The Catmulls: Should have been a Pioneer??

This July Shawn and I were give the opportunity to be Ma and Pa to a family of kids on trek. Now that it is over, I can say that it was a sweet, sweet experience.

We went to Deseret Land and Livestock in Wyoming. I have to say it was beautiful there, far prettier than I expected. I felt like I was out on the prairie, minus the honey buckets of course.

The first day we were divided up into families. Shawn and I had ten kids in our family. Tacey Woods, Andrea Kirk, Kara Barton, Rebecca Wheatley, Jessica Hall, Chloe Sumsion, Zach Muir, Justin Beard, Corbin Walker, and Garrett Van Amen. I absolutely loved each one of them. They are such good kids, and hard workers, we did really well together.

I was suprised to find out on the first day that those carts were a lot heavier than I expected. It was hard work getting it up and down hills. My favorite spot was walking in back of the cart with Shawn watching our kids work and listening to the group of priests behind us singing. We walked six miles the first day, with a really steep hill at the end that introduced us to the joys of pulling and pushing a handcart. When we got to camp there was a down pour as we tried to put up our tents. After we put up our tents we entertained ourselves with a stick pull tournament.
Julie v. Me...poor girl didn't stand a chance...

Shawn v. Dane Bartholomew...Shawn barely pulled that one off....

After dinner we had a hoe down which was a lot of fun and completely wore us out! We of course slept terribly listening to kids giggle and laugh into the wee hours of the morning. Up early the next day it all began again.

The second day was a challenging day. I think we walked somewhere between twelve and thirteen miles. It was hot and dusty and really just miserable. Blisters started to appear and we began to feel a little what it was like to be a pioneer. Before we entered camp that day there was a vignette reenacting a true pioneer story of a woman whose baby had died. She didn't want to leave her baby there where the wolves would devour it as soon as they left. It was a very emotional dramatization. Her husband finally took the baby from her and and left it near a bush on the trail. The woman was sobbing as they walked away. I was so emotional after watching that, and with the tiredness of the day, I literally was on the verge of tears until I finally went to sleep. When we reached camp that evening Shawn and I were exhausted. While we were putting our tents up a big gust of wind camp up and knocked them over. It was almost dark by the time we finished getting camp set up that night, and we were ready for bed.

The next morning the kids were awaken with news of a search party. The woman who had left her baby had gone missing and they were gathering the company to go and to find her. As we gathered by the water tower She came through the meadow holding her baby. It was one of the true miracles of the trail. The baby was still alive. Miracles like this happened all of the time on the trail. The spirit was strong as she and her husband rejoiced over the miracle of their baby.

This was a start to a very spiritual day. My favorite day on trek. As the companies were lined up ready to head out, someone came and took Corbin from our company, informing us that he had died during the night. It was sad to watch him go. We were especially worried because the rocky ridge climb was that morning and Corbin was a good puller. As we started our ascent to Rocky Ridge, we were pulled aside into a meadow where the missionaries there told us the miraculous and sad stories of the sacrifices that were made as the pioneers climbed Rocky Ridge. They told us of Bodil Mortensen who was there without her family, traveling with another family, helping with their children who climbed the hill, made it to camp, was sent to look for firewood, and died with the sagebrush still in her hand. She was only nine years old. Or of eleven year old James who carried his five year old brother up the hill and then died when he got to camp. The stories of the pioneer's sacrifices are so humbling. The spirit of the pioneers was so strong on Trek. I felt them with us there. Everytime a story was told, or a song was sung I could feel their spirit there with us.
After the stories we began our ascent of Rocky Ridge. We trekked in silence as hymns played around us. Along the trail there were tempters, telling us we couldn't make it, that we should turn back. When we got to the middle of the hill, Corbin rejoined our group. But just as he did a man appeared calling all of the men to serve missions. It was time for the women's pull. As Shawn left me I felt a little how those pioneer women must have felt as their husbands left them for years at a time to go and to share the gospel. I gathered my girls together and we said a prayer for strength to make it up the steep hill in front of us. As we finished our prayer and took our places on the handcart my sweet girls began singing "As Sister's in Zion". The tears flowed freely through the company as we sang the words to this song. It was a special moment that I hope I won't forget. The spirit was strong as we began our scent up the hill. It was a hard pull, and my girls were wonderful! As we came to the steepest part of the hill, the boys were at the top singing "The Spirit of God" We learned later that as they waited at the top of the hill they had gathered in a circle to pray for the girls. We felt the Lord's spirit and His strength as we climbed. When we reached the top there were tears and hugs and then we met together to hear Sister Beard speak about "Safety for the Soul". Being apart from Shawn for just that small moment, helped me to realize that he is safety for my soul. The world is a scary place, and he makes it safer for me.

After the women's pull, we had a fun time walking downhill to our lunch spot. We laughed and sang and enjoyed the spirit that we had felt that day. When we made it to lunch the Bishop gave a great devotional on the Book of Mormon and President Holland's talk "Safety for the Soul". He is a wonderful Bishop who cares so much for the youth. After lunch it was just a short jaunt to our last camp. The women in the stake were waiting there for us to wash our hair. Best trek moment by far. I didn't think a pitcher of cool water poured on my head could feel so good. We spent hours that night sitting on our buckets talking as a family. It was a great evening. After dinner was a long stake testimony meeting followed by an even longer night of laughing, giggling, teenagers. I'm not sure what time we finally fell asleep but it was late. The kids had a great time. The next morning a short walk was welcome as we left camp for our cars, some juicy watermelon afterwards and we were homeward bound to care for our dirty bodies, and sore feet. A shower, a real toilet, and clean clothes never felt so good.

The family ready to go...still enthusiastic....with no idea what was in front of us!