Oregon Trail...

Tina and I recently made a trip into Wyoming to see some sights and to visit the place where we first met.  We have just completed 25 years of marriage and it seemed fitting to visit the space where it all began for us.  I love history and so our two-day trip focused on seeing some historical sites.  The picture is of me walking along some wagon ruts that were cut into the rock by the thousands of emigrants moving west along the Oregon Trail.  This is near Guernsey, Wyoming which is not a place that you will ever find unless you happen to be going there.  It's amazing to me that the trail still remains--after all of these years.  It was no easy task to make the trek across the plains and mountains to the promised land of Oregon, Californa, or even Utah.  It was often a deadly pursuit and only the stoutest arrived to begin a new life.  The pioneers would travel maybe 12-20 miles a day hoping to slip through a narrow window of good weather that would allow them to cross the mountains before the winter snows began.  I'm learning a couple of things from the Oregon Trail emigrants.  First of all, there is a trail for all of us to follow--we don't have to make our own way.  Others have gone before us and we can learn much from their journey.  Secondly, we don't travel alone.  The emigrants relied on the multiplicity of gifts contained in a wagon train in order to overcome the constant obstacles in their path.  In the same way we have fellow travelers joining us--gifted in their unique ways--working together to move forward to our common goal.  Thirdly, there are others coming behind us who will benefit from our experiences and signs of life that we leave behind.