The Inundation of the Spring

THE INUNDATION of the Spring
Submerges every soul,
It sweeps the tenement away
But leaves the water whole.
In which the Soul, at first alarmed,
Seeks furtive for its shore,
But acclimated, gropes no more
For that Peninsular.
---Emily Dickinson

I might not really understand that poem, but yesterday was truly an inundated spring day. After working for almost eight hours scanning teacher/course evaluation forms, I really needed some exercise. Luckily I'm a member of the Coolest Ward Ever, and we had a hike planned to the Wind Caves up Logan Canyon just that very evening. So we went!

Now, if you're from around here at all, something might click into place at this point and you might ask, "But Beckie, how could you go hiking last night? Didn't it...rain last night?" To which I might reply, "Yes. But when has a little rain stopped a single's ward?" To which you might reply, "Dumb." But only if your name was Heidi Lamb.

Of all my roommates only Jenny came, the rest opting to stay clean and home. Yes, it was a little cloudy when we left, but hiking's always better when it's overcast. And the ward...well, it's only the first week of summer, but already this is looking to be my favorite summer ward EVER. So many people showed up, even with the threatening weather!

Anyway, so we carpooled up there and set off. I only brought a thin hoodie jacket, which I removed halfway up because the pace was brisk and it was quite warm. Then I put it back on at the top because the wind was brisk and the rain was quite cold. Within a space of three minutes it went from cool and clear to complete cloud surrounding us and hard, pelting rain.

The Wind Cave, by the way, was beautiful, though more likely formed from the receeding waters of Lake Bountiful than from wind itself, but hey, that's just what the sign said. It also told us to bring water bottles and wear sunscreen, and who ever liked that song anyway?

So we headed back down in the pouring rain. Jenny decided the mud made a "squooshing" sound. I asked her if squooshing was spelled with two 'o's or with one 'o' with an umlaut. Then we somehow started talking about zeugmas ("he ran track and for president") and sharing gross-out stories of dead and/or castrated animals - stories which I shall refrain from repeating here, or ever. It kept raining. We got wetter.

Well, you'll be happy to know I never slipped, nor did I see anyone else fall. We all made it down safely, although soaked to the bone from bukkits of rain. The weirdest was comparing the backs of our pant legs. Everyone was muddy but for some reason....mine were completely filthy. Soaking wet, and totally caked in dirt. It was awesome!

Bad news: for some dumb reason, I took my phone. One of the warning signs that you're overly cell phone dependent? Bringing it with you on a hike. You don't even get reception up there! But I had it, in my pocket the whole time. It, too, was wet, very wet. So if you know me and you're reading this and you haven't been able to reach me in some time...know that my phone is currently turned off and drying in a bag of rice. (My friend Lucas told me that's how to dry it out even faster...) I'll let you know if it works! If you don't hear from me in a few days, it probably didn't.