Earlier today I was talking to a friend about having to go through changes and trains. It was certainly an interesting combination, but one that has been discussed before.
Almost 1 year ago, I wrote about being in a new place. My life had gone through some changes. Some by trains I chose to get off, trains I chose to get on, trains that threw me off, and some trains that passed me by. In reflecting on those changes, I was impressed that I some how ended up where I was.
It is now a year later and I continue to be impressed by where I am, considering my path. Some of those trains I have tried to run down and failed. New trains have come my way, so that I missed, some that I took. But I am in a new place because of the path I have taken. Here's to that path, as odd as it has been.
In the original post in October of 2008, I posted a song by Walt Wilkins and the Mytiqueros called Trains I Missed. I posted a copy of the song from youtube, however that video was shortly taken down. I found a new copy that seems to not be violating any copyrights. I think it is a great song.
Walt Wilkins and the Mytiqueros have a song called Trains I Missed. Part of the song is:
It's a big old world but I've found my way And the hell and the hurt lead me straight to it Here's to the trains I missed
Here's to this place I've found The love I've known The earth and the sky That I call home Here's to the things I need Bigger than me And the moments I find myself right where I'm suppose to be
The point of the song is that our lives our guided by our past. We have ended up where we are today because of the path of yesterday. Sometimes we see things in our lives that we desire or think is good for us, but in the end, we do not capture them. We miss them. In looking in our past, we see that missing those things was exactly what we needed and we ended up just where we were suppose to be.
Here's to the trains I've missed. The relationships that didn't work out. The opportunities that didn't occur. The times I didn't take a chance. The times I trusted my gut instead of my desire. The times things went completely wrong.
Here's to the place I've found. The relationships that did work out. The opportunities that did occur. The times I did take a chance. The times my mind was right. The times things went completely right.
I do not understand why somethings in my life do not work out. Perhaps in the future I will toast this moment. Perhaps I will not! One thing is for certain, the train is past and I am on another track.
Today in church, the message was on Mark 9:38-50. The pastor started out with talking about favorite verses in the Bible. He asked us to think of ours and mentioned a few of his. One of those was John 11:35. In 4th grade when he was assigned to memorize his favorite bible for Sunday school. Being a smart man, he quickly decided that John 11:35 was his favorite. He wrapped it up by saying that no one's favorite verse is Mark 9:44. I quickly glanced at my Bible to see what verse 44 was. Well, that is when I found that there was no verse 44, it goes straight from 43 to 45 to 47. The pastor then said that no one he has met has said that they liked the verse saying to cut off your hand if it causes you to sin. Turns out that that is verse 43, not 44. The footnotes of my Bible say that verse 44 and 46, which are the same as 48, are included in some ancient manuscripts, but not in modern translations. I tried explaining to the pastor after the service that verse 44 wasn't in the Bible, but he was just expecting a hand shake and a good morning and was confused by my comments.
So the pastor was right, no one's favorite verse is Mark 9:44, but not because it talks about cutting off your hand, but because it isn't in the Bible.
I'll add this to my favorite bloopers in church that I have witnessed, most of which were caused by me.
Other great bloopers include: #1) Forgiving Jesus of his sins
In church, the congregational prayer was printed in the bulletin. The pastor was leading it and as a congregation, we said "Jesus, your sins are forgiven." I mentioned it to my grandma who didn't notice who mentioned it to the pastor who also hadn't noticed.
#2) I read the wrong scripture in church
In my church growing up, one Sunday a month, the youth read the scripture. Since I was the only youth who went to the early service, I was the one who read it once a month on behalf of the youth. Sometimes someone told me I was reading, usually I just showed up at church and saw my name in the bulletin. One Sunday I arrived at church, saw my name in the bulletin, and looked up the scripture. I do not remember what the Sunday was, but it was a specific Sunday that would have used specific scripture. I noticed that the scripture listed was not for the Sunday and was probably a chapter off. I told my grandma that I was going to ask the pastor if it was the next chapter that was too be read. She said that the pastor knew what he was preaching on and choose the specific verses for a reason. Very well, don't argue with grandma. I get up, read the scripture, then sit down. The pastor begins saying "Thanks for reading, however we had a typo in the bulletin and it should be the next chapter."
