The Long Way Home

We left Baby B in a secure storage spot in Yuma, Arizona, and started driving home. It had cooled down considerably, and by the time we got to Las Vegas, Nevada, it was really windy, and light rain was falling. Being brought up on the West Coast, I call it "beautiful rain". Terry doesn't agree at all. It was so cozy sitting at Starbucks checking our e-mail and peeking at Facebook, while next door, Terry's binoculars were being fixed at a very reasonable cost. The strap had come loose and they fell on a rock on the mountain hike, jiggling the prisms out of alignment. He did also buy a new compact pair. William, of ScopeCity, was very helpful, and had the binoculars fixed in record time. Terry commented, "Now all we need is to find a rock identification book for our grandson." William offered to sell us a counter copy AND some rock samples from his own collection! "Perfect," we exclaimed! "Caleb will be thrilled!"
In Las Vegas our friend, the mum of one of our first Slovak students, put us up in a huge casino resort because she had access to a room, and felt her own house was in disarray. Jana longed to join us on our missions, and said, "All I need is a husband and an RV!"
In Salt Lake City we visited with Lenka, Jana's daughter. It started to snow lightly; the next morning the mountains all around Salt Lake wore a light dusting of snow like powdered sugar.
Our third visit was at Shirley's, one of Terry's students nearly 30 years ago, about an hour north of Salt Lake. We were blessed to be given some walnuts from a tree in her back yard. There were so many walnuts that her husband would throw them on the road so cars would crack them for the birds and squirrels!
We're in Montana tonight, and the temperature is slightly below freezing. We're suddenly thrust into winter, and the beginnings of the Christmas season. Home in a couple of days! Sorry, the pictures I wanted to post are not uploading; the Internet connection is a bit slow.

Corona

I was having my teeth cleaned in Los Algodones, Mexico, the other day.  The dentist scraped away as usual, but then informed me that I had a cavity, AND a broken tooth!  This is not unusual for me, as my teeth are not my strong point.  I did feel a new sensitivity in that area lately, as if the wind was blowing through.  After asking how much it would be, and consulting with Terry, I told the dentist, "Go for it!"  This is an interesting dental office, a little hole- in- the- wall place, run by a Christian dentist.  We got there first thing, around 8:30 am, so I was able to get right in.  Then a short wait till 2:15 for the crown to be ready and I'm "good to go"  Roland thought he would be the one getting a crown, but his tooth turned out to be not broken .  $270 for a cleaning, polishing, cavity fixed in two adjoining teeth, and a crown.  Not bad.
Sorry I don't have a photo; I was too stunned.

Between a rock and a hard place

This is a tight spot called Fat Man's Pass on South Mountain, near Phoenix, Arizona.  Suzanne's dad, Grant, took us on a three hour hike to Hidden Valley, which is up in the hills.  This spot is only wide enough for one person to squeeze through.  If you don't think you can make it, there is another way round.  Sometimes we can only think of one way through our difficulties, but God has another plan.  Sometimes we are squeezed through the "furnace of affliction"  to work something into our character. Being between a rock and a hard place, in the eternal perspective, is not always a bad thing.

Organ Pipe National Monument

This is the ocotillo, which is technically not a cactus.  It doesn't usually bloom at this time of the year; the plant looks like dead twigs.  After the winter rains , the plant bursts into bloom.  Today, we were blessed to find just ONE ocotillo in bloom, just so I could take these pictures.

Terry had a revelation today, an Aha! moment. He stood in the middle of the desert and exclaimed, "God created all this! Not just the rain forest, but even the desert!"   This is the organ pipe cactus, after which the park is named. The park is in the very south of Arizona, bordering Mexico.  It grows among dark volcanic rocks on south and east facing slopes, and at night the rocks release their warmth, like a blanket of warm air, so the cactus is protected from frost.  There are more stories to share about the wonderful adaptations of plants in the desert; hope to share them at some point in Canada. 

To everything there is a season

When we first arrived at this project, God spoke to my heart and said it was a new season in my life. (I had just watched that  wonderful movie again, "Beyond the Blackboard", and Vivaldi's "Seasons" was resonating in my head.) "Just what season is it here?" I wondered.  When we first arrived, it was 34 degrees Celsius, and we wore shorts, put on the air conditioning, and ate supper outside.  It has cooled down to the twenties, but today was a very pleasant 26.  However, to the Arizonians, winter is approaching. It snowed on a certain mountain . We were putting away summer clothes at the Mission, and clothing in the stores looks fallish.  A TV ad sang out, "Put your sweater on..." To complicate the seasons, it gets dark by 6:00 pm, but it is still warm. Some women wear Ugg boots (those suede fleece lined boots) and toques are in fashion. Here is Terry with a nice warm toque I found while sorting at Community Services today.  He'll keep it for the cold trip home.  

After we got back from the C.S. he changed into his work shorts and put on his sunhat to help the men finish sealing the roof at the women's shelter. (See his picture on Facebook).  Oh yes, Tucson had a record rainfall last Sunday...less than 1/2".  A boy stood outside the church with a giant umbrella, ready to escort people back to their cars.  We had laughed the week before when they were driving people to the door in golf carts.  The best purchase we've made is a little ceramic heater, which quickly fills the small space in the trailer with warmth first thing in the morning and sometimes in the evening; we  especially enjoyed it on the way down.
I have enjoyed the relaxed pace of this new season in my life, and our project is over.  We've made wonderful friends, which someday we'll meet again.  Tomorrow we're going to Phoenix for the weekend to visit Suzanne's parents, and next week... we'll keep you posted.

Thrift Shopping

The five SOWER ladies at Gospel Rescue Mission said goodbye to the men and enjoyed lunch out at Jason's Deli.  Usually we have a simple lunch at the Mission on the 4 days we work. Then we spent most of the afternoon in two thrift stores and in Target. When it was time to leave, the group leader looked at me in amazement  and said, "You didn't buy anything?" Little did she know how many thrift stores I've visited this past month, on top of wading through all the clothing donations we received at the Mission.   Our friends from Sleepy Valley, with whom we travelled to get here, are thrift shop connoisseurs, and were acquainted with every thrift store on our trip down.  They rate them as either "good" or else avoid them altogether.  It's hard to keep up to Erica; she heads straight for the yarn section, and Shelley looks for interesting coloured sheets out of which she makes rag rugs. I've bought a couple of things I've needed for the kitchen and some clothing items for unexpected weather conditions, like the day we were on a bird trip. I had forgotten to take my warm sweater, and the wind was blowing up a gale.  I was freezing, so begged Terry to stop at a little church-run thrift store in a tiny town where the only warm garment to be found was one of those coarsely woven Mexican "shirts" for a dollar  .  It did the trick, though, and I was able to bird watch in relative comfort.  I'm still looking for a couple of items, but I'm almost thrift shopped out.  Almost.

Breaking the sound barrier

It's good to do what God wants you to do.  Terry and I shared what God has done in our lives at this morning's devotions (inspirational time every morning with the SOWER group) Then we both spoke a different message this evening at the women's chapel time.  It really blessed me.  I was so happy to speak without a set of notes, and sound normal. To God be the glory!
 Only 2 more days officially on our project!