listening for God (or how to outrun a bison)

So the second day was a looooong drive. I spent a good portion of the day in North Dakota, and learned a couple of things:

1) it is very important (judging from the number of billboards i saw proclaiming such) to “stop aquatic hitchhikers.” (?!?!)

2) North Dakota is home to the largest metal sculpture in America. (I did not stop to see it.)

I did, however, after driving for hours, get off at Exit 1, because there was a sign for a rest stop with a scenic overlook, and yesterday’s had been so amazing. So I took the exit ramp, and turned at the end of it – directly into Theodore Roosevelt National Park! (who knew?) Ok, maybe if I’d been looking at the atlas, I wouldn’t have been quite so surprised.

The view was absolutely incredible. The colors, the play of light and shadow – it was breathtaking. Maybe even more so because I hadn’t expected to see it – I had no clue that I would turn a corner to a view like that…

© 2014 Simple Felicity

I looked at the trail, and I looked at my tevas (the flip flop variety). I thought, “that doesn’t look very difficult, and well – I can always come back for my hiking boots if it’s too tricky.” I wasn’t thirsty, and the trail sign said it was only a mile loop trail. I’d be fine without water for a mile. So off I went. Enjoying the scenery, the sudden absence of tourists (no one else seemed to want to take the trail), snapping pictures of canyon flora… I heard someone at the top of the trail call to what I assumed was his family, “Hey! There’s a buffalo down there at the end of the trail.” Oh cool, I thought.God, it would be really cool to see a bison out here in the wild. I kept hiking through the bushes, and then the trail split. One way led back into the brush. The other led out onto a flat ridge and then down into the canyon a bit further. I opted for wide open spaces.

© 2014 Simple Felicity

The view from that ledge was amazing, and I stood there for a minute, enjoying the sunshine and the beauty of God’s creation, noticing the interesting hoof-shaped tracks in the dirt, and thought, wow, that’s odd. i thought that sign said “no horses…”

And then the Holy Spirit said something to the effect of, “Hap, turn around and go back. NOW.” And I felt this odd sort of panic – not fear-driven, just a very strong internal insistence that I should turn around and go back. So I did, and I’m doing my usual internal questioning routine, “ok, was that really God, or did I just panic because I was out on this ledge on my own, and I’m a dork?” And I was about to arrive at the conclusion that I’m a dork (which is entirely possible) when I looked up, and I kid you not, probably less than 30 yards away, was a bison. I’m not sure which one of us was more surprised – it, or me – but it certainly noticed my existence, and started trotting my way.

© 2014 Simple Felicity