Reaching new heights with the TRM Youth

On Saturday, October 3rd, a group of youth from the Tacoma Rescue Mission chose to participate in a climbing trip hosted by volunteers from Peak 7, a non-profit adventure company, in the beautifully scenic town of North Bend, WA. The sun was out, and the day was beautiful, but we never would have guessed how chilly it was really going to be. Some of us shivered a bit. Some of us stood near one another, consolidating what bodily warmth we could muster. Maybe some of us complained. Fortunately, our group was determined to try something new; we were determined to climb. We put on our gear, strapping on a safety harness, helmet, and climbing shoes, and then we took the twenty-minute hike up to our climbing destination. We soon realized, though, that we would have the opportunity to not only rock climb that day but also repel. Sounds easy--repelling means you go down from a rock or structure, and going down the rock should be easier than climbing up the rock, right?

But imagine this: you are standing on a bridge and you have to climb over a chain link fence, after which you are forced to face a 180-foot drop that ends with water, rocks, and a thick forest of trees. At this point, the only way you can make it from the fence to the bottom of the 180-foot drop is if you have trust. We had to trust our harness, the only thing connecting our bodies to the ropes from which we dangled. We had to trust the two ropes from which we repelled, the only things connecting our harness to the bridge. We had to trust ourselves; depending on how tightly we gripped the rope with our hand, we had control of how fast we repelled from the bridge. We had to trust David, a Peak 7 volunteer who was on top of the bridge, on the other end of the "backup" rope; he was there in case we lost control of our own rope and started falling too quickly. And we had to trust God, the one and only who possesses ultimate control over our lives. So it wasn't easy--kids looked over the fence at the 180-foot expanse between themselves and the ground and were quick to say,"No way! I can't do that!" Some said, "I'm too scared." It didn't take long for our bodies to get warmed by the adrenaline that pumped through our bodies once our adventure finally started. And even though we didn't all admit to experiencing fear and doubt, I'm sure we all shared feelings of insecurity regarding the unknown and the unexpected. Were we going to be okay? Could we overcome our fears, and could we all make it down? Wait to read the next post to find out...!