THE PILGRIM

There was a man who set out to climb a mountain. He didn’t have much gear besides a rope and a good pair of hiking boots. No canteen, dry goods or compass for this pilgrim. All he knew was that he had to climb to the top of the mountain. And, what he lacked in resources, he made up for in determination and his record of good health.

He began the four hour climb at a robust pace and hoped to reach the peak by noon. Along the way, he was surprised by how few others he saw on the well-worn path to the top. He found some blueberries to snack on and, later, a trickle of water coming out of a rock face quenched his thirst. He jumped over a large crevice that marked the halfway point in his ascent. He wished he had brought his camera. The view from the mountain top would be spectacular at midday.

As the path became steeper, his breathing became laboured and he began thinking in terms of how far, not how fast. His pace slowed. He knew something was amiss.

He thought to himself, “Did I eat some bad fruit? Was that water contaminated? I’m supposed to be the ironman!”

Suddenly, time stood still. He espied his worst nightmare…a black bear. Like a panzer tank, it moved slowly and purposely up the mountain face toward the pilgrim’s location. Panic and despair turned to frustration as the man tried to recall whether it was best to play dead or stand tall in the face of an imminent bear attack. His wobbly legs signaled that his best option was to hit the ground.

He lay motionless for what seemed like hours. He prayed a lot, at first the rote prayers he had learned as a child, then some prayers from his heart. He dared not peek to see how close the bear was. He thought about family and friends and mourned the fact he might never see them again.

“This was no way to go out of this life,” he whispered to himself. Slowly, he rose from his hiding place and peered down at the mountainside. The bear was nowhere in sight. He’d been spared. Then, as his eyes adjusted to the light, he could see them…the hundreds of people who covered the hillside. Where had they come from? Indeed, they must have scared the bear off. Why had he not seen or heard them before?

Some of the people climbed ahead of him taking paths he hadn’t noticed. A bearded middle aged man with shoulder length hair passed to his right and for a brief moment, the pilgrim felt the urge to follow him. Everyone was headed for the summit.

His breathing returning to normal, the pilgrim resumed his journey filled with a spirit of gratitude for his deliverance. However, instead of moving ahead, he felt drawn to retrace his steps to the crevice below. As he approached the gap in the rock, he could hear an old man calling for help.

“Hold on friend. I’ve got a rope here to help get you out,” the pilgrim offered. Before long, he had pulled the man to safety.

“Here, take my boots. It looks like they might fit you,” added the rescuer wondering why he hadn’t noticed the trapped man on his original ascent.

A few hours later, as the pilgrim neared the summit, he was grateful to have climbed so easily without his boots as the terrain seemed less rocky at the higher elevation. He had intended to look down on the mountainside to take in the view. Much to his surprise however, his eyes gazed skyward to the towering range of mountains in the distance, each dotted with thousands of ant-like specks.

“And I thought this was the only mountain around,” he chuckled to himself. The pilgrim was humbled by the majesty of the panoramic scene before him.

Then his eyes narrowed and his vision momentarily became hawk-like. To his astonishment, he realized that the ant-like specks were actually people. He watched intently as one grouping ascended the tallest mountain to the right of his vantage point; most moved in twos and threes supporting each other as they went. A band of children appeared to be laughing as they played an echo game. Further up the mountain, he observed another cluster of people. Some were wearing dark tinted glasses and didn’t seem to notice the bears ahead. A few were manacled to boxes of gold and silver while one person appeared to wander right off the edge of the mountain into the abyss below.

Though the sun was now hidden by clouds, the pilgrim noticed that every person had a shadow, a lithe translucent presence accompanying him or her along a path to the mountain top. He understood.

Barefoot and hungry, the pilgrim felt at peace. He was still afraid of the bears. But he knew that if one did return, he wouldn’t be facing it alone. And so, he continued his climb.

I want to scale the utmost height

And catch a gleam of glory bright

But still I’ll pray, till the summit I’ve found

Lord, lead me on to higher ground!

James Spurgeon