Travel Log: 29 June 2012

I was not exaggerating. 8AM. This was where we were. The Three throwing rocks, building dams, trying to spear minnows, making foot spas, etc, and I was reading. Josh; however, was off on a biking adventure. His plan was to ride his bike from Grand Marais, MN to Thunder Bay, Canada (over 80ish miles away). We were then planning to meet him there for a late lunch. We stayed right in this spot until it was time for us to leave, 4 hours later. No joke. 4 hours. One spot.

We really didn't want to leave, but we drug ourselves away at the last minute and drove to Thunder Bay in order to meet Josh at Prince Arthur's Landing at Marina Park. Prince Arthur's Landing ended up being more wonderful than we planned offering a splash pad area, sweet skateboard park, beautiful public art throughout, and a marina teemng with ocean-sized sailboats for "ooh's" and "aah's."

It was while admiring the sailboats that a random woman approached us. 

We had set up our camera for a goofy self portrait when a woman asked if she could also take our photo but with her camera. She said she was trying to get back into the photography business, was going to be taking some family photos in the near future, and wanted to take our portrait with the current lighting for her research. It sounds like a legit situation, but I couldn't help but feel weird about the personal questions she was asking us and how she seemed like she was tailing us around the marina and how to seemed she like she followed us to our car and... it was very un-nerving. 

And then, my over-active imagination kicked in... 

What if she was taking our license plate and planning to have us arrested for something we said or did while she was tailing us and she isn't a photographer but works for the Canadian Mounties and actually followed us to lunch and is going to be waiting for us when we leave the pub to arrest us or she is going to follow us back to the US and, and, and... holy moly! I am ridiculous!

I'd like to think this is the only time I've let my imagination get the best of me, but it isn't. Goodness, it just happened last weekend...

It was Saturday night, 11:30pm, freezing cold and windy out, we had literally just arrived home, walked into our house, and were hanging out in our basement with the kids when a ring came from our front doorbell. I went to the door and turned on the light to see a young woman, maybe 25-28 years old, with a carry-on luggage bag saying through tears, "I'm lost." 

I immediately responded, "Oh, sweetie, you're safe now!" As I pulled her into our house, I hugged her tightly, as she hugged me just as tightly in return.

We welcomed her into our home, feed her tea, helped find a hotel for her to stay in, and drove her to the hotel. She was incredibly thankful and appreciative for all we did and seemed hopeful for being on the right path for the night. 

As soon as Josh left to take her to the hotel, my over-active imagination went into over-drive. 

Wait, did she say she was walking around for an hour and a half? She didn't feel as cold as someone should for such a night when I hugged her. Wait, we had our various electronic devices sitting around the house, right in front of her. What if she was scoping our house to rob it later? Wait, her footprints started from the right? Maybe she was dropped off by someone to the front door in order to confirm that the house was empty and her counterpart was actually going to the back and we happened to slip in the house between the timing. Wait, did the map of where she showed me where she was going to look like she was starting from exactly in front of our house? She was probably scoping out our house all night!...

Even though I got my imagination under control that night, a few days later...

Oh no! We all left the house at the same time to go see a movie, maybe she's come back and they have been waiting for us to leave this whole time... THEY'RE ROBBING US RIGHT NOW!!!!! ... Holy moly! Make it stop! I am ridiculous! Oy!

It's always at such times that I go back to one of the first verses I had the kids memorize, "Fear of man proves to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe." While that doesn't mean to me just because I trust in the Lord bad things will never happen, it does remind me that overall, no matter what, I shouldn't be fearful of what man can do to me here on this earth.

Thankfully, last Saturday, just like back in ole Canada, the truth overcame my over-active imagination and soon enough, we were back to our spot on the shore, throwing rocks, buildings dams, making foot baths, etc, and I was reading until the sun gave out. We stayed right in this spot until it was time for us to go inside for a late night dinner, 4 hours later. No joke. 4 hours. The same one spot.

NEXT STORY...