Musings from Helen

Written Monday evening, May 30th ~

As we left our MMAP project in Flovilla, Georgia today, it struck me...what a strange life we lead during our summertime travels. We aren't actually traveling around as full-time sight-seeing tourists, constantly on the move from place to place to see as many sights as possible, nor are we ensconced into a settled-in life style around home and hearth. We exist in a world between full time vacationer and home-bound settler.

After three or four weeks in one spot, things start feeling a lot like "home". The roads we travel start to become more familiar. We recognize more detail in houses and yards. We know where the various businesses are located. We greet the cashier at the local store, the attendant at the gas station and the folks at church like long-time friends and acquaintances. The evening outing down a tree-lined path to walk the dog becomes a routine - with the buzz of the cicada, the songs of the birds and watching the squirrels jumping from tree to tree or enjoying the puffy white clouds overhead becoming an expected evening ritual.

But it's not home. And as we pulled out of the campground in Flovilla for the last time, with trailer in tow, I realized we may never see this place again or experience again exactly what we did here. Yet, it's alright. We are on our way to someplace we have never been before, and after a few weeks there it will start to feel like "home".

Then the project will end, and amid a vague regret of leaving home yet once again, the urge to move on to something new will overtake us, and we will look with anticipation at what may be around the next bend. It is, indeed a strange life....but one we feel blessed to be experiencing. Nothing ever the same - yet still all familiar and "the same".

Perhaps it is an opportunity we are being given to peek into what heaven will be like. We are just travelers through this life, headed to a place that is truly home. Yet, what we experience at home here in this life - the things that fill us with joy and satisfaction and meaning are but a prelude to the ultimate joy and satisfaction we will know when we finally "go home."

A note to our readers - I had just finished writing the above thoughts when I got a call from the son of my cousin, JoAnn Adams, advising me that she had died on Thursday, May 26th. So, I think it fitting to dedicate my musings in memory of her.

Let me just take a moment to tell you a little bit about JoAnn. She was in her mid 80's and was married to my mother's cousin, Jim. They were quite a bit younger than my folks and had been a light in my childhood. But because of life's turns and twists, I had lost touch with them sometime in my late teen years. It was only last year that I reconnected with JoAnn by phone, only to find out that cousin Jim had passed away suddenly a few months before my call. Yet, in true JoAnn fashion, she was still her joyful positive self, sharing with me that she was certain Jim was now in heaven and relating what a wonderful 50+ years of married life they had shared.

Over the next few months of calls and e-mails she shared stories of the traveling she and Jim had done, and the adventures they had experienced. She was a big encourager to us regarding our travels, and understood that our traveling is not just to see the sights, but with a purpose of reaching out as God directs us, to do what He wants us to do.

We had planned to stop in to see her in California last fall on our way down from Washington to Arizona. However, my little "side trip" to the hospital while visiting our children in Grass valley, CA had rearranged those plans. We agreed to put off our visit to her until we returned from the trip we are now on. But, as we now see, He had other plans for her.

So, with heavy heart (for myself - not for her) I will just have to wait for that reunion. Thanks for your precious and uplifting words, JoAnn. We'll see you and Jim someday when we get "home". For now, we will remember your stories as we continue to travel - doing the things that give us joy.

Again, a note to our readers - we apologize that we got off track this time from what we have been doing with these blog updates. Our next update in a week or so will again include pictures and information about our travels around Georgia while on project in Flovilla, and some snippets of our five day trip to our next project in Spring Creek, Pennsylvania. 

However, for those of you that have a desire to know more about what we mean about "going home" and trusting in a God who takes care of all the details of the trip, feel free to read to an addition to the end of our blog.....our blog devotional section. In these times of uncertainty in our world, we wanted to share with those that want to know it, the certainty of God's plan. Our first devotional, taken from a book entitled Truth - Seeing Black and White in a Gray World, is called "The world says, Live for today - God says, Live for eternity".


Until next time,

Jim and Helen

The Great Adventure Devotional Section

The world says "Live for today"

God says, " Live for Eternity"

A man came up to Jesus and asked,, "Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?" Matthew 19:16

      The simple cross-stitch banner hung on the bathroom wall for years. It read, "One hundred years from now, it will not matter what kind of house I live in, how much money I had, nor what my clothes were like. But the world will be a better place, because I was important in the life of a child."  This statement really asks, "Are you living for today or are you investing in tomorrow?" Better put, it suggests, "Are you living for eternity?"

     The Bible says all of us will live on after we die a physical death. Life on this earth is only the beginning of our existence. We will have an existence after we die, with or without God. Yet, our eternal destination rests on some decisions we make here on Earth in this lifetime. Those who place their trust in Jesus as Lord will be raised to new life to live with Him forever. Those who reject the grace that could be theirs face eternal separation from God. In light of these realities, shouldn't we examine our priorities in the here and now?

     Should our lives be about collecting possessions and riches, or trying to win others in love to an eternal life with God? Can we ignore God and His commands? Can we ignore the needs of other people? In reality, God placed you on this earth for a purpose. Through accepting Christ as your Lord and Savior, letting Him forgive you and live his life through you, and letting Him renew your mind to conform to His, you begin to live the life of an eternal being.

     All we can take with us to heaven is our own soul and each other. Find out what pleases God. Find out what will matter one hundred, one thousand, or one million years from now and do it!

