14-251

Rain is coming, so Tortoise was determined to start early today!  He walked 3.51 miles with 117 feet climbed in 58:53 minutes.  The uphill half of the path averaged a 5.5 tortoise rating, and Tortoise burned 559 calories on today's effort.  If you click to continue reading, you will be rewarded not only with a map, but also with a thought from Carlos E. Asay which Josh will enjoy because he was the Salt Lake Temple president who gave him instruction when he took out his endowments, and Darin will find interesting because he uses Neil Armstrong's famous phrase to describe Joseph Smith's first Vision ...

Cheerio!

Create Maps or search from 80 million at MapMyFitness

2014 Stats:

715.69 miles walked, which is 71.50% of my 2014 goal.

226:11:37 hours walked, which is 72.27% of my 2014 goal

33,850 total feet climbed 

114,302 calories burned
68.69% of the year has passed

I've walked 24 consecutive non-Sundays since my last missed day on August 11, and overall have walked on 203 of the 215 non-Sundays thus far in 2014, a 94.42% consistency rating.

The purpose of the percentages is to have a higher percentage of distance and time walked than of the year. This tells me I am on track. I'm sure this is more numbers than you are interested in, all I can say is I'm really good at setting high goals and having them slip away because I don't do them every, every day.

Here's the thought I picked to share from today's walk:

"Yes, it all started so quietly, so simply, and so very wonderfully. A believing boy took “one small step” and prayed. A loving Father in Heaven listened and responded. What has resulted is rightfully referred to as “one giant leap for mankind.”

All the towers ever built and all the spaceships ever launched pale in comparison with Joseph Smith’s first vision. Though men fly higher and higher into the heavens, they will not find God or see his face unless they humble themselves, pray, and heed the truths revealed through the Prophet of the Restoration."

To watch, listen to, or read the full speech, please visit:  https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1990/04/one-small-step-for-a-man-one-giant-leap-for-mankind?lang=eng

To learn more about Carlos Asay, please click here:  http://www.deseretnews.com/article/690881/Elder-Carlos-Asay-dies-at-72.html?pg=all

As a side note, I remember the day Neil Armstrong said those words very well.  After all, you could watch any TV you wanted in 1969 as long as it was CBS, NBC, or ABC and you were within range of their local transmitting tower.  And any time there was a manned space flight in the 1960s it was wall to wall coverage on all three networks, so you can imagine the excitement when the lunar capsule slowly made its final descent to a soft landing on the moon's surface.  Neil could not have captured the world's mood any better than he did with his famous words, "One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."

Which puts an exclamation point on what Carlos Asay said.  He wasn't taking anything away from that moment, he was simply testifying just how world changing Joseph Smith's First Vision was.

The tortoise is smiling!