Appreciation

We have hardly had the GoKart out all summer so we decided to run up in the mountains west of where we live Saturday afternoon. This is reservation land which requires that one have a fishing license in order to travel over it. I have had a license since we arrived here but had not taken advantage of opportunities. We traveled back into Mocassin Lake. The roads are really rocky necessitating pretty slow travel over a number of switchbacks. The country is gorgeous. All we could think of was how marvelous is the work and hand of God. His creations, the mountains, the trees, the streams, the meadows, the flowers, etc., etc., -- the beauty and feelings are beyond expression. We were both filled with awe and gratitude.
I have had some trouble with the motor in the GoKart this year. I was still using the same gas I purchased when I it was new and hadn't drained the tank as I should have. One of the other purposes was to run some Gum Out cleaner through the gas tank and engine to clean it up from the build up caused by the old gas. I don't know if it was hitting a bunch of pot holes going too fast or running into a small stump but if you look closely at the picture of me sitting in the GoKart, just above the front tire and below the top of the fender, you will see that the connecting piece to the drive line is broken. It was challenging to move forward when the front tires were going in different directions. We will get this welded back together and be ready to go again.
It is amazing to me as I have gotten older how much I regret some of the things I did and wish I hadn't. I love the mountains and love being in them with family. What I regret is getting upset with my children when we were cutting fire wood. I still tend to want work things to move expeditiously and smoothly. What I now realize, and wish I would and would have in the past, is the time, place and INDIVIDUALS, are much, much more important than the work. The work will always be there. Children grow up and both they and others move on and out of your life (or at least with children out of daily contact.) The time spent together is what is most precious and every effort should be expended to fill these moments with joy and the love of being together. There is so much learning and appreciation of God's hand in all things to share.