#3) I edit the morning Scripture
Another morning, I arrived, saw my name, grabbed the Bible, and headed up to read. Standing in front of the microphone, I begin, "He left that place and came to his hometown, and his disciples followed him. On the sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astounded. They said, "Where did this man get all this? What is this wisdom that has been given to him? What deeds of power are being done by his hands! Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and," I looked at the next word. Joses. I mutter to myself "whoa that's a weird word," jerking my head back as I remembered there was a microphone in front of me. I glance at the pastor sitting next to me. Should I asked them for pronunciation help? I look back to the audience. Does it rhyme with Moses? Is the J silent in Hebrew? Lots of questions! I decided to just skip over that word and move on to an easy name, Simon. Luckily my hesitation was quick enough that no one noticed.
#4) False start on the Lord's Supper
One Sunday I was at a church I had been attending for a while. By chance, I hadn't taken communion before in the church. While I was walking in, I was asked if I would help distribute the elements. Sure, this can't be hard. When it came time, I succeeded in passing out the elements and placed the plate back on the cart at the back of the sanctuary, grabbed my bread and wine. Partook, then sat down. The pastor then said "As we join together in the bread, are we not united in Christ? Let us now take the bread together." Opps! My bad...
#5) Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit.
When I first went to college, I decided that I should expand my vocabulary. To show off my collegiate vocabulary, I would use big words, even if they didn't fit into the situation. One night at Bible study, we were studying the Holy Spirit and I said "Jesus said he was going to send us the adversary." I got in my big word! Yes! The Bible study leader said "what?" I repeated eruditely, "Jesus said he was going to send us the adversary." "I think you might want to look that one up." Turns out the appropriate word was advocate, not adversary. Isn't blasphemy of the Holy Spirit the unpardonable sin? Ekk!
It is a good thing we have eternity to get this right!
Today I went to downtown Pensacola. One of the places I went to was the TT Wentworth Museum.
Museums are extremely important. They teach us things that our teachers refused to teach us in school. Take today, I learned about the curious case of Charlotte May Pierstorff. Pierstorff holds the distinction of being the only person to have been mailed via the US Postal Service.
In 1914, she wanted to visit her grandparents who lived 75 miles away on the otherside of some mountains in Idaho. Her parents couldn't afford a train ticket, so they instead bought some postage stamps. She was under the weight limit for parcel post, so the USPS mailed her. She rode the baggage car on the train to her grandparents' town. Upon arriving to the town, the mailman delivered her. Shortly after, the Postmaster General banned the mailing of humans.
Why did my teachers deprive me of such essential knowledge???
Yesterday a guy in a class I am in said I looked like a teacher. Well, there is a good reason for that, I am a teacher. I have a teaching license and have experience in teaching. I know the struggles and joys of being a teacher, because I have been there. I know the theories and models of teaching and various situations in which they are appropriate because I have studied them and used them in a practical setting. When I am sitting in classes, I often wonder on how to make them better by changing the presentation or the curriculum. How the assessments designed or gauging the level of teacher-student interaction. What does it take the make a teacher?
A teacher must know their subject. You cannot teach if you do not know. But they must be more than just a subject matter expert. It is not enough for the teacher to just know the material for their job is not to know but to teach.
The teacher must also understand the student. They must know their life desires. What motivates them. What their life is like and how their situation affects their learning. What expectations they have. What they already know. What they have learned. You must know the student to teach him.
A teacher must understand how to teach. They have the information that the student needs, but they must find how to deliver the material to the student in a practical and successful manner. They must know when to push the student and when to pull the student. When to teach the student and when to let the student learn. When to encourage the student and when to walk away from the student.
The teacher must care about the student. They must have a desires to see the student succeed. They must want the student to learn. They are to be an example, a role model for the student. Someone to be respected and someone who respects. Someone who will defend the integrity of the student.
A teacher cannot be a book. A teacher is alive and interacts with the student. A teacher is more than just someone with a inflection in their voice. It is the most noblest of professions and must be approached as such.
