Wondering as we wander
As
the Christian world prepares to celebrate the birth of the King of Kings and
Lord of Lords, Val and I send our appreciation to family and friends who help
us to remember Him. As we return from a
visit to lands of antiquity, including the town of His birth, waves of
gratitude reverberate while we work to strengthen essential connections,
appreciate the bitter cup, and relish the quiet assurance of His great offering.
Upon completing an 18 month mission to rich, green
Guatemala, our arms became flooded with kisses, bike rides, walks, card games,
and charades with children, grandchildren, and grand puppies. 
After responding to an invitation to
"stay awhile" from children, we gathered grit enough to join a Mediterranean
adventure with Val's sister and pieces of her husband's family--including friends
from a beloved Honduras temple mission.
After responding to an invitation to
"stay awhile" from children, we gathered grit enough to join a Mediterranean
adventure with Val's sister and pieces of her husband's family--including friends
from a beloved Honduras temple mission.
While traipsing over volcanic ruins and peering past the distance
of oceans and centuries, we experienced up close the tension and strain of physical,
political and religious variances in the crossing of time zones and cultures. Our eyes opened to the impact of walls, the
reality of pain, and ultimately, the power of personal peace that whispers hope
and adds a glimpse of understanding to transcend the rush, disappointment, and uncertainty
that tends to crowd our lives.
As we safeguard sacred space in the glimmer of the season's
light, may we each be buoyed with vision in our vicissitudes and shored as we
rub shoulders (even sore ones) with other souls in shared strivings. Through our wanderings, may we work to be wise
men and women who still seek our Bright and Morning Star. May we continue to covet vital connections, grateful
for fellow shepherds who lift their light upon a hill and wend their way with
gifts to the manger, as they come to more clearly see and cherish the garden,
the cross and the empty tomb!
Blessings to you and yours,
Val and Laurene
So wonderful to follow your travels! I feel like I'm there and enjoying it too. We have had a surreal years and as faith requires....life isn't always what you think it is. But ministering angels are there for us and the veil is thin; friends and loved ones carry us and we continue to enjoy this glorious and miraculous life that has been our blessing over and over. We had 5 new grandchildren this last year. We have"almost" finished restoring and remodeling the 110 yr old farmhouse with historical stories in Hayden ID. We are ready for a serious winter, as we burn wood for heat and pack our storage room from the garden. Our chickens are hardy souls and continue lay lovely brown eggs. We love you both and are grateful for your lives. We send you our love! Julienne
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