So, yesterday I went whitewater rafting with my family for a late father's day gift to my dad. At 9:30 in the morning, my dad, sister, brother, sister-in-law, and I piled in a car and drove up into the mountains. The ride was uneventful--- nothing fell off of the car and we all made it there safely. Everyone was talking about how excited they were to being doing this! I was saying that too, trying to convince myself I was. Let me explain...

   The last time I went whitewater rafting was around 5 or 6 years ago. The trip was going really great! Getting hit by the waves, enjoying the rush. Then, I decided to move to a front position in the raft. Basically, within a minute of that seat change, I was in the water. And of course, our raft was headed for some small rapids right at that moment. The safety talk they had given us was basically "Stay in the water, we'll come get you." Yeah, I didn't do that. Didn't really feel like going over rocks- so I swam toward the shore and climbed out. But then the raft didn't totally stop so I ended up jumping back in and then swimming to them. ( I realize I probably should have just stayed out of the water- oh well) When I got in the raft, the guide then proceeded to yell at me about how I didn't follow procedure. And then I started crying. And that was my experience. Needless to say, not the most positive.

   So this trip, I was somewhat apprehensive the whole time. Visions of me falling out of the raft kept playing in my head and I feared it would happen again. I realize that falling out of a raft is not the most dangerous thing ever and I've probably been in worst situations- for some reason though, this one intimidated me. My family was really great, making sure I was comfortable the whole time. When we finally got in the raft, everyone gave me a smile and kind of a "Are you okay?" look. At first I felt like I just needed to get through the trip. Just survive it. But then I actually started to enjoy myself! It was an amazing journey, floating down a river, surrounded by God's creation. There were definitely some times when we went over some rapids or rammed into a huge wave that I was all I could think was "God keep me in this boat, please, please, please..." After we finally got off the river and in the bus, it finally hit me that I survived the trip without falling out. And I was so relieved that I just felt all the tension in my body get released.

   I might go rafting again; I might not. Only time will tell. This trip was definitely an amazing experience and I'm so glad that I did it! It was encouraging to be reminded that God is with us no matter the circumstance. We ended the day at On the Border, telling the adventure of the day to my mom and little sister, all of us exhausted and happy.