On Top of the World

and literally it felt like that....I spent a few days skiing at Whistler last week - there's a run out there called "7th Heaven" and we wondered if this is what heaven could be like or what we would want heaven to be like. Not a cloud in the sky, perfect snow conditions and wonderful friends to share the experience with, what more could you ask for? The only problem was that thousands of others wanted to share this experience with us - it was President's Day in the US and many Canadian students had a reading break. Who says that BC doesn't have beautiful weather? We had temperatures of +17 there and came home to -17 last evening on the way home from the airport. On one of mornings the group decided we should do the "Peak to Creek" run which goes right from the peak of Whistler to the bottom - a mere 11 km. run - an excellent workout for the legs - will this get them in shape for cycling, we'll find that out next week. We took our time coming down enjoying the panoramic view all around us - what an awesome God we have who created this majestic scenery for us to enjoy. We were able to eat lunch outdoors each day - a real treat for us from Ontario who have loads of snow to deal with yet. Skiing is so much easier than cycling - no gears to change, there is only one way to go and that is down. Going up the hill is easy - you sit in a chair and don't have to work at it at all.

Now the serious training has to begin - Florida here we come.....no snow or ice on the roads and hopefully no heavy traffic either. My bike is there waiting for me, I bought a new helmet today and our clothes are packed - we are ready. We are leaving a few days later than originally planned -a friend from church was tragically killed in a work related accident late Thursday and we want to be able to support his wife at the funeral service - shows us again how fragile life is and how it can change instantly.

British Columbia is getting ready for the 2010 Olympics and has erected this beautiful Inukshuk at the top of Whistler - it's visible for miles (km) and is a excellent place to meet up with others. I picked up a piece of paper describing what the symbolism of Inukshuk is - it's an Inuit word meaning "in the image of man" and they are/were built for a variety of purposes. It can serve as a guide post in a barren landscape - a silent messenger showing the correct place. It can also symbolize the value of friendship and can remind us that we are not alone on our journey - others too have walked this path. Probably not sound theology but irregardless it's a unique monument on top of the world.