The other day in bible study, we were talking about sharing the gospel with others. Some people felt that the best they could do was to invite others to church and let the pastor do the rest. Sometimes this is a viable option, just bringing someone to church can be enough to get them started on the path to Christ or connected to a new church. However, we cannot expect the pastor to do all the work! Jesus said for us to go to the ends of the world and make disciples of Him, not to go and get other people to do the work. We do work together and there is certainly nothing wrong with bringing people to church, but are you prepared to do more if necessary? Peter tells us "Always be ready to give an answer to everyone who asks you for a reason regarding the hope that is in you, yet answer with gentleness and reverence." Are you ready to do more than just bring them to someone else?
Today I had about an hour of time to waste, so I went for a drive in South Carolina. I ended up on state highway S-33-88 which turns into Garrett Road at the Stevens Creek. At Stevens Creek is a sweet bridge, so I stopped and took some pictures.
This past Wednesday, I went to a Bible study at my church. The study was on Luke 7:36-50.
36 One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee's house and took his place at the table. 37 And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that he was reclining at table in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment, 38 and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment. 39 Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner.” 40 And Jesus answering said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he answered, “Say it, Teacher.”
41 “A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.42 When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?”43 Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt.” And he said to him, “You have judged rightly.”44 Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.45 You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet.46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment.47 Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.”48 And he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”49 Then those who were at table with him began to say amongthemselves, “Who is this, who even forgives sins?” 50 And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”
The Bible study took a different approach than just looking at the words of the page, but incorporated historical context. A slightly different approach than some Bible studies, but a very useful approach. I learned a lot from the Bible study that I did not know before.
First, the customs of the time. We see from the story that Jesus says that Simon did not give him water with his feet, a kiss, or anoint his head with oil. In these times, it was common and expected practice for a host either wash or have a servant wash the feet of the guests. It was a common to greet with a kiss. And to honor someone, they were anointed with oil. Simon, a pharisee, did not of these, which would have been disrespectful.
Given this information, the actions of the sinful woman make much more sense. We understand more of what Jesus meant when he said that the one who was forgiven little would love little.
Next, we looked at what the Greek meaning of Simon's comment about the sinful woman is. When translated from Greek, the words of Simon would be better translated as “If this man were a prophet, which clearly he is not, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is trying to turn him on, for she is a sinner.” The first change, the noting that Jesus is clearly not a prophet, is based on the Greek word used which indicates a negative connotation. The second one is based on the actions of the woman, which in her time would be considered as scandalous.
The woman enters the presence of men, kisses Jesus' feet, lets down her hair, and touches him with her hair, all to a man she is not married to. The cultural response for Jesus would be to kick her and dismiss her. Instead, he acknowledges her and says that her love is great.
This extra knowledge takes the story deeper and shows that Jesus is not only forgiving her sins, but shattering the cultural separation of men and women.
Next we looked at the dilemma Jesus had. Simon sets the stage with his comment of Jesus, who is obviously not a prophet, is entertaining this adulterous woman who is turning him on. Jesus' dilemma consists of either standing for righteousness by dismissing her or accepting her sinful lifestyle. Jesus takes neither of the paths and instead gives a story illustrating that the woman has been forgiven of her sins and is expressing her love for that forgiveness. He then takes it a step further and says that her sins are forgiven. He performs an act that only God could perform. Simon thought he had Jesus trapped and that Jesus would be exposed. Instead, the identity of Jesus was revealed.
Finally, we looked at 7:47, Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little. The leader of the study stressed that the Greek definition of the would for indicated that Jesus is saying that because she has been forgiven, she loves. It is not because she gained favor with Jesus by her love, but because He forgave her sins, she loves Him and is showing that love with her actions. We see this explained again in 7:50 when Jesus says that her faith has saved her.
Digging deeper took this passage which had a powerful message and gave it an even stronger message. Dig deeper, you might be surprised what you learn!
I love music. Anytime I am at home I have music playing. I often fall asleep with music playing incase I wake up so I can hear whatever is playing. I have a radio in the bathroom so I can listen while showering or getting ready in the morning. So it is no surprise that a lot of my posts deal with music.
