The other morning, after our first night at raft camp, I am enjoying my breakfast with a fellow coworker in the cook shack. Along comes in one of our old timers who does maintenance around camp. He proceeds to sit down at the table with Kevin and I, greeting us both and offering an introduction to me. After our introduction, he asks me what my job was going to be for the summer. I inform him that my ultimate goal was to be a guide before the season is up, but until that time I was going to be driving the bus and working in the office. His response: "Nope, you don't have the upper body strength." As one would guess, my expression went from excited to "oh no you didn't!" real fast. I told him that with practice, I was confident in my ability to do the job. That response was followed by him challenging me to an arm wrestling match to prove my "upper body strength" abilities and then pretty much left after my refusal. My coworker just looked at me, wide-eyed to see my response because he was in shock as well at my encounter.
I got to thinking later that day and thought about how if my identity wasn't rooted in Christ and in the Word of God, I could let discouraging comments or remarks like that form my opinion of myself. The Bible says "I can do ALL things THROUGH CHRIST who gives me STRENGTH" Philippians 4:13 I am not going to listen to the opinions of those whose remarks are not rooted in the Word of God. I know who I am...I know my identity...I know what my Father in Heaven says about me. I encourage you as well to take a look at Scripture anytime someone speaks their opinion over you, just remember who you are to your Creator. Keep this idea in mind the next time you spout your feelings about someone> Make sure what you're saying is in line with what Scripture says (don't worry, I am working on that one myself...I think it will be a lifelong process). "Life and death are in the power of the tongue" so speak life and speak truth over people! Here is a little cheat sheet I found online regarding Scriptures referring to your identity in Christ...use it, pray it, BELIEVE IT! http://encouragingbiblequotes.com/verses2a.html
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7:52 PM
Welp, finally we have arrived at raft camp where we will spend the duration of our summer! It is a sweet set up for sure, we all have our own rooms and they do have heat...praise the Lord! We are still waiting for the water to get turned on in the shower house, but thankfully the Chevron up the road has decent shower accommodations for three bucks a shower. Not too shabby...they also have wi-fi and laundry, which is nice considering neither are up and working quite at camp currently. Life at camp certainly is not as primitive as I had imagined, especially in comparison to what I've seen in Idaho, we are very well taken care of here.
I do have to say, it is a bit nerve racking going for jogs around the area though. It's not abduction by strangers that you have to be weary of, yet animals that will eat or charge you! haha, mainly moose...bears generally keep to themselves around here. I went running yesterday and found myself taking a turn another way due to a couple of moose up ahead...and I was running along the main highway!! Here are some photos of life at camp...
Here are a few pictures from our swift water training courses. We all had to wear dry suits because of the frigid temperatures. Unfortunately, being a newer raft connoisseur I have little to no proper water wear. So I have to use what would be given to the customers (custy wear), so I look like a gaper, but hey function over fashion right? Now I can sympathize with the snowboarders who don't have money for all the newest and fashionable gear and who get labeled as a gaper, lol. I am not in that same category when it c
omes to white water...
I've got the big life vest, with a dry suit that would puff up, old school helmet and a pair of tennis shoes that were borrowed and falling apart...stylin :) Enjoy!
Finished up our first week in a half of training and certifications, it's been a long week but an exciting one at that. Like I said in my last post, we are in the Chugach region close to the Kenai Peninsula, still have yet to make it up to Healy where the duration of my summer will be. As of yesterday, I am certified in Wilderness Responder, ETT (Emergency Trauma Technician), Advanced First Aid/CPR and Swift Water Rescue. Productive week I would have to say!
Swift Water Rescue was quite an exciting class to take and not an easy one at that. It is astounding how strong a river current is, truly not a force to reckon with or to take lackadaisically. It is not an uncomplicated task to rescue someone from swift water, especially in class 3+ rapids. So people, be smart when you're in swift moving water...even the Boise river has potential for danger. I know I can hear you laughing already, but I am not kidding, you can get yourself in some potential life threatening situations. We had a photographer getting photos of the action, so once I snag a few I'll post them.
