Ben Norcia’s Blog (Chronicles of Norcia) Ch 2 ep 8: The Volcano

“But we will bless the Lord from this time forth and forevermore. Praise the Lord!”
‭‭Psalm‬ ‭115‬:‭18‬ ‭ESV‬‬

So yeah, we hiked up a volcano earlier. No big deal. I say this in attempt to play it cool, but in reality it was by far the coolest thing I’ve ever done and it was an absolute blessing to get to something I never even would have thought to dream of. Picturesque, idyllic, whatever you want to call it, the view was so overwhelmingly beautiful it brought tears to my eyes in admiration for God’s creativity. While the hike was treacherously difficult, it was worth every painful step it took to get up that volcano. This blog will be another timeline for an extremely long day. This time, levels of delirium reached all time highs in some interesting ways. All of these updates were written in the moment and have been unedited since.

While reading back, it seems that at some point Ally (Juwan Howard), Jackie (Jalen Rose), and I (Chris Webber) decided we were 3/5ths of Michigan’s 1992 Fab 5. The details of the storyline we created are unclear, although it seems that the hike up was the Final Four and hike down was the final. Lianne (Jimmy King?) was not present for the Final Four but provided a huge morale boost in the Final.

I don’t know what to tell you. I guess it happens when you hike 5 miles with a 5,000 feet incline. I’ll leave the story to tell itself.

10/18/2023 (Day 1 of the Acatenango hike)

7:52 am: I wake up. We’re supposed to be packed and eating breakfast by now but unfortunately I do not fall into either of those categories.

8:17 am: We’re supposed to be outside waiting to be picked up but I have made the decision to switch from my small bag to my hiking bag so I’m moving my things over.

8:32 am: We’re supposed to be packing into the vans taking us to the mountain but I am on the toilet writing an update.

9:06 am: Missed an update or two, we’ve been on this short person bus for like twenty minutes. I’m sitting in the middle next to Brian and in front of Banks and John Teter so we’re vibing out. Shoutout the tag-alongs Tris and Savannah they’re here too making a great cameo.

9:47 am: We’re at some place on the side of the volcano. Everyone’s renting gloves and walking sticks and stuff. They just handed out lunch which is a little thing of aluminum foil that supposedly has chicken in it. I am down to my last 3 liters of water. It’s a little chilly up here. We’re rocking the Mighty Mick’s Boxing Gym shirt for this occasion. I didn’t have the opportunity to download rocky montage music for this and my regret is visible, unlike the top of the volcano. It’s above the clouds. If I don’t make it, give all of my stuff to Jack Bertram.

10:08 am: I bought gloves for 3$. We’re jokingly doing warmup stretches as deep down we all feel immense dread for the unavoidable amount of soreness we will be sitting in tomorrow. Focus on the positive. I’m paying my 50Q entrance fee. Thats only like 7$. It’s getting cold. I probably should have packed more snacks than just trail mix. Water is in short supply.

10:31 am: It has begun.

10:33 am: My legs are feeling it.

11:24 am: The first stage of the hike is complete. I started to feel really good and then we stopped at some cafe. What? I just pounded some trail mix and some water so we’re down to our final 2.6 liters. I’m thinking about leaving no water for the way down. Good business decision? Probably not? My bag, however, will be way lighter… Decisions… I just spilled a drop while drinking water. That was really bad. Every ounce counts when you under-pack. Somebody just ordered a crepe. I think I would cramp so hard my stomach would implode.

11:40 am: On the trail again.

12:04 pm: We’re at the registration now… We’re an hour in and we’re starting now? The sweat levels visibly on every shirt around me is very encouraging to the fact that I am drenched. The bandana is coming in huge right now. I’ve been with Ally and Jackie most of the hike so far (the Fab 3) and I’m having honestly a much more fun time than I would have expected for this difficulty level. The last stretch was these stairs that were all like a foot tall and my Quads almost popped once or twice but occasionally singing “Basketball is my favorite sport, I like it when they dribble up and down the court” (basketball by Kurtis Blow) is keeping me going.

12:55 pm: We’re at another 5 minute break. Jackie is declaring this to be the worst thing she’s ever done and if she says it’s worth it later, assume she’s lying. Ally is deliriously singing “We’re halfway there ohh” (Living on a Prayer). To be honest I have no idea if we’re actually halfway yet but I don’t have the heart to tell her that. We are currently in a cloud. I was wondering what the weird, cold, fog surrounding us was until I was reminded we are like 11,000 feet above sea level or something.