Today's song is by Michael Martin Murphy, Geronimo's Cadillac.
Geronimo actually drove car. Here he is driving the 1905 Locomobile Model C.
I believe he was given the car for an advertisement. Geronimo was never released to go home to Arizona and died at Fort Sill in Oklahoma.
In 1998, I first met a man named Matt Neely. He was the worship leader for a church camp I was attending. Besides his music, I remember Matt for never wearing shoes. I enjoyed his music and purchased two of his CDs. One was the album Again for the First time. The other was Upside Down and Backwards.
This album included a song called Being Single Won't Kill You. It didn't mean much to me at the time. The song I really liked off the album was The Rebel.
Sometime between 1998 and 2009, the CD was lost. Most likely, it was stolen out of my truck when it was broken into in Des Moines, Iowa.
For some reason, I started thinking about the artist recently. I reminisced about several of his songs and remembered what I could of the songs. One song popped out though, Being Single Won't Kill You. Seeing as I have written about my struggles of being single recently, it seems appropriate. I looked online and didn't find many of his songs available but did find his website. I looked on the online store and found most of his albums, however, Upside Down and Backwards was not available. So I searched on amazon.com and found a used copy.
The CD arrived in the mail today. I threw it into the CD player in my truck and skipped to song #8, Being Single Won't Kill You. What a great song it is!
The song starts out with an odd game show like beginning. I don't understand it. But the rest of the song is great.
The song is written to a single woman who is told by life that she must marry in order to be normal.
Matt says that this is a list of the reasons to thank God for her "relationally challenged life."
Matt's reasons include nothing having to make your bed, not having to keep the fridge clean, not having to listen to someone nag, using your toothpaste however you want to, not having to call home when late, not listening to someone snore, not having to pay for a date, and no one stealing your covers.
In several parts of the song, Matt points out the things life tells us about singles. It starts with the mom and aunt asking her if she is dating anyone. My favorite one is that he compares to singleness to some disease that we have that are friends with cute friends know the cure too!
The chorus is an important message that I must remind myself. Being single won't kill you, being married won't cure you. Wherever you are today, just hold on and believe.
The last part of the chorus is probably the most important part. Wherever you are, hold on, be content. Don't just settle with singleness, be content in it.
I wrote about contentment in my 2nd post on the blog, in a post titled What could be better than this? Contentment doesn't mean to just not complain about your life, but to not desire more than what you have at that point. How important it is for me to not desire marriage while I am single and to elevate marriage to a place that it doesn't belong and to remove myself from the present. To be content is very important for me to strive for. This song helps to remind me of that.
After listening to the song, I continued through the album and found that song #4 was The Rebel. I got both songs that I really liked on the same album! A great buy this album was!
I did find one of Matt's songs on YouTube that I knew, it appeared that there were a few other cheesy songs on there as well. This song is a description of Matt's path to where he is. It is called Oz Song and is on the Again for the First Time album.
Thanks Matt for reminding me to be content with my singleness.
I have been talking to some friends about the concept of dating. I do not like the idea of dating. To me, it just seems like that you are putting on a false front to try to impress the other person. My friends disagreed and in the course of our discussion, I figured out something about dating that I am against. I think this is why I have been against dating. To me, dating implies a commitment to the other person, albeit a low level commitment. I would not be able to make that commitment to a person that I barely knew. Perhaps it isn't dating that bothers me, but making the commitment to a person that I do not know. Before I dated someone, I would want to know them first. Is this something that I am actually doing different than others, or am I just changing the name dating to friendship?
11 month ago, practically to the day, I wrote about a Ziggy Marley song called True to Myself. For whatever reason, I didn't post the song at the time. So today, since it is Friday, we will have a throw back to last September by posting the song and reposting my post about the song.
Earlier today, I wrote about Psalm 90, a psalm written by Moses. This evening, we will look at a Ziggy Marley song.
I am quite a fan of reggae. I love music particularly by Bob Marley and his son Ziggy. It is great music to listen to. I like the sound of the music, the feeling of the music, and the relaxing of the music. However, the philosophy is certainly not always in agreement with me!
