When the sun shines...

If you are in the outdoors often enough or long enough, it will happen.  The clouds will gather overhead and the rain will fall, sometimes by the bucket full!  In those moments, (hopefully you are prepared) everything begins to get wet. The humidity gets in all the enclosed spaces, in your shelter, tent, hammock, sleeping bag etc.  Only those items that are actually sealed in waterproof bags or containers will escape natures liquid onslaught.  Even your high-dollar Goretex jacket and pants, your rain hat or your poncho will get wet on the outside and begin to dampen on the inside either from sweat or just the humidity of your body trapped between the layers.

But then, something wonderful occurs!  The clouds part and the sun begins to shine.  It may be for just a few minutes, or it could be for the next few hours or even for the next few days.  What you do in those moments is incredibly important to your well-being, your health and the life of your gear.  It affects your ability to stay in the outdoors and continue to function as well as to enjoy your experience.

If your fire has gone out, this is an excellent time to begin to gather the now wet wood and begin the process of drying it out.  Laying it on a black plastic garbage bag in the sun will greatly speed up this process.  After sufficient drying time, you can even use a magnifying lens to get the fire re-started as this type of fire starter never wears out. Then when night falls, you will already have a sufficient bed of coals to cook your food, boil your water and cook your meal, as well as being able to build up the fire sufficiently for the night.  If you wait until nightfall to gather and build the fire, even the small twigs will still be rather damp and it will require you to use up resources like a lighter, or matches or even your Ferro rod.

You should also take this time to dry out the rest of your equipment and gear.  Use some extra cordage and hang a clothes line, (try not to drape your items over wet foliage as this will take much longer to dry) and hang your wet rain items as well as any damp items such as your sleeping bag (unzipped and turned inside out) facing the sun and check it periodically turning it over so that each side is sufficiently dried out.  This is also a good time to collect rainwater that has collected on the top of your tarp etc. for drinking as it doesn’t have to be purified. (You may want to use a clean sock or handkerchief to filter out sticks, leaves and debris before putting it in your water containers.) This is assuming of course that you are in an area that is not having acid rain or next to a power plant or pollution from a large city that would taint the water falling from the air.

This is also a good time to reflect on how fortunate you are to be in the outdoors.  Many are stuck at their job in tiny cubicles where they cannot even see the sun or feel the rain on their skin.  You are blessed to in the environment that God created for His children to enjoy.  So take advantage of it.

Spiritually speaking, we all endure the storms of life from time to time and when it is over, we emerge from our shelters a little bedraggled and looking worse for the wear.  But the storms do not last forever and the sun will shine again.  So no matter what has happened in your life, when the sun shines again and you sense the smile of God’s approval on your life and once again you feel the warmth of His love, go out and enjoy it!  Hang your problems out to dry on the clothesline of His Grace and go about the business of living your life with joy and gladness.  Why not let the power and warmth of the Son light up your life today!

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Thanks for reading!

James B