Article August 15, 2011 Issue

The buffalo and the rainbow

By Linda Clifford

It was my first experience on a mountain bike, and it was proving to be a great adventure. 

Over the course of two hours on this group trip, I had let go of a lot of fear—fear that I didn’t have the strength to finish the course, fear that I wouldn’t be able to keep up with the others, fear that I might fall—and was thoroughly enjoying the gorgeous surroundings.

On the way back down the mountain we’d been traversing, my ankle was struck by a rock that jutted out into the narrow trail. As I moved on and was concentrating on navigating the rest of the way, I didn’t realize how much my ankle hurt until I reached the parking lot and got off the bike. At that point, it was difficult for me to walk, as my ankle had swollen to twice its normal size. With help from my daughters, I was able to get back to the lodge in time for dinner. After dinner, I asked to have some quiet time to pray, and my daughters helped me over to a pine tree next to a pond.