Reggae music is associated with the Rastafari movement. Therefore, a lot of the music is quite religious. The music was born out of Trenchtown in Jamaica, and deals with topics like spirituality, relationships, love, poverty, injustice, and other social issues. The Rastafari movement has some basic familiarities to Christianity, but is quite different, which explains the difference in philosophy. I am no expert on the Rastafari movement and would recommend that you look for other sources if you are interested in more information.
The song we will look at is Ziggy Marley's True to Myself.
life has come a long way since yesterday I say and its not the same old thing over again I say just do what you feel and don't you fool yourself I say cause I can't make you happy unless I am I say I say I
got to be true to myself got to be true to myself
day in day out I've asked many questions I say only to find the truth it never changes I say if you don't deal with it it keeps killing you a little by little I say call me selfish if you will my life I alone can live I say I say I
got to be true to myself got to be true to myself
I don't care if it hurts I'm tired of lies and all these games I've reached a point in life no longer can I be this way don't come crying to me I too have shed my share of tears I'm moving on yes I'm grooving on well I'm finally free I've
got to be true to myself got to be true to myself got to be true to myself got to be true to myself
The message in the song is that you have to be who you really are before you can be a part of the greater society. If you are not who you really are, you will not be happy, and as he says "I can't make you happy unless I am" I think this is certainly an interesting, important, and partially true statement. If our life isn't in order, how can we be with others or impact others? The difference though, is who are we true to?
We live in a fallen state. We live with wrong doings. We do not do the things we want to do or are suppose to do. I think Paul says it best when he writes in Romans "For I don't do the good I want to do, but instead do the evil that I don't want to do." It is easy to live true to ourselves in our fallen life, it is what our body and mind want to do. But that is not who we are called to be! Jesus says in John 10:10 "I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." This abundant life comes when we trust God and receive His Holy Spirit. The Spirit gives us the strength to live the life He desires for us. To do the good we desire to do, instead of the evil.
God gives us plenty of reason to be happy, to want to be with him. Just one example is found in Psalm 92. 4 For you make me glad by your deeds, O LORD; I sing for joy at the works of your hands.
5 How great are your works, O LORD, how profound your thoughts!
6 The senseless man does not know, fools do not understand,
7 that though the wicked spring up like grass and all evildoers flourish, they will be forever destroyed.
8 But you, O LORD, are exalted forever.
God's works are great! The ones that I see some of my greatest joy is in His creation. I love hiking and enjoying the beauty of his world. I am being myself by enjoying something that he gave me. But I am being true to God.
Living for ones self seems to often times be associated with doing whatever you want, no matter what others think or how it harms others. However, we are made for human relationships. We are not made to be by ourselves, though I often enjoy time by myself. The writer of Ecclesiastics tells us,
Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work:
If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!
Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone?
Friends are important in our life. If we do not care about our friends and do what we want without regard for them, who would want to be our friend?
Diversity is certainly important! What a boring world this would be if everyone was like me. I hardly think I do things right and would certainly not want a world full of people like me. The Bible is full of diverse people. God values all people, from the greatest of the kings to the lowest of the sheppards. He loves all of us and wants all of us involved in his kingdom here on earth.
Be true to yourself, but only with the spirits guiding. God has a great plan for us. Jeremiah 29:11 says "'For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope." Now this is a quote from a letter written by Jeremiah to those in exile. He is reminding them why they are in exile (for following false prophets instead of God) and that after their time in exile, they will return to God. But are we not also following false prophets and false leaders when we are true to ourselves instead of God? By living our life following God and living the life God wants us to live, we are being true to ourselves, the self God desires us to be.
What do you want in life? What do you want from your job? Do you want money? A sense of accomplishment? To be recognized? What do you want from relationships? Do you want to have a lot of friends? Do you want to have a few close friends? Do you want to date? What do you want out of your free time? Do you want to relax? Do you want to do hobbies? Do you want to spend time with others? Do you want to just make it last? What do you want?
I don't really know what I want. I could tell you what I want, but do I live that way? I could tell you from my job I want to have enough to live, but I take home much more than I need to live and still manage to spend it. I could tell you in my free time I want to be outdoors, read, and write. But I do not spend the majority of my free time doing these things. I could tell you in my relationships I want to have a few close friends. And I do. But I could also tell you that I do not want to date, but have and some of those close friends would say that I do want to date.