Here's a food for thought: In our wilderness responder class, we were talking about how to react upon approaching a bear or wild animal. Of course, everyone has their advice or techniques that they say work with fending off a wild animal. Our instructor, who has lived in Alaska for a majority of his life, has encroached upon many of wild animals and he said the thing that he has found that works the best is to establish yourself as an alpha animal. Do not back down in fear or run away, but assert your dominance. He explained that alpha animals usually do not attack other alpha animals, so when you assert yourself as one and if you do not pose a threat to them, generally they continue on their way. ( helpful hint, do not look a bear directly in the eye because it means you are challenging them)
Whether, this tactic is effective for everyone, that could be debatable, but it did remind me of what God established in Genesis chapter one. When God created man and woman, he told them this, "be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and every other creature that moves on the ground." This got my ticker thinking that maybe we should take this Biblical commandment to heart. If God's first words to man was that of Him establishing man's dominion over all living creatures then maybe we can take to heart that He meant it. Now, I am not advocating that you be proactive in finding alpha, aggressive wild animals and have an old western showdown with them, that's where I do believe natural selection will take it's place, lol. But, if you find yourself in a situation that is less than desirable with a wild animal, maybe allow God's word to sit in the back of your mind, practical application could surprise you. ;)
"There is no theory of evolution. Just a list of creatures that Chuck Norris has allowed to live."
Well...here I am...in grand ol' Alaska!! It's been pretty up and go the entire time I've been here. Arrived in Anchorage on Friday, where I took a cab to another guide's house, where I got to meet three of my co workers. We had to wait for the rest of the crew to meet us so we could all head out to the Chugach region where we have our Wilderness Rescue and Swift Water training. Anchorage, honestly wasn't too impressive, although I didn't really get the chance to explore. It wasn't until our decent to the southern regions where the scenery overtook me! Huge, encapsulating mountains with razor sharp tops surrounding you on every side. Still capped with snow and looking prime in the sunlight for some board slashing. Cornices left and right, with steep landings...looked amazing, but in all actuality, I would probably kill myself trying to ride terrain like that!!
The crew all seems great so far, I think we are going to get along very well. It's great how a job like this literally gathers people from all over the country. Most of my coworkers are all from the eastern to southern coast, so I may come home with a bit of an accent. There are some characters on the crew, so the entertainment shouldn't be in short supply. About a dozen of us have all been sharing limited space in a cook shack for the past few days and will be here the rest of the week. Needless to say, it's been a symphony of snoring at night. Once we get to camp up in Healy we'll get our own rooms and living space, so it will be nice to have some away time and privacy. Don't get me wrong, the bonding time has been memorable to say the least.
Wilderness Rescue courses have been really interesting and informative, it's amazing what the human body does or can endure! We are truly intricate beings..."hand knitted in our mother's wombs...fearfully and wonderfully made." It is great learning about how to assess situations that may come up medically, instead of being a bystander waiting for help to come. Not that I will be an expert by the time this course is over, but I have more awareness of what to do and how to treat accidents. This weekend we have swift water rescue, I am nervous about the water. We will be wearing dry suits but it's a still going to be really cold!! Hopefully the sun will hold up like it has been the last couple of days.
Yesterday we went to Mile Thirteen and walked along a beach. The tide was really low so we could walk far out on the sand. The mountains followed along the water and straight walls of shale rock cliffs sat along the beach with cave nooks scattered throughout. We built a small campfire where one of my coworkers ate a half eaten hotdog that he found on the ground...all for a beer. Think what you want on that one... All in all, it's been a great trip thus far, it certainly feels like I have been here longer than just 4 days. On another positive note, I hear I'll be making some great money this summer and get as much work as I personally want.
A little something that struck me during class was during the introduction, the instructor was talking about decision making and he said "people don't like to make decisions. When people make decisions, it opens them up to error and criticism." Ponder that and take an introspective look in your own life, asking yourself what decisions haven't you made for the better because of fear of opinion...just a thought! And remember, behind every success there have been many failures, so don't let failures or people discourage you...run the race!
Until my next in
stallment I bid you all farewell...
