Verso L'alto (Toward the top)

In the bible, there are stories of Jesus climbing to the top of mountains with his disciples so they can pray. Usually, it took them most of the day to climb up to the top, and then back down again after they had prayed. In Lawton, OK are some of the oldest range of mountains in the whole United States. The mountains have a similar region to those in Jerusalem, because of this, there is a nearby replica of the holy land, called the "Holy City" which is man made city depicting Jerusalem. So, yesterday I had the chance to climb up these mountains to experience a little bit of what it was like for Jesus and his disciples at the time. These mountains have huge rock faces that we had to climb up and over, sometimes under caves, or through brush, even jumping from one rock to another with a 30-50 foot drop beneath you. We were on our hands and knees pulling ourselves up, jumping from one rock to the next, even up and over rock walls. As my friends and I were climbing, the air started to get thinner, and by the time we knew it we were sucking wind and out of breathe. The only thing that kept us moving was because one, the adventure and excitement, and two, well, as Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati once said, "The higher we go, the better we shall hear the voice of Christ." So as I was climbing I tried to imagine Jesus in front of me leading me to the top. I tried to picture him climbing these huge rock faces, using all-fours and then turning around to help up his disciples if they had lost their footing. The whole time we were climbing, we had to use tactful skills of balance, hand-eye coordination, strength, and then jump. When we got to the top, I remember looking out for miles and seeing nothing but the region of rocks, nearby waters, and even more mountains! It was breathtaking, and exciting to see and realize once again that God created this. The thought of being on top of a mountain, made me feel the presence of God there with us. It was amazing. The three of us sat there on top of the mountain looking out, we prayed a rosary there in honor of God and all that he had done for us. For Blessed Pier Giorgio for being our inspiration and finally the Virgin Mary for being our great model of love, compassion and obedience.