would be to get on the bus. I am so thankful that I let my “why” (to see what I read about) be compelling enough to drown out the negative voice. It would have been so easy to find an excuse not to go – to stay in my safe zone – knowing that to go would mean taking a giant step outside. Staying safe, I would have only been able to imagine what was on that tour. And while I have a good imagination – it could never come close to seeing the real thing – in person. Growth really does happen when you leave your safe zone. And it’s not comfortable – or a warm fuzzy feeling – or even peaceful at first. Taking that step, though, you know you’ll never be the same. Your comfort zone boundaries have changed. It may take some getting used to, but you will. And soon, you’ll be looking to change your boundaries again. For me, it was getting on the bus…even though thousands of people do it every year – they aren’t me. They each have their “thing” that they battle. You, my friend, you have your “thing”. When you’re ready, I pray you have enough brave to dig out the big girl panties, lay them out for morning, get a good night’s sleep – and then get up, put them on, pull them up – and take the step! When you do, tell me about it. I will cheer for you.
Today is Sunday – and we didn’t go to church in a building. We went to church in a Red Bus Tour, with Jammer Karl (our tour guide). God was preaching today – and it was an unbelievably beautiful, breath taking tour of his creation story. I’ll include a few photos – there are more in our travel blog.
Amen, and Amen!
Lert's Lessons in Grace 