1:25 pm: We are officially halfway there. The steepest parts are behind us so supposedly it gets way easier from here on out. Lunch time.

1:34 pm: We are debating whether the lunch mystery meat is chicken or fish. I think it’s fish. Banks won’t touch it. “Me and fish, we don’t really mix that well” – my fearless leader.

1:43 pm: Most of the squad has made it here by now. The fish v chicken debate rages on. Doug is scared of the onions in his pasta and he’s trying to give it away. Jackie and Ally are deliriously talking about horses. I think I might take a nap.

1:49 pm: How in the world did these stray dogs get up here?

2:06 pm: Complete delirium has been reached. I am on my final 2 liters of water, my chances of making it down the mountain are, to say the least, unfavorable. My trail mix is currently the best comedic item i’ve ever seen. Jackie would like me to note that as with my slim chances of a return journey, the chances I reach the top are not impressive. If I die, please sell all of my possessions and use the money to buy pull-it-peel twizzlers for Jack Bertram. Thank you. P.s. Claire would like me to note that while eating the trail mix, you can make it into a little cheeseburger, and this will provide easy mountaintop entertainment.

2:11 pm: Jackie just gave us Jolly Ranchers. “What a way to go into halftime.” – Ally

2:19 pm: Every time we stop we’re all gung-ho about going again until about 11 steps in when all movement becomes unbearable.

2:36 pm: Fab 3 is feeling it. Our pace is maybe half of what it was earlier. As I start to feel good about taking big steps slowly, queen Grace passes us atop a mountain-climbing steed. As she regales past and waves at the plebeians trudging along through the mud, hearts are broken, hopes shattered, and dreams of making it to the top forsaken. We are currently above most of the clouds. There might be more water on the back of my shirt in sweat form than there is water in all of the clouds here combined. Fortunately, we reach one of the break zones only minutes later and I collapse atop a bench. Jackie is delirious. She’s saying how easy this is only moments after we both almost gave up at the sight of the queen atop her steed.

2:49 pm: Ally has officially lost it. We are discussing the potential of DoorDashing chocolate milk to the top of the volcano. If only drone technology was more advanced…

3:13 pm: (Hopefully) Nearing the top and everyone is so spread out that I can’t see a soul besides the other 2/3rds of the Fab 3. We take a break at every corner and I think I’m actually starting to lose it.

3:44 pm: I think this is our last stop. We’re farther from the top than I thought. Another hour to go they say. As Ally and I deliriously sit here throwing rocks at each other’s shoes and listening to Banks and Clayton talk about the potential of putting gasoline in a LifeStraw, I can’t help but admire a view in an entirely different league than anything else I’ve ever seen.

4:15 pm: Horrible visit to the outhouse. Worst part of the hike so far. Banks gave me two pepto bismols to finish this game out. Fourth quarter. This is the Fab 3’s One Shining Moment, It’s all on the line.

4:31 pm: We’re just about there. The view is totally opened up. It gets no better than this.

5:06 pm: We’ve made it. The trek was worth it dozens of times over. Using man-made words to describe the excellence of God’s paintbrush seems foolish as I stand here admiring a view that is not of this world. As I look out over the peaks of the clouds with the warm sun breaking through I have a hard time even formulating thoughts about the level of awe demanded by the horizon of clouds. To my left is the neighboring active volcano named “Fuego”. It’s black dunes of volcanic ash stretch out beyond the horizon, and even the clouds are helpless in comparison to its might. The evergreen trees covering its base bring life to the scene, as the blacks, greens, and whites convulse to display creation in a way unimaginable by the simplicity of the human imagination. No, He who imagined this is far greater, far more creative, and so much more magnificent than I could ever attempt to explain with words. It is time now to forsake any understanding of His creation’s excellence, and simply stand in awe.

5:45 pm: Hundreds of pictures taken by the squad later, the sun is just about gone. It’s only gettin’ colder.

6:28 pm: The sun has gone down now, and as I sit here falling ever deeper in love with the Great I Am, He who breathed all into existence, I am able for not to admire. I am helpless in the face of His magnificence.

Sometime in the middle of the night: Someone is playing “Not Afraid” by Eminem on a speaker. I don’t think my body trusts my breathing enough to fall asleep. Everyone is asleep but me. For some reason the only cold part of my body is my double-socked toes.

