"This section of river is impassible," Josh's dad read from his Hiker's Guide. "It is so rough, there aren't even any fish in it. So we'll have to portage the canoe. If I'm reading this right, we should find Bridger Lake up and over that hill on our right."
The craft was surprisinly light, but even more balanced with two padded thwarts strategically placed for a two-man shoulder carry. As they climbed up the hill the air became sooty, like strong charcoal. The old growth trees stood charred and limbless, allowing a rare encroachment of the sun on the forest floor. By now new growth saplings should have already sprouted, but the intense heat and duration of the Yellowstone fires of '88 sterilized the soil with a foot of ash. Josh reached to feel a trunk and his hand returned black as coal. They both swallowed hard in awe at the frothy, boiling water below, dipping and diving over boulders as big as their house back home.
After a short poke of log hopping deadfalls they arrived at the lake and made camp on it's bank. Stripping down, they waded into the dark blue water with their dirty laundry and biodegradable soap. After scrubbing off the trail dust, Josh's dad called him over to him.
"Take my hand and know that I love you, son. Trust me to be the example Christ was in our family."
He pinched Josh's nostrils together and submerged him in symbolic baptism and led him to shore. He then took a towel and washed his feet as Jesus did his disciples. Afterwards, he revealed a small flask of grape juice and a package of crackers to partake of communion.
Suddenly, two brightly colored birds appeared on the water, swimming side by side.
"Those are the two trumpeter swans the book mentioned!" Josh's dad exclaimed. "They return here every year according to witnessed accounts."
A screech turned their eyes to the treetops where two bald eagles perched - one the mother, and one the baby, the younger one being much larger but lacking brilliant colors as of yet.
Josh and his dad sat on the shore of the lake and talked about the acts of obedience they had participated in earlier and about the meanings for their lives. As darkness set in, they waded back into the lake for a night swim. The glassy water perfectly reflected the constellations to the point where you could not discern where the heavens ended and the lake edge intersected. They just seemed to merge into one on the distant horizon. A thick meteor shower blanketed them and played "keep away" with them as it sent random rockets darting across the water's mirrored surface.
