To hike the PCT in one season requires a hiker to average 15 miles a day. So far Jerry and I are averaging only 11. Granted, we are less than three weeks in and are still developing our trail legs, but we have a long way to go. Jerry walks faster than me, a fact that has earned him the Trail Name of Strider. I can’t keep up. In fact, it seems like almost everyone walks faster than me. The young bucks and lasses skip up the trail like it was a speed bump on the highway to whatever destination they are seeking. Then they bound down the descents at breakneck speeds. Oh to be young and reckless again.

I am finding it easier to power up the hills but my 66 year old knees and ankles can’t take the punishing impact of the steep declines with the weight of my pack on my back. So I gingerly pick my path and gently lower myself over obstacles. I would rather go uphill than down.

The Bible says it is not good to compare yourselves among yourselves. Everyone goes through life at a different pace. The PCT is not a race. Life is not a race. Find your stride and walk the path God has given you. The race goes not to the swift but to the faithful.