Cheer!

Hip!Hip! Hooray!! Dad arrives today!!

I am sitting on the couch waiting with excitement for his arrival. He took the red eye from Hawaii and landed in Vancouver early this morning. After having breakfast with a friend he'll be driving out my way. I haven't seen him in nine months and I can't wait to spend the next week with him.

The house is clean, the muffins are baking in the oven and I have the next 48 hours off. Yay!!

My paper is in!

I finally handed in my paper to presbytery (regional church body) tonight. It was due on Wednesday. I have just been sooooooooooooooooooooo busy lately and tomorrow I will lead my second memorial service within a week. Last week it was for a friend's brother who died suddenly (just 28 years old) and tomorrow it will be for an 85 year old retired police officer. It's going to be a big service. Anyways, back to the paper. It's about 15 pages long and it is a detailed portfolio of all the work, classes, education and accomplishments I have done over the last sixteen years. A committee will review it and then interview me next Monday. Fingers crossed all will be well and I will be recommended for Recognized Designated Lay Ministry. Right now, I am in the unrecognized category. Wish me luck!

Thanksgiving Part 2

I had one of the best Thanksgiving weekends in a long time. Usually I find myself alone on Thanksgiving as family isn't near by (and most of them celebrate US Thanksgiving anyways) and I don't always get invites to other places. But this year I ended up feasting over three days.
I cooked an organic, free range, fresh young turkey on Saturday and had 12 people for dinner. Everybody pitched in and brought different items. We had everything from fresh beets, local squash, homemade cranberry sauce and delicious vegetables followed by homemade pumpkin cheesecake and SaltSpring Island coffee. It was absolutely delicious!

Sunday and Monday night I had more turkey and the best turkey meatballs ever!

It was a good weekend and a good way to celebrate the local harvest.

Next up...turkey soup!

Happy Thanksgiving!

T’was the night of Thanksgiving,
But I just couldn’t sleep.
I tried counting backwards,
I tried counting sheep.
The leftovers beckoned,
The dark meat and white.
But I fought the temptation,
With all of my might.
Tossing and turning,
with anticipation.
The thought of a snack
became infatuation.
So I raced to the kitchen,
Flung open the door,
And gazed at the fridge,
Full of goodies galore.
I gobbled up turkey,
And buttered potatoes,
Pickles and carrots,
Beans and tomatoes.
I felt myself swelling,
So plump and so round.
‘til all of a sudden,
I rose off the ground.
I crashed through the ceiling,
Floating into the sky,
With a mouthful of pudding,
And a handful of pie.
But I managed to yell
As I soared past the trees
Happy eating to all,
Pass the cranberries, please!!
May your stuffing be tasty
May your turkey be plump.
May your potatoes and gravy
Have nary a lump.
May your yams be delicious,
May your pies take the prize
And May your Thanksgiving dinner
Stay off of your thighs!

Reprise Quartet - How Great Thou Art

I am officiating a memorial service this week for a 28 year old man who died of a drug overdose. He was the brother-in-law of a close friend. In planning his service, the family has requested two very common hymns; How Great Thou Art and Amazing Grace. Here is one of them. Take a moment and listen to this incredible quartet.

Corn Roast

We had a wonderful corn roast at the church tonight. 40 people came after only two weeks notice. That was amazing! We had a table of seniors, a table of teens and a mix of others. The corn was picked this morning and was super sweet. It is probably some of the last corn of the season. The best part of the event was "Corn Jeopardy". I created it this morning. 5 categories, all to do with corn. Everybody seemed to get into it and have a great time. The best part was the prize...Dessert Buffet for everybody!