I Thought I Was Going Camping

By Andrew Fitchett

We packed up Friday and headed out to Uwharrie National Forest near Troy, NC for a weekend of camping and Jeeping. Caleb had a busy day helping to pack the jeep, going to Walmart for last minute supplies, etc. so he promptly conked out on me before we even got out of town. We got to the Outpost (only store in the area) at Uwharrie around 1730 hrs and met up with 3 other Jeepers that were going to be jeeping with us, and went to find our camping spot. The others wanted to camp right by the rock road that connects the trails to the hard top, but Caleb and I opted for a more secluded spot off Daniel, (which is considered by all to be the hardest at Uwharrie and feared by all). We were quite happy with our choice in spots. Saturday, we woke up to a beautiful sunrise and commenced to getting ready to go back to the Outpost to collect my friend Peter and his son, Christian. We jeeped all afternoon, then went to Badin Lake for a swim and a bath. We then went back to camp and proceeded to cook a wonderful supper and enjoy the cool air, brilliant moonlight, and warm fire. Peter and I figured out the price of Freedom, Its the cost of the Jeep plus modifications and gas. We swam, we ate, we slept, we fished; what an incredible weekend.

Get out your paper and pen, school is in session: All weekend long, I heard “Just like my Daddy”, “…Like you Dad?”, “You taught me that”, “…my Daddy taught me”. These statements were coming from my 5 year old! It hit me like a ton of bricks, my son WANTS to be like me! I puffed up for maybe .5 seconds before reality set in; My son was learning what to do, how to be, what to say, how to feel, etc. JUST LIKE ME! Humility immediately followed and I finally had an inkling of an idea, what an awesome, amazing responsibility my Lord has given me, as a father. I can choose to tell my son to “Follow me” or I can choose to borrow Paul’s words and tell my son to “Follow me as I follow Christ.” Then I prayed THIS prayer for myself AND my son, “Lord, thank You for Your MERCY for all the things I have done and have not done that did not honor You. Thank You for GRACE for all the mistakes I will make as I try to follow You. And thank You for HOPE and FAITH to know that through You, ALL things are possible. Help me to show and teach my son these principles.”

Thank you Lord for a wonderful lesson! Class dismissed.