“on the lake”
Luke 8:23
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We had some fun adventures on our vacation in Lake Tahoe this year. Like hiking the Eagle Falls Trail…
enjoying a picnic lunch that we shared with a couple of ducks…
and meeting this sweet girl.
We also went pedal boating on Lake Tahoe. It was a fun hour of looking at the amazing views in every direction, enjoying the breeze and the sun and one another’s company.
My sweetie and I sat in the back of our little craft, and the kids sat in the front two seats, and this was based on nothing in particular. I was the first one to get in, and I chose the left rear seat mostly because it was the seat I could get to the easiest, and I didn’t want to get my shoes wet climbing in or out. I don’t know how the others chose their seats; I was too busy trying to get my hat to stay on my head in the very strong breeze.
So, based on that position, I ended up doing most of the steering. The tiller was in the center of the back seat, and for my hubby to steer he would have to use his left hand. He did at first, and was fine with it, but after about ten minutes, I took over. It just seemed easier that way.
Steering a boat, if you don’t know, is tricky. Even a little pedal boat. Even though there is no tide in a lake, Lake Tahoe is a big, busy lake, with a lot of boats causing a lot of waves. In addition, the wind was doing its part, and even if we weren’t pedaling, our boat was moving. So we’d sit and talk and enjoy the experience, but then we’d have to move away from the shore and back in the direction we came from, so we didn’t get too far away. It required correcting our course, followed by the inevitable overcorrection, and then re-correction. I had to constantly have a reference point, as the feeling that being on water gives you is deceptive.
After awhile I realized that the best way to keep from having to correct my overcorrections was to keeping the tiller moving almost constantly, every time we pedaled. I couldn’t just hold it still and expect to stay in one place. So I worked it slightly left and slightly right, back and forth, and the boat kept in a pretty much straight-forward direction.
The other thing that was important to realize was that everyone needed to work together. I could push and pull the tiller all I wanted, but I needed their cooperation if the boat was going to move. I also needed my husband to keep clarifying the difference between a tiller and a rudder, but that’s beside the point.
Life lessons from a pedal boat? First, you’re going to need to correct your course. Frequently. Selfish desires and the temptations of the world push and pull us in directions we know we don’t want to go. Have His Word as your reference point, and keep pointing yourself in the right direction.
Secondly, cooperate. God has put people in your life, and you in theirs, for a reason. Encourage, support, and depend on each other.
And don’t forget to enjoy the view.
Light Expectations 