Valerie's Voice

The sunrise was a welcome sight after a stormy night and I was glad to be awake to watch it come over the horizon and clouds.

We drove up near the Canadian border today. We were in search for a trail I had heard of and knew we had not hiked. (It is not a maintained trail.) We found the parking lot. We grabbed our hiking poles and started down the rocky road to find the trail-head. We walked a ways looking intently but turned around after not finding it. Back at the car a lone woman got out of hers and asked us how the trail was. We told her we never found it. She said she was going to try because she had hiked it before.

We continued to drive up Highway 61 along Lake Superior to Grand Portage State Park, about ½ mile south of the border patrol station. There we hiked to High Falls on the Pigeon River. It is the highest waterfalls in Minnesota and was cascading down with gusto from all the recent rains. We decided to hike farther to an observation point overlooking Lake Superior and the inland forest. Up we went to the scenic overlook and it was beautiful. The skies were blue and the sun shone down and made the lake glisten.

On our way down we saw our “recent acquaintance” from the other parking lot. She said she had found the trail-head we were looking for but she didn’t climb it because it was too muddy. So she had the same idea… hike to High Falls and beyond. We visited with her for awhile and found out she is camping at a Superior National Forest campground for a reasonable rate (seniors 60+ get a discount.) After we parted ways we wondered if it she gets lonely hiking and camping by herself.

Heading back to the cabin we stopped at Naniboujou Lodge, an icon of the north shore, with its famous dining room stone fireplace and Cree Indian designs painted on the walls and ceiling in 1929 and has never been repainted, yet the colors remain brilliant! I’m sorry I didn’t get a picture. They have the best Wild Rice Burgers and we ordered two to go and brought them to the waters’ edge and ate our late lunch picnic style. The wind was strong and the waves were high and forceful with huge a surf. Awesome!

After stopping in Grand Marais to we drove back to the cabin and it was great to be back on the rocks reading our books.

After dark we built a fire in the fire ring on the rocks in front of the cabin. We waited for the moonrise and it was a beautiful sight! It comes up where the sun rises and it’s a wonder to see it peek over the horizon. Again, we thought about the lone woman we met today and wondered if she was having a campfire at her campsite and watching the moonrise.

I do not feel sorry for her…she seemed very happy and delightful. I’m just grateful I have somebody to share my love of nature with me and to enjoy doing things together.

Sunrise to Moonrise…it was a very good day.

Mother Teresa has been declared a saint in a canonization Mass held by Pope Francis in the Vatican ~ now she is to be called Saint Teresa of Kolkata.

The inspiring words below are attributed to Mother Teresa. (Apparently the words are based on a composition originally by Kent Keith)                                   See both versions here.

“Do It Anyway”
People are often unreasonable, illogical and self centered;
Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;
Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;
Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;
Be honest and frank anyway.

What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;
Build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;
Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;
Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;
Give the world the best you’ve got anyway.

You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and your God;
It was never between you and them anyway.

My sons were 7 and 5 when Jacob Wetterling was abducted back in 1989. It was a scary story for any mother who heard about a child abduction in a small town in Minnesota. After 27 years we finally have answers to the questions that have always been in the back of our minds… and in the front of the Wetterling’s every day.  Sigh.

Patty Wetterling has always conducted herself with such grace. I pray for peace and comfort for the Wetterling family. The search is over, the grieving and healing begins.