Along the Trail

Rebecca and I enjoy hiking.  We’re not like, ‘get all the gear, use the ski poles, camp in the woods, complete the Appalachian Trail’ kind of hikers, but we love times out in nature at a variety of local, state and National Parks, enjoying the sights, sounds, and smells.

The first time I was introduced to ‘cairns’ on a trail was when we spent a few days in Acadia National Park near Bar Harbor, Maine.  Acadia is known for its pinkish granite peaks, of varying heights and difficulty levels.  The lower elevations are lush with balsam trees that let off an amazing fragrance as you make your way along the well-worn paths.  But as you get higher, there are many places where you come to large spans of granite and there’s no clear path lined out.  It is difficult to tell exactly where the trail leads.  It was on these spans that I began to notice little stacks of rocks at various places along the way.  It just looked like someone got bored and tried to get the rocks to stack up, but the stacks were frequent enough, and similar in size and shape, so I began to realize they had a purpose.

Those stacks of rocks were ‘cairns,’ and they were there to mark the trail.  Like the one pictured above, cairns are put together in such a way as to not only help you know if you’re on the trail, but even indicate the direction a hiker is to go.  Someone (actually many ‘someones’) had been along that way before, had figured out a great way to go, and then left some markers so that those who came later could experience the same journey.

I love that, not only because those little stacks of rocks helped us to not get lost, but they are a great image of how I want to live my life.  I want to follow the lead and wisdom of those who have gone before me, and I want to maybe leave a few ‘cairns’ along the way so that others can benefit from the trail I’m walking.

• Take a few minutes and think about the people in your life who have left ‘cairns’ for you to follow.  Thank God for their example.  Send them a note, a text, a call, letting them know how special they are to you.
  
• Be looking for people who are worth following.  What’s great today is that we can follow the path of many whom we’ve never met, just by reading their books, watching videos, or following them on social media.  Look for those worth emulating and follow in their footsteps.
  
• And think about the trail you’re leaving behind.  We all are leaving a legacy…  What’s your path look like?  Look for ways to invest in others’ lives…your kids, grandkids, coworkers, friends…  If they follow your example, will their life be better or worse?  Are you laying down a path toward Jesus?  If they follow you, will they know Him more?  Look for ways to mark the trail, so you can add value to others’ lives.