Unique Guests on the Redwood Canopy Tour
By Steve Brown, Redwood Canopy Tour Director
Over the course of the year we see many different guests on the canopy tour and of course they all are unique! Some folks are traveling the world, some are checking zip lining off their bucket list while others are using the zip tour to help conquer a fear of heights. A few weeks ago we had a woman call in to see if her two friends who were partially blind would be able to go on the canopy tour. Our office staff were great and let the guest know that we would do everything we could to make their tour possible. We were excited to make it possible for two partially blind friends to zip line together.
Their tour date arrived and Linda Williams and myself were ready to help our two guests through the course. We came up with a game plan and were excited to lead them, little did we know how wonderful they would be at ziping! I also forgot to mention that they only spoke Chinese so we had to use pantomime (limited success) and the international language of fun to communicate. Like all guests they participated in the ground school, and we saw they were comfortable in the harness and we felt confident in how they zipped so we took them out on course. We decided to let them to zip by themselves on the first zip which is nice and mellow. We then decided to tandem zip with them on the next two zip lines that are a bit faster and then have them on their own for the last three zips. Through the course of the tour they couldn’t stop smiling. What little conversation we had showed me how much they enjoyed their time on the canopy tour. I was so thrilled to have them zip with us, to see the joy on their faces as they zipped from tree to tree.
As I reflected back on the experience we offered these two young men, I am so proud and thankful that we had the opportunity to serve them. Serving is what we do at the canopy tour, we take people out for a unique experience, zipping through the redwoods, providing them an opportunity to connect with nature, each other and themselves. It makes me think of the way Jesus served those around him, whether in big or small ways he loved and served those around him everyday. Its a privilege to serve and while it may be fun, it is work and we do it for the Lord.
