End of the Summer

Summer in Allendale is officially coming to a close. The last team came and went, the summer staff has packed their bags and headed back to college, David, Gretchen, and Liz have moved to South Bend, Brian and Tom have moved back, Joan is back teaching, and Nathan and Genevieve's wedding is fast approaching. I'm wondering when it will sink in that I'm really staying here and that for the first time in seventeen years I won't be going back to school this fall, and all of us are trying to figure out what God wants us to be doing in the neighborhood and as a household this fall. Yet despite these uncertainties, life in Allendale continues to be as rich as ever. Here's some highlights of the past few weeks:

A whole day spent with neighbors: On the last day of the last team I was blessed with many opportunities to serve our neighbors. In the morning I took a neighbor to the doctor for a checkup and played with her two children while we waited, during lunch I helped a neighbor call her gas company to resolve a suspicious looking bill, in the early afternoon I gave one of the neighborhood boys his first piano lesson, and before dinner I gave a high school girl a ride to work. God keeps making it clear to me that there is a whole lot of work he has for us to do in the neighborhood, and that he is excited that I am here as a missionary and won't be working full time.

Baking Cookies: I spent a recent morning backing cookies with three junior high/high school age girls from the neighborhood. Two of the girls were good friends, but it was fun to watch the three of them get to know each other better as we backed. And we had such fun baking. I was hoping to persuade the girls to give some of their cookies away to other people in the neighborhood, and they ended up suggesting that idea themselves. They put the cookies in small bags on which they wrote, "the Lord loves you." We then spent about 30-45 minutes driving around the neighborhood delivering the cookies to both friends and strangers.

A household vacation: All ten of us got to spend a weekend together at the Lynch's cabin on Lake Clairborne. I hadn't realized how much I had missed going up to my grandparents cabin on Big Eagle Lake in MN until I got my first view of the Lake, it was like the Minnesotan part of my soul was finally at peace. The vacation was amazing. We had beautiful weather and plenty of time for swimming, diving, kayaking, volleyball, hikes, walks, cards, good food, good conversations, getting sunburnt, and spectacular stargazing. And then Brian and Tom surprised us for Lord's Day! All in all it was great time to spend together as a household and an opportunity to honor David, Gretchen, and Liz as we send them out to serve the Lord in South Bend.

An unexpected trip to South Bend: On Wednesday August 15th, David, Gretchen, and Liz moved to South Bend. Brian and Thomas were going with them to attend the Company Convention in South Bend. The five of them had to take three cars because two cars were staying in South Bend with Gretchen and David, and Brian and Tom needed a car to come back. Thus there were 5 drivers and 3 cars - less than two drivers per car for a 16 hour road trip. So, given that I don't have a job or a fixed schedule yet in Allendale, I was able to go with them to help drive. It was a really fun. It was great to literally see Gretchen, David, and Liz off and get to be a part of all Work College preparations going on that weekend. We stopped in Indy on the way there and the way back and were fed both times - the first fruits of having more People of Praise cities in the Mississippi Valley. I stayed with the one:ten women at the Colfax house (a glorious house) and the Indy missionary women visited on Friday and Saturday. I also got to attend my first South Bend branch community meeting - which is fitting seeing that I am technically a member of the South Bend branch.

Praise God for all that he is doing, I don't know what the fall will entail but I can't wait to find out.