Wesley’s Vacation in UtahTime goes by so quickly for me. It’s hard to believe that it has already been more than a month since I last wrote anything on my blog page. Again, I have enjoyed reading what everyone else has written and I feel guilty that I have not commented more. “But if you only knew how much I wanted to say and didn’t!”
It was glorious to have Wesley home for ten days. I had so much fun traveling down to Las Vegas with Geoffrey to meet Wesley and to spend time with Allison and Steve. Allison and I sneaked off while Wesley, Steve and Geoffrey were playing on X Box 360s, computers and Game Boys, to paint our toenails and solve all the world’s problems. “If they would only do it THIS way, then….” We all got to go out to breakfast together and to do a bit of shopping.
You all have heard by now about the “misadventure” (my word) or “fiasco” (Wesley’s word) that happened in Zion’s National Park when Wesley and Geoffrey went to hike The Narrows. The short version is that they miscalculated how long it would take them to hike the 16 miles through chest-high water and rock-strewn river banks, and ended up having to spend the night in the canyon. Luckily they ran into some other hikers, Ken and Kurt, who were also forced to make camp. They all shared food, water and light and helped each other stay warm and upbeat about it all. It was still a pretty cold and miserable night for Wesley and Geoffrey, but it surely could have been a lot worse.
Waiting for them back in civilization, I was patient, then worried, then frantic. No matter how old my sons get, I can't resist being their mother. I knew they probably had enough water, but little food and no flashlights, and I kept seeing them in my mind’s eye, huddled together, cold, wet, hungry and in black darkness, trying to keep each other warm. There were other hikers who told me they had seen Wesley and Geoffrey and that they were not hurt, which made me feel better. Each hiker I talked to thought that they wouldn’t be much longer. When the last bus came down from the canyon without them, however, I got permission to go up and wait for them in my car. I waited another three hours, shining my headlights on bright as far down the trail as possible, in case they were close enough to see the light and follow it back. Mostly, I just needed to do something so that I didn’t feel quite so helpless. But it was so totally dark in the canyon that I finally decided they would have had to stop. I went back to the hotel to sleep a couple of hours, then drove back up the canyon at first light. I walked to the end of the “Riverwalk” trail and out into the river when the trail ended to see if I could see them coming, but there was no sign of them. When I went back down the trail, the buses had started their service again, so I informed the Park Rangers through the bus drivers that Wesley and Geoffrey were not out of the canyon yet. Then I walked back up the trail to wait for them. This time I met them coming. I felt such relief that it made me weak. Wesley and Geoffrey immediately introduced me to the two men who had helped them and I hugged them both, thanking them profusely. Wesley said later that the hardest part of staying in the canyon for him was knowing that I would be worried and not having any way to reassure me that they were okay. After taking them to the hotel for showers and out to breakfast, we all lay down to get some much-needed sleep. I felt very grateful, to say the least, to have them safe and sound with me again. (You are all saying, “That was the SHORT version?”)
We all enjoyed the rest of the week. We had barbecued hamburgers at Danae’s house on Tuesday night, Teriyaki meatballs at my house on Wednesday night, and a late-birthday Giant Burger dinner on Friday night for Jay. It was a lot of hamburger meals in one week, but Wesley gets enough seafood in Alaska, right? We played games and got pictures of Wesley holding his new niece, Kameryn. Wesley and Geoffrey got to spend time together playing games during the days when I was at work. On Thursday night, Wesley and I went to the Kurt Bestor concert together and had a great time. You all already know how much I love Kurt Bestor’s music and in this concert, we got to hear all the stories behind the songs on his latest CD. It was so, so good.
Wesley and I also had a great time driving back to Las Vegas. We listened to several recordings of “This American Life” from NPR and laughed and talked. When we got to Allison’s house, we all went out to dinner at a good Mexican restaurant, then watched “Waterboy” on DVD. It was sad to say goodbye to Wesley at the airport, knowing that we may not see him again for several months. Geoffrey thinks the world of him and all his sisters adore him. Allison noted that we all want to win his approval – the big brother.
You will always be welcome at home, Wesley, if you ever get tired of Alaska. Come back soon.
