I returned home to Washington and re-entered the life I had left behind. It felt good to be home, but I came home a different person. As I reflected, I began to think about the different ways that the Lord had used the trip to change me. In April, months before I had taken the trip, I had prayed that the Lord would take me to the next level in my walk with Him. I realized that he used the Boundary Waters trip to accomplish just that in my life.

First, and most importantly, the Boundary Waters trip strengthened my faith in God in an amazing way. I experienced the beauty of His creation in a way that I have never experienced it before, up close and personal. I saw the pine trees standing on shore, each of them pointing upwards in praise to their Creator, the lakes responding to His voice, and the storms parting at His will. I learned to love the wilderness. There, cut off from all civilization, I experienced God in a way that I never have before. As I endured the high and low points of the trip, the Lord gave me a great reliance and trust in Him. As I looked across Ester Lake in the rain and prayed to God to relieve the burden of my heart, I drew closer to Him as I leaned on him for strength and joy.

I had struggled with fear since my childhood. I think my parents were amazed that I wanted to go to the Boundary Waters for that reason. I still remember talking to my dad before I left. "I'm really proud of you, Joe," he had told me. "Ten years ago, I never would have dreamed that you wanted to take a trip like this. You had the most irrational fears then, and now you're going on a trip to the Boundary Waters. This really speaks volumes to me about your maturity." His words really touched me, and he was right. When I returned from the canoe trip, I realized that, for the first time in seventeen years of life, I was completely free from fear. As I endured the storms and the rugged unpredictability of the wilderness, the Lord purged my life from this stronghold that had troubled me for years.

I came home with more strength and endurance. Hauling the packs, bear barrels, and (not to be forgotten) the canoes had given me physical and mental strength, and perseverance to finish a task. The canoe trip was one of the most physically exerting experiences I have ever taken. By the grace of God, I was able to overcome the difficulties and obstacles. I learned that difficulties are not to be avoided, but rather are to be encountered and used to make you a stronger, more faith-filled person.

I learned that your attitude should transcend your circumstances and not be subject to them. One old wilderness guide said it well when he said, "Remember, no matter how cold and wet you are, you're always warm and dry." A whole way of life is embodied in that statement, a way of life that embraces difficulty with a smile, knowing that with God's help anything can be overcome with joy.

On a deeper level, this trip taught me what it meant to be a man, especially through watching Mike and Jared. In Jared, I saw an example of a man who stepped up to the plate and did his duty, even when it was difficult. Although he probably worked harder than anyone on the trip, he never spoke a negative word and was the emotional rock that many of us leaned on. I learned that men take responsibility and do it even when it's hard. In Mike, I saw an incredible respect and love for his father. Like Jared, Mike never let on about how he was feeling, so I did not learn until after the trip how much he had really suffered. Despite his migraine on the second day and his concerns for our safety, he drove onward to honor his father, who really wanted this trip. In doing so, he gained my admiration and respect. Watching Mike, I also saw that being a protector is a big (and often difficult) responsibility. I admire him for executing this role so well. Someday, I will do the same for my own family.

Furthermore, the trip gave me a closer relationship with all those who had gone with me. On this trip, I got to know Mike, Becky, Ryan, Rachel, Amy, and Jared in a special way. I watched them endure the same things I went through. I saw their ups and downs, their highs and lows. I learned new things about each of them. I watched as our family group merged into a unified whole, into a team that paddled together against the wind, carried our gear over the portages together, set up and tore down our camp together, made and cleaned up our meals together, and built up each other with encouragement, grace, and love.

This trip drew me closer to my brother Jesse as well. By bringing him along. I showed him how much I believed in him and how much I wanted him to grow to be a man of strength and character. I saw Jesse grow in amazing ways as he faithfully carried out his responsibilities, remained tough and undaunted through adversity, and learned to love the wilderness like Grandpa and I. I look forward to many future trips with him, and with my other brothers as well, and I'm glad that I can share these memories of Grandpa with him.

As a result of the trip, I also grew closer to my grandfather. I thank God that he preserved Grandpa through several major health crises and kept him in good shape so that I could experience his favorite place in the world with him. I am so grateful for the incredible investment that he made in me and in the rest of us. I consider myself greatly blessed to have known him and am honored to call him my best friend. Through this experience, Grandpa passed the wilderness bug down to me, and I’ll never lose it. He has passed down a lot more than that to me, though. Grandpa has given me a desire to invest in other people, whether that means an encouraging word or a large financial expenditure like the Boundary Waters trip. He has also given me a powerful example of a life touched by the Spirit of God.

I long to go back to the Boundary Waters; once again to feel a paddle in my hand, to dip it into the water and pull it back towards me, once again to smell the fresh air after the rain, once again to sit by a crackling fire as the crickets begin their chirping in the woods behind me, once again to carry a Duluth pack over a rough and rocky portage. I long to ride the waves again, to watch the sun descend towards the western horizon, and to hold up a beautiful fish in the cool hours of the morning. I am haunted by the calling of the loons. Their laughter still echoes in my mind, and I again feel the joy that their voices brought to my soul.

Yes, I long to return to the place where the loons never left us. I long to return to the place where the Lord never left us. But most of all, I long to return to the place that will forever remind me of my grandpa, who has impacted my life in an amazing way.

And those memories, like the loons and the Lord, will never leave me.