Lost and Found in the High Uintahs

My favorite time of the year is the fall. It's just after the summer and the colors start to change from greens into brilliant reds, oranges and yellows. The breeze brings the first chills of the upcoming winter as the powerful elk bugles echo through the mountains. I love the beauties that can be seen and heard all around, but the fall season for my family is also time for hunting. It's a family tradition to hunt and something that always has brought my family together.

A couple of years ago my father and I were hunting in the Uintah Mountains in northeastern Utah when I got very lost and got very cold. I'd like to share the story of losing my way in the mountains, but eventually being found.

My father and I awoke very early one October morning to a couple of inches of snow. We prepared for the
day and jumped into my dad's truck excitedly as we began to ascend up into the mountains. It was snowing like crazy. We could barely see the road in front of us. Both of us knew that it was going to be a cold one, but that didn't stop us.

As we reached the end of a road and began to hike a faint glow could be seen above and we knew that the sun was trying to come up, but the blizzard was still raging. We began hiking and were doing okay. The trail that we were following was normally a difficult one to notice amongst all the rocks and fallen trees, but with the added difficulty of spotting it with almost a foot of fresh snow, it almost made it impossible. So I tried to keep close to my father who knew the way, but with the wind and snow blowing in our faces I got separated from my dad and lost my way.

We were attempting to make it to a beautiful park on top of a mountain so I decided to continue to climb up and wasn't afraid. As I went I got more and more lost. I eventually found a mountain peak that I was hoping to be able to pear off of and see some familiar landmarks. The snow was too difficult to see through. So I continued to walk and got chillier and chillier. Then fear began to set in. Where was I? Which way did I need to go? It was then that I decided to pray. After my prayer I thought that I'd heard an elk bugle a few hundred yards away so I went to where I'd heard the sound. It led me to a clear cut in the trees where I waited for a while and got colder.

Then that was when my dad came walking in behind me. There was no one else that I would have rather seen. My dad knows his way in the mountains. Immediately I felt relieved. He built a fire despite the blizzard and frigid temperatures around us and we warmed up for a bit before we walked the miles back to the truck. This time I followed my dad as close as I could.

We made it home safely and I sure was grateful for my father. I was also very thankful for my Heavenly Father and his answer to my prayer.

Just as I was lost and felt hopeless, many get lost in life and feel downtrodden and alone. Sometimes as people we look for happiness in all the wrong places and want more, but don't know where to find it. Whatever our walk in life may be, no matter how lost we feel, we need to remember that we have a Father in Heaven who loves us. We are His sons and daughters and He has great things in store for us. We have an amazing tool to communicate with him called prayer. The creator of the universe who is all powerful and has many children always has time for each and every one of us. In fact, he wants us to come to Him and communicate with Him often. He's given us commandments to keep us happy and safe. He loves us so much that He sent his perfect son Jesus Christ to suffer and die for us so that we could return to Him. He has called prophets to lead and guide us. He's given us holy scriptures, the Book of Mormon and the Bible to read His words. If you're feeling lost, alone, or have no one to talk to, then pray. Give it a try. He will answer your prayer.
Thanks for Reading!