Crying Out to God
We want to keep "Work" and "Vacation" in separate boxes. But sometimes, God breaks down those walls; so that what we thought was going to be work turns out to be the perfect vacation.
What makes the perfect vacation? Is it the place (beach, mountains, cruise), the people (family, friends, church group), the activities (backpacking, snorkeling, gallery hopping, shopping, fishing, golf, etc.)?
I would suggest it is whatever is most different from what you usually do. For me, it was painting the outside of my mom's house. That's right: painting my mom's house. Since I work at a computer all day, the best vacation for me is one that is physically exhausting, outdoors (preferably in a natural setting), that involves low-level problem-solving skills, with some meaningful personal and social interaction interspersed. Painting her house fit that bill.
But that's not why I chose that particular "vacation spot." The truth is, I needed money and she was willing to pay me. But God used that to create for me the perfect vacation. If your reaction is, "You've got to be kidding me," I understand. But after I tell you what happened, I think you will agree that this "vacation" was indeed perfect.
The Death of Nannie
This is a detail of a drawing I did of Nannie back in 1983. You can see from her face that she was full of life - so much so, that it took 109 years for her to let go of it. Her body just wore out.
This is the full drawing. Nannie loved roses, so I overdid them in my drawing. They look more like one of her bouquets than roses growing on a bush. The cat sitting at her feet was typical. She loved cats - she had 20! - but this was her favorite - Missy.
My grandmother of 109 years of age died on Easter Sunday morning, 2011. We buried her on the Saturday before Mother's Day, two weeks later. It was appropriate. She was the end of an era.
I know that phrase has been over-used to describe a variety of different national and international figures; but my grandmother really was the end of an era; not only because her life spanned five generations, but also because she saw the introduction of nearly every major invention and discovery since the gasoline-powered automobile:
radio (1901,1916), air conditioning (1902), airplane (1903), plastic (1907), color photography (1907), Model T (1908), talking motion pictures (1910,1912), insulin (1922), 3-D movies (1922), television (1923,1925,1927), liquid-fuel rocket (1926), color motion pictures (1927), penicillin (1928), jet engine (1930,1937), ballpoint pen (1938), helicopter (1939), color television (1940), electronic digital computer (1942), atomic bomb (1945), microwave oven (1946), hydrogen bomb (1952), laser (1958), microchip (1959), first manned spacecraft (1961), audio cassette (1962), compact disc (1965), first manned lunar landing (1969), video cassette (1971), cell phone (1979), personal computer (1981), Apple Macintosh (1984), Microsoft Windows (1985), HD TV (1989), World Wide Web (1990), DVD (1995), etc.
Because she was a voracious reader and a perennial student, I know she read about all these breakthroughs with interest. When my cousins and I visited her house growing up, we always found stacks and stacks of magazines - everything from National Geographic and Smithsonian, to Look and Life. Those magazines were a big part of our education, and Nannie was always a ready teacher to answer any questions we had.
In spite of her many interests - which included art, music, writing, cooking, gardening, teaching and church work - her greatest love was nature: she was a true naturalist. Everything else that she did centered on that love: so when she painted, it was flowers or landscapes; when she wrote poetry, it was about her garden or birds or her neighbor's yard; when she sang, it was about creation or the Creator. Always nature. That was what made her soul sing; and so she began each day with an eagerness to learn, an inspiration about life and beauty, and an expectation of what she would find in her garden.
Backpacking on Mount LeConte
Sunrise at Icewater Spring
Getting fresh water the hard way, with a microfilter pump
Charlie's Bunion: a magnificent rocky craig flanked on either side by a narrow walkway that is dangerously precipitous
My friend Larry Smith took all these photos. He has painted this view of Charlie's Bunion, as well as other scenes from the Appalachian Trail. See the banner ad at the bottom of this page.
There is nothing like an early morning walk in the woods. 
Me, with two of my friends. I'm on the left. We weren't this happy for the entire trip, believe me. Read about our trudge up "Mount Mordor" below.
They're not called the "Smokey Mountains" for nothing. This was the morning after the big storm, coming down the other side of Mount LeConte.
We were on the Appalachian Trail in early June, which is when most of the flowers are in bloom. It looked like a professional landscaper had come in and worked his magic. Well, the truth is, He had.
Coming back down on the Alum Cave Trail
There are some very clever, unique sections to Alum Cave Trail, like this staircase, which, I believe, was made of logs. Flowers and petals sprinkled much of our trail over the four days.
This is the river at the base of Mounte LeConte, which we followed out. Larry has painted this as well. Unfortunately, at a spot near the end of the trail, a bus-load of teenagers decided to walk up the river, disturbing the rocks and upsetting the natural balance of the river. The only bad thing about being out in nature is seeing how disrespectful humans can be.
Four Days and Forty Miles on the Appalacian Trail and the Tallest Mountain in the Eastern United States
I don't think I have to sell anyone on the beauty of North Carolina in general or Great Smoky Mountain National Park in particular. It is the most visited park in the national park system, boasting the greatest variety of animals in the world (with over 1,600 black bears), more flowering plants than any other North American national park (over 1,600 varieties), more native tree species than all of northern Europe (over 100), over 800 miles of maintained hiking trails (including the famed Appalachian Trail), and a range in elevation from 800 to 6,643 feet, including the tallest mountain in the Eastern United States, Mount LeConte. To say the least, it is spectacular and breathtaking.
In 2007, I had the opportunity to hike up Mount LeConte with three buddies as part of a four-day, 40-mile backpacking trip. Little did we know that the weather would turn against us, and we would almost be fighting for our lives before we reached the top. But starting out, it was very pleasant. That's the way mountains are: they change on you suddenly. One minute they're loving on you, and the next they're trying to kill you, as Jim Craig points out to Jessica in The Man From Snowy River.