Sometimes it’s hard to find your way.

Share Now

Before leaving northern Ohio on Sunday, Ray and I wanted to see Lake Erie. We use our navigation app often, but how do you search for Lake Erie? We resorted to a paper tourist map Ray had picked up at the conference.

Ray was in the driver’s seat and I was his map-reading “co-pilot.” First we headed due north, but then we realized that we would end up on the shore of a bay. I wanted to see the wide open waters of Lake Erie. When I spotted the Sheldon Marsh Nature Preserve on the map, it looked as if it were right on the beach beside Lake Erie. I hoped we would find a great spot there.

We kept driving and finally pulled into the nature preserve parking lot. We took off on this path, hoping Lake Erie would be at the other end.

Along the way, we saw several mounds in a marsh. I assume that beavers built them. A Canada goose stood atop this one.

We saw this graceful white bird, an egret perhaps?

This pretty squirrel had a beautiful golden belly, very different from our Tennessee gray squirrels.

He even gave me a chance to take his picture standing up.

We saw berries along the path, but still no Lake Erie.

Finally, we spotted a peephole in the trees and saw our first glimpse of the lake.

We walked gingerly through the undergrowth and stood on the beautiful lakeshore.

Unsure of whether we had really found the best spot, we got back on the roadbed and detoured down this boardwalk. Disappointed, we retraced our steps . . .

. . . and continued down the roadbed until we came to a muddy dead end. Disappointed again, we went back to our peephole and gave it a second chance.

Satisfied, we settled down in a couple of Adirondack chairs on the sandy beach, ate our picnic lunch, and watched the clouds, the blue sky, and the gentle waves. I set the timer on the camera and hurried to join Ray in this picture.

I captured another moment or two with my camera . . .

. . . before we climbed back through our peephole.

We headed back past the beautiful marsh, . . .

passing a tall gray heron, . . .

what I suppose are pretty white lichens, . . .

. . . and one of God’s bouquets of asters.

Sometimes it’s a bit hard to find your way. Sometimes it’s very hard. Sometimes we walk straight ahead to where we want to go, but not usually.

Ray and I set out to find Lake Erie; and we did, though not as quickly as we had expected. When we finally did find it, we weren’t exactly sure we were where we wanted to be. Unsatisfied with our first steps through the peephole, we tried two other paths, only to return to a place we had already been.

That sounds like a journey through some homeschooling years to me. Be patient while you get where you are going. Enjoy the picnic when you get there — and the unplanned bird, squirrel, berry, aster, and other surprises God provides along the way.

You will make known to me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.
Psalm 16:11

 

 

 

Share Now