8 Kids and 4 Men

Our church was camping.  Several of us men had to dumb down our idea to take a 'real hike'.  We agreed that we wanted to include children. So we reduced the plan to include 8 children ages 4-8. And the kids didn't let us down. They amazed us with their resilience and enthusiasm - even after several hours of mostly uphill climbing on the mountain.  Surrounded by the beauty of nature, one of the men started singing - “My God’s not dead. He’s surely alive. He’s living on the inside, roaring like a lion.” Soon we were all singing with abandon. One young man turned to me, ‘That is my all-time favorite song,’ he said.  (YES!)  Later as we neared the end of our hike one weary little boy asked if I would carry him on my shoulders, which I did.  He immediately asked to be put back down, since he was scared.  Soon he was back on his daddy’s shoulders as he explained to me matter of factly - "My daddy and I are best friends. That is why I'm not afraid to ride on his shoulders." That was a moment for a father to treasure and remember! “It is the happy man that does the useless things; the sick man is not strong enough to be idle.”  GK Chesterton