I came across a great life metaphor this week.
John Muir was an explorer extraordinaire. I like the way Eugene Peterson describes Muir, “He tramped up and down through our God-created wonders, from the California Sierras to the Alaskan glaciers, observing, reporting, praising, and experiencing–entering into whatever he found with childlike delight and mature reverence.”
In 1874, Muir was staying at a friend’s cabin in the Sierra Mountains. A storm set in one December day. It was a fierce storm–trees were bending over backwards. Instead of retreating to the safety and security of the cabin, Muir left the cabin and entered the storm. He found a mountain ridge and climbed to the top of a giant Douglas Fir. He held on for dear life “expereincing the kaleidoscope of color and sound, scent and motion.” Muir rode out the storm “relishing weather: taking it all in–its rich sensuality, its primal energy.”
Peterson interprets the Muir metaphor this way. “The story of John Muir, storm-whipped at the top of the Douglas Fir in the Yuba River valley” is an “icon of Christian spirituality.” “A standing rebuke against becoming a mere spectator to life, preferring creature comfort to Creator confrontation.”
Climb the tree!