Maybe I should figure out what I want. Right now, I want a cup of coffee so I can sit outside and read.
I've been attending a Sunday school class the past few weeks that I have really enjoyed. The people in the class are senior to me by 20-50 years, but they have accepted me and made me feel welcome.
We have been studying the book of 1st John. John often writes in the book that if you are of God, you will love others. If you do not love others, you are not of God. One of the questions raised in the class by a member was if one can know for sure if they are saved. That I believe in Jesus but I still do some really bad things so I am not sure if I am saved.
I went to the coffee shop that afternoon and thought about the question. I wrote some ideas about how to know if you are saved along with scripture justification.
First, can we know if we are saved? Yes (1 John 5:13)
So how can we know? Well, I jotted down a short test.
1. Do you believe? (John 3:16) 2. Are you striving to not sin? (Romans 6:1-14) 3. Do you live by God's word? (1 John 2:3) 4. Do you strive to do good? (James 1:26 - 27, James 2: 14-26, 1 John 2: 5b-6) 5. Are you producing fruit? (Galatians 5: 16-24)
If you can answer yes to these questions, then you are saved
A few weeks ago, in the post post was Chaos in the Church!, I wrote about a sermon I heard. Part of the sermon dealt with knowing if you are saved. The pastor kept it simple. Do you believe in Jesus? Then you are saved.
I think the pastor is correct in his simplicity. I think my original test maybe a little too long. A better test would be:
Did you know God loves you? Do you believe in Jesus? Yes? Great, you are saved, Now go and Love.
It has been a few weeks since I have been hiking. Yesterday I got back in the swing of it by hiking at Mistletoe State Park. I hiked the Cliatt Creek Trail and the Rock Dam Trail.
I found the trails in the book Hiking Georgia by Donald W. Pfitzer.
I arrived at the park and paid my $5 entrance fee. I then parked in the parking lot immediately by the fee station where the trailhead is.
The Cliatt Creek trail is marked by white blazes. It is a two mile loop with 18 natural trail markers. They are described by the nature guide available at the trail head.
The trail is in a second growth forest. The original forest was cut down for logging and farming.
The Cliatt Creek trail.
The pines are loblolly pines.
An American Holly.
An Eastern Red Cedar.
The trail is connected to the Rock Dam Trail, which is a 5.5 mile loop trail. They meet up by the Cliatt Creek.
The Rock Dam Trail is marked by blue blazes
Continuing on the Rock Dam Trail, I came to a junction.
I first went to the left and checkout the creek.
After wards I returned to the junction and continued to the right along the path. I ended up at another junction where both trails immediately dead end. Looking around, I realized that I hadn't seen any blazes in a while, even though I was on a trail. I did the most obvious thing and kept going. I made two sweeping arcs looking for the trail or blazes. After not finding anything, I did the right thing and went back down the trail the way I came until I found a blaze.
Returning to the junction, I found the blue blaze.
The trail crossed the creek continued. I kept an eye open for the blue blazes.
Later I came to another junction.
Luckily they clearly marked the posts.
I found a place by the creek and ate lunch. I packed a sandwich, carrots, and vanilla wafers.
After my lunch, I continued down the trail and 100 yards later, found a picnic table at the Rock Dam.
View below the rock dam.
In addition to the rocks at the rock dam, there were a lot of cool rocks along the trail.
I of course had to climb on the rock.
A large rock that split open.
Part of the trail went along the bottom of an eroded creek bed.
I found this awesome tree!
I thought it would be a great place to take a photo and took a bunch of different poses. I set the camera on a log and ran to get onto the branch.
I didn't make it the first time.
The Rock Dam Trail runs back into the Cliatt Creek trail.
Continuing on the Cliatt Creek trail, I came across this interesting scene.
The trail ended behind the office, just across the street from the trailhead.
There were a lot of fungi growing along the trail.
There was also a lot of fauna on the trail. In addition to the following animals, I also saw some deer.
