For Some Must Push, and Some Must Pull...

There is a cute LDS children's song that goes like this:

You don't have to push a handcart,

Leave your family dear,

Or walk a thousand miles or more...

To be a pioneer.

You do need to have great courage,

Faith to conquer fear,

And work with might for a cause that's right,

To be a pioneer.

For those who aren't familiar with this newer LDS activity, let me explain briefly. In an attempt to remember our pioneer heritage and learn appreciation for their dedication and sacrifice to preserve our religious beliefs, we reenact on a small scale a "Trek" that helps us remember the pioneers.

My great, great, great grandparents traveled for 1300 miles (or more) to the Salt Lake Valley in the late 1800's. Most walked across the plains of Iowa, Nebraska and Wyoming with wagon trains or handcarts. Many died and others suffered illness or gave birth along the way. It was a true test of their faith. We honor them every July when we celebrate Pioneer Day on July 24.

So, our local congregation gathered together with seven others to arrange this experience. It's solely for the youth in our church ages 14-18. All told we had about 130 kids attend. Eric and I were asked to be one set of parents, herein after called Ma's and Pa's. There were ten couples and the kids were randomly assigned to one of the ten families. We had 12 kids to share our trek experience with, and only one of them we already knew.

On Thursday morning, we left our home at 6 a.m. to travel to the desert in Southwestern Arizona (halfway between Gila Bend and Yuma along I-8). Here we are, still early in the morning, still clean, still cool...

My new "daughters"... they were delightful!

We started off playing some get to know you games, and then put together our handcart. Then began the long journey for the day. The first day's walk would be 10 miles. It took 4-5 miles to get to this mountain range and then we walked through it before stopping for the night.

I don't know this girl, but I saw her resting on the side of the road and just had to capture this moment...One of our trail bosses brought an extra horse that ran around like a puppy... she was so dang cute, she would run up behind you and nuzzle your neck so you'd pet her. We all loved it!After walking 10 miles, even the girly girls laid down to sleep right on the rocky dirt.Walking through the desert landscape - almost done for the day!Sunset in the desertTaylor - with his Trek FamilyOur Pa...Taylor still smiling on day two... check out that bedhead!Our family hard at work pulling through the deep sand... the sand proved to be the biggest trial of the entire trip.Taking a break on the side of the trailGetting some practice in for our evening entertainment... these girls were so talented... My kids helping me to prep our chickens... the boys enjoyed eating the neck and giblets while we separated out the good chicken for the soup. It was sorta like Pioneer Fear Factor!A much deserved rest on the afternoon of day 2. The kids got to do various activities, including archery, black powder rifle shooting, leatherworking and best of all - hairwashing. Just about everyone (including the boys) got their hair washed... it never felt so good, believe me!

But the highlight of the afternoon was when a truck rolled into camp with 2 bags of ice for each family. We'd been drinking warm water for 24 hours and when it's 90+ degrees, there's no shade and you are wearing heavy warm clothing, a bag of ice for the water cooler was like getting manna from heaven! It was indeed the perfect surprise for our overheated bodies!After the afternoon festivities, we ate our delicious Chicken and Dumplin's soup and peach cobbler. Both were fantastic and for the first time in two days, we didn't have to ration out the food. We had leftovers! That evening we had a fireside testimony meeting. The spirit was strong and many tears were shed!

Just after the testimony meeting was when we had our only encounter with wildlife... some kids found a sidewinder rattlesnake under the porta potty trailer. The menfolk quickly killed and disposed it. Couldn't risk someone getting bit... But of course, this happened just before bedtime, so quite a few of us had a difficult time falling asleep wondering how many other dangerous creatures were lurking in the shrubs.This is our family on the morning of the 3rd day... we had 3 miles to walk and then we would be fed a hot lunch of sloppy joes back at the cars. Our kids ran the last mile, just so they could be done and rest!

All in all, it was a fantastic experience. Over 3 days we truly got a glimpse of what our pioneer ancestors were willing to sacrifice. We learned the hardships of life on the trail. We learned how they must have suffered in the heat with their long skirts and petticoats and no air conditioning.

Many very important life lessons were learned. Remember this is a group of kids who are part of the "entitlement" generation... between cell phones, ipods, computers and video games, most of these kids don't know what a hard day of true labor is. Every single one of them now know what it means to work hard. They all now know what it's like to see the fruit of their labors. They all know how much effort is put into preparing meals and cleaning up. They now all appreciate things like hot showers, flushing toilets, fast food, soft mattresses and air conditioning. They have all learned the value of teamwork and cooperation. Without those two things, we never would have survived this Trek.

Would we do it again? Absolutely! It was definitely a character building experience. It was a privilege for Eric and I to be part of such a wonderful adventure!