4:00 am: The camp awakes and Banks comes in to wake us up. Fortunately for me, I didn’t need to be woken up because I was awake the whole time. The first day of the hike we go up to a little camp almost to the summit, and then we complete the hike in the morning. Time to go.

5:15 am: We summit.

It really seems almost insulting to attempt to explain the view with man-made words. Directly above me was a sky filled with more stars than I knew could be visible from Earth. As my sight begins turning forwards the sky turns blue. A natural, light blue emerging from the black night sky. It was clearer than any blue I’ve seen before as the brisk morning saw only few clouds, each of which was thousands of feet below us. Below the blue was a bright, inviting yellow, full of warmth. Moving towards the equator, the sky became a burnt orange, radiating heat. Where the distant volcanos met the sky the horizon was a powerful red, whose vibrancy was matched only by the lava exploding from Fuego to our right.

As the sun approached closer and closer to our line of sight more and more of the world beneath us was revealed. We could see dozens of mountains and volcanoes in every direction. The volcanos would occasionally awake and begin spitting out large clouds of black smoke. The larger ones spewed lava out with the smoke clouds every few minutes, and the sound from the eruptions took so long to reach us atop our perch that we would often see lava and not hear it until it was already rumbling down the black dunes.

We could see cities sprawled out from a bird’s eye view, similar to looking out of an airplane at night.

Despite the morning being near freezing and my clothes becoming ineffective when faced with the powerful, freezing winds sweeping the mountain top, I wanted to gaze out forever. I like to think the magnificence of the moment was a little sneak peek of Heaven. If God imagined all this for the world, I can’t even begin to think of what the place will look like that He calls “Paradise”.

We eventually departed down the mountain, and after a quick breakfast, we began our trek back to the base.

9:07 am: Chris Webber takes a hard foul, Technical on the defense.

9:12 am: Following the technical, Michigan comes out with a new passion. While flying down the court on the fast break, all regards for personal safety were left atop the mountain. The Fab 5 left it all out on the court as they displayed a tremendous amount of heart so impressive that it left recording locals in awe. Many fans were unaware they were even able to display such a ferocious style of attacking fast-paced offense.

9:25 am: The tenacity the Wolverines have displayed so far has been either a remarkable highlight reel or the most gut-wrenching defeat, depending on who you are rooting for. If you are, in fact, rooting for these fabulous freshmen, this might be the best game you’ve ever watched. The opposition stands no chance. Regardless of what strategic set or improved game-plan the opposing coach has sent out, the Fab 4 (we lost one) has thrashed every new idea and made the defense look simply amateur. Nothing but smiles, high spirits, and good vibes on the Michigan side as they head into the locker room for halftime.

9:37 am: Despite being beat up and physically drained from the Final 4 victory they had little to no time to recover from, the overwhelmingly positive energy in the locker room is surely a sign of an easy cruise through the remainder of this National Championship. The scene is a truly massive change from halftime of the game before, when the outcome of the close, physical battle was still in question. Another incredible Jackie Rancher halftime speech later, and the Wolverines are ready to continue this blowout into the second half.

10:12 am: With but minutes remaining in the National Championship, the Michigan lead sits far out of reach. They have slowed down the tempo in the second half, at times using the length of the shot clock on possessions. At times they have still ran on the exhausted defense and had highlight worthy moments, but more importantly, they have remained patient, focused at all times on grinding out the remainder of this season. Juw-Ally Howard is in range of breaking the Final Four assist record, and the Michigan side is all smiles as they begin setting their eyes on the nets they are about to cut down.

10:25 am: After one final run by the starters and a few last highlights, the game has just about wrapped up. Opposing fans evacuated the building long ago in face of their team’s demise, and the Michigan loyalists prepare to storm the court for the net-cutting ceremony.

10:51 am: Ballgame. As Chris Webber throws the ball in the air and the buzzer sounds, Howard and King chest-bump, and Jalen Rose is exuberant, despite the clear exhaustion. Despite playing two Final Four games against favored opponents in back to back days, despite being physically beaten up in the first Overtime finish, despite having to climb seemingly insurmountable odds, they have done it. These fabulous freshman never faltered, never lost confidence in one another, and relied always on their teamwork. Collapsing to the hardwood in a mix of sheer exhaustion and inexplicable joy in their accomplishment, they are now the 2023 National Champions.

Blue and yellow confetti rains from the rafters as fans and teammates alike mob the National Champions, The Fab 5.