Skip to main content

Walking on the Dunes.

Monday 22 August 2011

Yesterday really early I went with a friend of mine to climb the sand dunes that are a little bit beyond the Iguape beach (about 10 minute drive from here). When my friend suggested we climb the dunes I imagined some dunes that weren’t too high and easily climbable. However, there are some massive dunes with lots of vegetation in between. So it was literally “no walk in the park”. We climbed the sand, walked through vegetation, pushing our way through branches and it didn’t take long before I had no idea where we were going. I tried to keep track of which trail we followed, but soon realized that the bushes and cacti looked pretty much the same, and the sand didn’t keep our tracks very well. We were headed for a higher peak on the dunes so we could see the view of the coast. My friend effortlessly walked along and I think she’s in better shape then I am. I was slogging away, trying to keep up, while images from films I’ve seen passed through my mind. Films where people cross the border to Mexico and get lost in the desert. I was even “economizing” my water a bit, and wondering if the leaves of the plants and bushes could serve as a source of liquid. I know it sounds a tad dramatic, but it wasn’t really dramatic at all and we only walked for about 45 minutes to reach the top of the dunes, so even if we were lost, we still new which direction to head to get back to the road.

Anyways, I wanted to turn back at several points, but I think my Norwegian pride kept me from giving up and I am glad I didn’t. The view at the top was spectacular! You could see the sea and the coastline and it was so peaceful and amazing. Over us some birds of prey were circling around us and they were so close you could actually see their feathers and how they would steer in the wind. It was almost as if they had fingers on the tips of their wings to steer. Amazing. God is so creative and detailed and the whole scene just took my breath away and made me want to worship Him.

Soon the birds of prey were getting a little too close for comfort so after a little while we decided to head back.

We got a tad lost, or rather took a different path back, and arrived safe and sound at the car. It was a good way to start the day.

(I took a bunch of photos, but since I don’t have them here with me, the post will be posted without them. Maybe I’ll do a photo post one of these days, just putting a bunch of pictures from here so far.)

Popular posts from this blog

Packing...again.

I just folded the last load of laundry and I’m almost packed. Off to the airport at 5am tomorrow morning, heading off to Amsterdam. I’m excited, a bit nervous, and wondering what it’ll be like. It’s been a good week at home with lots of quality time with family, especially the little nieces and nephew. I’m glad I’ll see them in April again. Well, not much to write and packing to be done and a bit of sleep would probably be a good idea too. Next time I write it’ll be from Amsterdam....
Read more

Single-tasking September: The art of single-tasking.

To change habits and ways of life, the motivation for change has to be strong, and the benefits outweigh the effort it takes to make the change.  For so long it’s seemed like the ability to multitask has been regarded as a great skill, but is it really a good thing? Recovering from burn-out, one of the effects I noticed was that it was harder to concentrate, and especially tricky trying to focus on many things at once. I’d try to multitask, only to realise that all tasks suffered from lack of capacity to complete any one of them. The challenge is that the habit of always doing many things at once goes deep, and when I tried to focus on just one thing, I found that it was actually really difficult.  As I did a little google search on the matter, I found it seems like multitasking isn’t as healthy as once thought, and that it doesn’t help productivity. Some even referred to it as “switch tasking”, in the sense that the brain isn’t doing many things at once, but shifting rapidly...
Read more

Walking through December: overcoming the challenge of language.

I just got done leading a Bible study in Spanish without a translation back-up, and it went really well. I am amazed at what we are actually able to do when we have no other option. It wasn’t a flawless flow of communication (that would have been a miracle), but together we figured out what I wanted to say. And I think it was good. I was blessed and they seemed blessed as well. The girls just left and I am sat here in my living room with the candles lit. It’s windy and rainy outside, and I am smiling. Happy. Not because I overcame the language challenge, but happy because of yet another beautiful time of bringing more of Jesus to the girls in our Bible study. I am thankful for the privilege of knowing them and standing with them in their journeys of knowing Jesus. And thankful that even when language is shaky, love is stronger and is communicated beyond mere words.
Read more