Do you recall that joke people tell you when they're implying you have it easy or are complaining too much? Usually it goes something like 'woke up at five AM to walk to school everyday, barefoot, five miles in the snow, uphill both ways." Well while am most fortunate that it wasn't everyday, nor was I barefoot, however I do have a memory of similar regard.
It was back when I worked for the California Conservation Corps (imagine a mixture between forest service and construction crew and you'll have an idea of my job), we were up in the mountains of the Trinity Alps and were on one of our work/camping trips called 'spike.' It was early October and this was the second to last spike of the year. On day 7 of our 8 day spike, to the great distress of all members of the crew, clouds crept in and unleashed their heavy loads.
For the first time, we detested break. Stopping to eat and rest was a freezing ordeal. The sky turned dark far to early (at least as far as I could tell, my watch had frosted over from the rain) and we were more than grateful when our supervisor announced the conditions were too hazardous to work in and sent us back to camp. While we all contentedly enjoyed our meal by the campfire, and greeted heartily the mule packer who was to assist in transporting our supplies to our vehicles in the morning, we could not have braced ourselves for what we'd face on day 8.
Waking the next morning, I discovered that outside the solace of my tent was a winter horror-land. Shivering, we ate and packed what food we hadn't burned the last night in an effort to reduce our weight, broke up camp and sent the crew out in three groups at different parts of the day, mine was the last. Once we were done packing, my supervisor, my crew-mates, and I looked ahead to our five mile hike, uphill, in the snow.
Never in my whole life, has five miles seemed so far. Our spirits were more than slightly dampened when we discovered that the trail outside the shelter of the trees we had camped under was easily three feet deep in snow--more in some places. On and on we hiked that day, knowing full well that failing to reach the end was not an option. No one said it, but everyone knew, the ripping winds pelting us with snow told us. Falling down the exposed mountain, getting injured, giving up, getting lost, all of them were a death sentence, no help could come in these conditions; so, on we walked in our heavy packs.
We were more than slightly curious when we discovered a pack similar to our own. I recognized the shoes inside and we wondered what had happened to the owner. My supervisor attempted to carry it, though he eventually decided it wasn't worth it. We could hardly blame him, none of us wanted to bother carrying our own packs, let alone some one else's. More than once I wondered how the groups ahead of me were faring, and was grateful that they had blazed the trail through the snow in the right direction.
It was a rather spiritual experience, and one that I was happy I did not face on my own strength. Hope and prayer led me on, and I knew that if I could withstand it, I could take anything with a grin. I also learned about myself. I had stocked up on as much food as I could, but my pockets quickly found themselves empty as I shared my supplies with my companions. I had wondered how I would handle adversity, and I was more than happy to learn that when push came to shove, I didn't forget those around me.
We all rejoiced when we arrived at the vehicles after about five hours. I was surprised when I learned the pack's owner had quit along the way; to this day, I don't see how quitting would have made him have to get out of A BLIZZARD any less. Other than that, we all felt a strong bond of camaraderie and accomplishment, and to this day the song "Drift Away" puts me back into that van as most of us sang joyously together with the radio; grateful beyond belief that there wouldn't be a day 9.
Did you like this? This is an actual story from my life, and if you did and want me to regale more of the legends from my time on this Earth, drop a comment here or on the social networks.
Image Source: http://www.wallconvert.com/wallpapers/nature/snowy-mountains-3365.html