I spent the last three days in the mountains of Northern Arizona on a Life Teen staff retreat. There were over 25 staff members who came in from all over the country for the retreat.

It was exciting to have Fr. Dale there to lead us. He is a charismatic, dynamic guy. Since he works with so many people, he’s learned to lead through service and humility. But this weekend I watched him step-up up with commanding leadership. It was cool.

The drive from the mountains of Prescott down to Phoenix is so scenic. You drop down 3000 feet and pass through a few different types of desert. I felt like I was in a; jeans commercial. I listened to oldies and felt like I was on a real road trip. But it got a little scarey.

A strong wind charged across the plateau and nearly threw my car off the road. As I held my car in my lane, I looked ahead of me and watched the wind blow into a the Uhaul in front of me. The truck was fine, but the trailer hauling a van took a hit. The top-heavy trailer rocked frantically back and forth. With each tip, the trailer wheels lifted higher off the ground. I slammed on my breaks and prepared fro the van to flip off the trailer and onto my hood. The driver instinctly sped up and pulled the trailer back onto the road. He shot off into the distance as I crawled to a stop. My heart pounded. I got out of the car and peed on a cactus.