Adventure 477: Little Eden Camp/Post F

Selfies with my Bunny: Definitely a good habit

We awoke to a beautiful day at Little Eden Camp. We did our usual things.  The sisters solved puzzles. The guys went fishing. Scott and Kate went running. We ate, we laughed, we enjoyed our time together. I rode thirty-five miles and spent much of that time thinking. I mostly thought  about what Kate's husband, Scott, said yesterday, which was, "I think a person's taste in music solidifies by age thirty." I don't agree. My musical tastes have evolved steadily over the years. But I also thought, "What about my world-view? Has it become hardened? Is my mind open? Closed? Narrow? Broad? And more to the point, on what do I base my beliefs? So as I rode, I pondered my world, and this is what I know.

I'm a creature of habit, and some of my habits are good. One of my best is daily prayer; you know...Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep... I say the same three prayers every morning and every night: First, I pray for a grateful spirit; Second, I pray for a pure heart; and third, I pray for a guiding light. Note: How could I not be grateful? By accident of birth, a strong measure of work, a little luck, and a large dose of grace, I find myself basking in the luxurious lap of white privilege. I'm fortunate to live in a country where I'm free to worship as I deem fit, express my opinion without  fear of repression, and earn life's comforts from the fruit of my own labor. I can't ask anymore, and it's certainly a long way from my beginnings. I would have been the bastard child of a teenage mother if not for the norms of her religion and the mores of our culture. As it was, her forced marriage was doomed from the beginning, and so, again by fated circumstance, I was thrown headlong into an upbringing where my survival depended on an uneducated, single mother who, even though she worked tirelessly, had at times, to stand in line for government cheese and powdered milk. She hated it. I'm sure it damaged her pride. As for my current lot in life, I believe it mostly to be the result of unearned grace. My Bunny chided me the other day, "Didn't your mother teach you any better than that?' It caused me to ask myself, What did my mother teach me? My mother, a caustic, paranoid woman had a heart like a fist, so she didn't teach me compassion, nor did she teach me genteel manners. She taught me to be cautious; she filled me with fear; she  made me feel less than. It's taken me a lifetime to erase some of the things my mother taught me. But she also taught me the value of work, the righteousness of honesty, the importance of integrity, and that the path to self worth came through accomplishment. She may have had a hard heart, but it was pure. It's largely because of her that I became driven to get "better". In these times when our leaders are crude, rude, vulgar, self-righteous, narcissistic, supercilious, demeaning, cruel, and unjust, I ask myself, How pure is my own heart? How many times in developing my own world view have I succumbed to the behaviors I've just listed. The answer is too many, and every time I find myself reeking from the stench of my own hypocrisy, I pray for the strength to be a better man. And it's that hope that guides me. I'm sometimes confused by the gifts I've been given. I know the Lord is testing me, otherwise he wouldn't have handed me free will or given me the ability to think. And so I ask myself, Where is my guiding light?  In the final analysis, what is my true North? To that I must answer: God's will. If it weren't for my firm faith that I as a mere man cannot possibly understand the sublime nuance of God's mind, I'd lose all hope in these troubled times.  So, even in the midst of a disheartening world where justice is hard to find, truth is hard to discern, and motives are often hardened by greed, I can still say that life is good, especially today.

 As usual, our morning began with fresh Semel.

 This is Erin, best human of the day. She's unusually aware, and gave me excellent directions for back road travel. I used her knowledge twice.

 The official Pastie taste off. Although tasty, the Lehto pastie took second place to the home made version we bought from our neighbors at OB Fuller County Campground in Bark River, MI.

 Study break for Miss Karen. Caffeine is an absolute necessity for enduring Educational Psychology. 

Miss Karen explaining the sleeping arrangement for two people sharing an old fashioned double bed who are used to a king, That may explain the need for coffee during the study break.

Miss Jane's rocker bench.

 I'm sure she enjoyed this view from her bench many times.

 Little Eden Camp consists of somewhere near thirty cabins. Some are well maintained vintage models. Others are more modern.

 All cabins have names above the door. But only the "Shuffle-Inn" has the rules of camp posted.

 The Shuffle-Inn" has matching windows, both with with pretty flower boxes.

 The Shady Nook has been occupied for many years by "Barbie", so named because of the Barbie Dolls zip tied to her car.

Finally, as always, the beauty of sisterly love glows.