The stand by flights from San Antonio, Texas through Salt Lake City, Utah to Tucson, Arizona went without problem and an Uber ride took us the rest of the way to Oro Valley and the Wyndham Rancho Vistoso Resort.Nestled between two mountain ranges, the resort, on the desert floor, was lovely. We had never stayed in the desert before and found it to be starkly beautiful and the ideal place for hiking. We visited Honey Bee Canyon and the Sabino Canyon National Park. Both were outstanding but Sabino was unreal. Our TWO WEEKS in the Sonoran desert were unique and most enjoyable. Even the trail, in the wash, behind the resort provided surprises with rabbits, quail, deer, and Javelina sharing our hiking space.
REFLECTIONS
The Saguaro cactus is exclusive to the Sonoran desert. These huge cacti can grow to be 70 feet tall and weigh many tons. Their "arms" stretch toward the sky, as if in praise to their creator, and they make the desert landscape come alive with shapes and color. They climb the canyon walls, sometimes, seemingly, rooted in the rocks and boulders that abound.
Sometimes we, also, are forced to grow in rough spots,in less than favorable situations. Might we, like the Saguaro, take root where we are and, with arms stretched high, provide a reminder to those who might pass by that we can make a difference to the landscape around us. Might we, in the canyons and stark places in our lives, always be people of praise. One thing, however, I didn't like about the Saguaro was that they always held you at "arms" length. You can't put your arm around them without feeling pain. As I heard a native hiker tell his hiking companion from "up north"; "You can look but don't touch!"Therefore, might we, while trying to bring the beauty of Christ to those who pass by, never be so "prickly" that they feel kept at arms length. Let us reach both up to Him and out to others.
Be blessed, bloom where you are planted, and remember that the best is yet to come.
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