One of the big drawbacks in my new obsession with mushroom hunting is the constant of new territory in the woods. So far I’ve been able to find my way back to the truck without major incident but there’s always a bit of anxiety whenever I push into a new section and lose sight of almost familiar landmarks. Last Wednesday night, the anxiety broached the boundaries of worry.

Randa and I had tried our hand at a night search. We arrived at our “spot” in the dusk when there was still plenty of light for walking the trail. After an hour of searching by flashlight, we’d found a couple of morels and decided to call it a night. I lead us easily back down the route that follows the descending ridge. Back down near the creek bottom, though, I missed a turn.

It wasn’t a big deal, really, I knew we were near the creek and the creek was near the parking lot. In just a few minutes, we were standing by the creek. Instead of having just two or three few steps down, though, we were on bank that stood fifteen feet above the water. A few more minutes of lateral approach and we found a place where we could get down and cross the creek.

In the darkness, in a section of the creek we’d never hiked and with a fading rechargeable battery, came the big question, “Left or right?” I was certain we needed to go to the right but Randa had a feeling we should go to the left. No reason, really, just a feeling. Going the wrong way, even for just five minutes, could leave us farther from the truck and without a light. My brain or her gut?

Over the years, I’ve seen that instinct for direction that Randa inherited from her dad prove itself over and over. It’s not superior observation or secret knowledge, just an instinct for knowing which way to go, even in a place where she’s never been before. So, we went left.

In less than a hundred feet, we rounded a bend in the creek and found the path that led directly to where the truck was parked. If we’d gone with my thinking, we would have ended up with a lot of extra walking and no small amount of frustration.

There are times in life when those of us so accustomed to the rule of reason may find it awkward and challenging to follow the leadings of a Spirit that cannot be seen or explained. But when we find that our following delivers us again and again, when we see over and over that listening to his leading brings about good that we could not have imagined, we learn to rely upon a compass unaffected by the spinnings of the world.

H. Arnett
4/28/10