Carbon River

Yesterday we took Anne up to the "tantin" again - aka Mt. Rainier.  This time we opted for the rather flat rainforested gravel road at Carbon River, which is BOB-stroller friendly.  It was chilly and incredibly dank - this area gets between six and eight feet of rain a year.  Look at all the moss hanging in the trees!

We went as far as Chenuis Falls. 

 It's amazing to see all these green things growing on the rocks:

The water pooling at the bottom of the falls was so clear.

Throwing rocks into the water completes every toddler trip to the ocean, river, or lake.

We traversed the misty Carbon River valley to get to the falls and then back to the main path.

And  crossed the rushing and braided Carbon River on log bridges, some of which have to be replaced every year after the spring thaw has demolished everything in its path.

On the way back, Anne did some hiking on her own for at least half a mile. 

In a fit of inspiration, we put her in the Ergo on my back and took a two-mile detour to see Ranger Falls.  It was a tough, hillier climb, but well worth it.

We made out of the woods to our car before the last lumens had departed for the evening, but only just.

Eat Your Veggies

People have a wide variety of reasons around the world for being vegetarian.  Some believe in reincarnation, and are opposed to eating potential people.  Some do so from an environmental perspective - growing animals for food depletes a lot more resources than just eating plants.  Some do so for world hunger reasons, along the same lines.  Some are vegetarians because they were raised that way.  Some are vegetarians because plants are the only food they can afford.  Some are vegetarians because they've read the research on the health benefits of the lifestyle.  Some are vegetarians because they are opposed to animal cruelty.

People have a wide variety of reasons for being meat eaters, too.  Some feel that abstaining from meat is sign of spiritual weakness.  Some enjoy the taste of flesh foods too much to go without.  Some have never even thought of life without meat or poultry or fish as an option.  Some feel that animal foods are necessary for good health.  Some people live where there are very few plant foods available.  Some people eat animal foods as an important part of their cultural heritage.  Some people don't want to be vegetarian because they don't want to inconvenience themselves or their friends and relatives.

Sometimes people have asked me why I am vegetarian.  I happen to have come to believe in many of the "pro" reasons I listed in the first paragraph.  However, that is not where my strongest thoughts lie.  Recently I read a quote from Ellen White, a 19th-century Christian writer, which resonated with my strongest impulses toward vegetarianism:

Very few have any conception of the violence and brutality that is inflicted on animals in order to gratify a carnivorous diet.  Think of the cruelty to animals that meat eating involves, and its effect on those who inflict and those who behold it.  How it destroys the tenderness with which we should regard these creatures of God!  The intelligence displayed by many dumb animals approaches so closely to human intelligence that it is a mystery.  The animals see and hear and love and fear and suffer.  They use their organs far more faithfully than many human beings use theirs.  They manifest sympathy and tenderness toward their companions in suffering.  Many animals show affection for those who have charge of them, far superior to the affection shown by some of the human race.  They form attachments for man which are not broken without great suffering to them.  What man with a human heart, who has ever cared for domestic animals, could look into their eyes, so full of confidence and affection, and willingly give them over to the butcher's knife?  How could he devour their flesh as a sweet morsel?

I am a bit hypocritical, though, because I wear leather shoes, and I play the violin, which is made with hide glue.

Mount Rainier

Saturday after church we took Anne up to Rainier for her first real hike there.  We started at Lake Mowich, which involved driving one hour on paved roads, and then driving a rather slow and tiresome 16-mile hour on unpaved roads.  Anne rode on my back from the lake up to Spray Park, an alpine meadow.  Along the way we stopped to inspect waterfalls, of which there were many.  I think she loved playing in the waterfalls as much as she loved watching the roller coasters at the fair on Wednesday.  (Suddenly I feel a little better about her future!  ;-)  She learned to say several new words on our outing.

One of them was "mushroom":

Another of them was "mountain":

We saw three or four people hiking down on our way up, who were packing skis and snowboards.  I asked if they'd found snow, and they'd been WAY up high, and were able to enjoy some winter downhill sports in September.  They'd worked pretty hard for the privilege!

Getting close to a waterfall:

Daddy helped her touch the water with her hands, without danger of getting her feet wet:

She was fearless on the log bridges:

This one is called Spray Falls, and you can't tell at all from this picture how many hundreds of feet high it is:

Anne had the most fun at this one, because it was the biggest and loudest.  She didn't seem to mind the cold water one bit, although as dusk fell and we were getting back to the car she was shivering away from her wet clothes.

She did a little hiking on her own, but the path was much bumpier than any other ground she has previously tried to traverse.  It will take some practice before she can go too far there on her own.

We made it to Spray Park.  Because of the sun, you can't see the top of the mountain, but it was stunning and large in the background.

Here's another picture Jared took of me in Spray Park when Anne was probably eight or ten weeks old.  I don't know whether it was easier carrying 22 pounds of her on my back while feeling well on the hike or easier carrying an ounce of her in my belly while not feeling well.  But, we did it, and the hike is absolutely gorgeous!

Washington State Fair

A mother of one of Jared's students gave us an extra ticket to the state fair that she'd been given at work.  Children under 5 get in the gate for free.  So I took Anne with me to my short teaching day in Gig Harbor this afternoon, then I sat in a parking lot for an hour and half and read while she took her nap.  Afterward we went to the state fair in Puyallap.  I took her because I thought she'd like to see the animals.  She did.

However, she was enamored of all the rides.  I think I have a roller coaster girl on my hands.  Good thing she's not tall enough yet!

Oddly enough, these pictures make the state fair look devoid of people.  It wasn't.  It was more like Times Square kind of crowded.  I just snapped at the few and far-between empty-frame moments.

Memory

Yesterday, most the descendants of Marge and Thayne Cole, along with spouses, and their "fourth daughter" Deborah, gathered at their graveside to remember their lives.  Jared and Sarah and I played people's hymn requests - Fairest Lord Jesus, Holy Holy Holy, To the Name That Brings Salvation, and Nearer My God to Thee. Various of Grampa's and Grandma's children and children-in-law told stories.  Jared's dad read a set of Scriptures he had picked out (reprinted below), and Uncle Brad prayed.  There was no program - people spoke if and when they wanted to.  Afterward we had a picnic at Champoeg [sham-POO-ee] State Park, complete with Grampa Cole's favorite beets with mayonnaise.  I took some Salem cemetery pictures for the family.

Jared's Grandma and Grampa Cole were buried a few weeks ago, and their headstone, thankfully, arrived in time for our memorial service.

This is Grandma's mother - Jared's great-grandmother.

This is Nancy's great-great-grandmother -
Jared's great-great-great-grandmother -
Anne's great-great-great-great-grandmother

This is Nancy's great-aunt and great-uncle Warren and Gladys -
Jared's great-great-aunt and great-great-uncle -
Anne's great-great-great-aunt and great-great-great-uncle

Anne wore her great-aunt Julie's baby dress.

When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers – the moon and the stars you have set in place – what are mortals that you should think of us?

[But] we depend on the Lord alone to save us. Only he can help us, protecting us like a shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we are trusting in his holy name. Let your unfailing love surround us, Lord, for our hope is in you alone.

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish, but have eternal life.

I assure you, those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life.

I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die like everyone else, will live again.

I can tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not rise to meet him ahead of those who are in their graves. For the Lord, himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the call of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, all Christians, who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air and remain with him forever. So comfort and encourage each other with these words.

(Ps. 8:3-4, Ps. 33:20-22, John 3:16, John 5:24, John 11:25, 1 Thes. 4:15-18)