Sunday, June 27, 2010

Mmm… Summer in the Sawtooth Mountains

Last weekend my wife and I decided to go to the Sawtooths to celebrate our 28th wedding anniversary.

We usually partake of the Sawtooths at least once each Summer and every time I’m there I’m amazed there aren’t thousands of people everywhere. It’s one of the most beautiful places on the planet yet it seems mostly undiscovered.

We watched a massive thunderstorm invade Redfish Lake while eating dinner at the Lodge and people-watching. If you’ve never watched the families at play on the lawn, and their comings and goings on the dock, that by itself is a treat. Again, very few folks were to be found.

In contrast, my daughter told us of her recent hike in Virginia with 100-degree heat and just as much humidity. They couldn’t find the James River for the massive vegetation.

But Idaho - it’s hard to beat nice hike to the meadows above Stanley Lake where we found wildflowers blooming in abundance. At 7000 feet elevation, the temperature required light jackets. Nothing against the East coast but hey, tell me where you’re going to find a view anything close to Mount Heyburn back there.

Driving back from Stanley is one long three-hour downhill run. The longest hill I could find in Virginia – maybe 20 minutes. To be fair, I did find some beautiful places there as well; they just not my preference, nor can I see why they’d be someone else’s but then that’s why this blog is entitled “Lifestyle Nazi.”

Before heading back to the Boise Valley, we stopped at Pettit Lake and sat on the beach for four hours. With virtually no one to be found I imagined that I owned the place. Maybe this is the mansion God has promised me. There we threw bumpers for my friendly labs and enjoyed their exuberant splashing about. The breeze and mild temperatures hid the onset of sunburn but the peaceful sound of lapping waves and views of the massive granite walls across the lake made this penalty seem light.

Truly the purpose of life is to enjoy ourselves. At least that’s part of it. Westminster’s Shorter Catechism actually states it this way, “The purpose of life is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.” Part of enjoying God is unquestionably enjoying life for what of life is not wholly and completely of God and hanging out in Stanley with no particular agenda – now that’s enjoyment in its purest form.

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