This world is fading away, along with everything it craves. 

But if you do the will of God, you will live forever. 1 John 2:17 NLT 

Our MMAP Project for May 2011 - Flovilla, Georgia

We have concluded our three-week May MMAP project at Indian Springs Holiness Camp in Flovilla, Georgia. Our last update told a little about the camp. This entry will show you what we accomplished while on the project.

The project assignment ~ Paint benches

It sounded pretty simple..... 

The project as it actually turned out ~ move, repair, sand, prime and paint as many of the 200+ benches as possible!!

Open air tabernacle full of 200+ HEAVY wood benches

Most of the benches were 18-20 feet long. They had to be unbolted and moved to another location to be sanded and repaired before being painted.

Hard work for three "old" guys!

Two of us primed and put the final coat of paint on after the men finished the repairs.

"Hi ho....hi ho....it's off to work we go"

"Before" -old peeling paint and rotted legs

Lots of dust....hot humid weather (90+ temp with 80+ humidity) we worked in an outside covered area. The three men did a great job - even if they all looked like someone dressed them alike in "Darth Vader" costumes!

Our first completed bench. Even though there were 200 that needed paint and repair, we were fortunate to complete 16 benches. The previous MMAP crew in April had done about the same amount. This will be a long and on-going project for MMAPers coming to this area each spring. Ours is the last project for the year at this location - hot, sultry summer weather and the camp meeting schedule preclude any more work on the remaining benches for this year.

With all our finished benches put back into place, we celebrate our accomplishment!

This is the painting crew:

Jim & Jean White - Project Coordinators. Long time MMAPers, they are from Bakersfield, CA. He retired from the California Department of Corrections.

You know these guys - Jim and Helen Spring - from Arizona (via Washington state)

Cherie & Rusty Rusthoven - new to MMAP, this was their second project. Although they live full time in their motor home, they maintain a home address of Richland, in the Tri-Cities area of eastern Washington where their daughter and family reside. Rusty is a retired Colonel from the US Marine Corp and Cheri is a retired librarian/teacher.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our Monday thru Thursday work week started each morning at 7:30 am with a half-hour devotion together, then on to work from 8-4. Every Thursday night after supper, we gathered together to play games. Rusty's favorite game was any that he won! That certainly challenged Helen - who is know for her fierce competitive spirit.

Every Sunday we worshiped together at the First Baptist Church in Jackson (a small town about four miles from the camp.) It is a great congregation of friendly southern folks with a preacher who "tells it like it is"! We really enjoyed the time with them.

Since our schedule while on project allows for three days off from work, we've done some driving around the area to see some of the small southern towns in this vicinity, and we took a drive last Saturday to Chattanooga, TN (about three hours north of Flovilla) to visit with friends, Nathaniel and Alicia Gutierrez and their adorable little boy, Jeremiah. We have known Alicia for many years from Helen's days at Tacoma Youth for Christ. She is the daughter of former YFC Area Director, Tim Skrivan. Six years ago, after Nathaniel and Alicia were married, he also came to work for a time at YFC doing an outreach to Spanish youth in the Tacoma area.They then went on to Southern California where Nathaniel finished his seminary degree. Nathaniel and Alicia are following in his parents footsteps as missionaries to Peru with Missions to the World. They are in the Chattanooga area (where their mission headquarters is located) firming up support and fund-raising, and will be leaving for the mission field sometime this year. They are now awaiting the birth of their second child (a girl). It was so good to see them again after several years. They are a fantastic committed Christian couple and will be doing a great work with the people of Peru.

We will stay at Indian Springs Holiness Camp through the Memorial Day holiday, then head 900 miles north to Spring Creek, Pennsylvania for our next MMAP project that starts on the first Friday of June. Our next update will have information and pictures from our sight-seeing trips around the Georgia countryside this month as well as our travel adventures to Pennsylvania. After that we hope to share more about the next project in Spring Creek at a Christian horse camp called Miracle Ranch.

Our sincerest thanks to all of you who continue to pray for us and for our safety in traveling this great country. God has richly blessed us! Our prayer is that you all know how much He will bless your lives too - no matter where you are or what you do.

Third and final entry of the journal of our 10 day trip to Flovilla

Day 8 & 9 Tuesday & Wednesday, May 3rd and 4th – Sightseeing around Montgomery, Alabama: On Tuesday the skies threatened rain, so we chose to go into downtown Montgomery to search out some inside sights. We started at the Montgomery Visitors Center to get oriented to the many things to see. We watched an excellent short film (again showing us that there are more things to see than our two short days gave us time to do). If you’re ever in Montgomery, be sure to take advantage of the downtown bus/trolley tour. It is a mere $1.00 per person, starting from the Visitor’s Center it drops you at many points of interest, allowing you to spend as much time at each place as you like, then picking you up at your pace to go on to another location. 

We made our first stop at the state Capitol building, then a quick walk in a short downpour to tour the White House of the Confederacy (home to the President of the Confederacy, Jefferson Davis and his family) that is located just across the street from the Capitol. After the rain let up, we came out of the White House and walked next door to the Alabama Department of Archives and History building that houses several artifacts of the history of Alabama. (All three of these sights charge no admission.) After several hours of indoor sightseeing, with skies cleared up, we caught the bus/trolley back to the Visitors Center. There were many more places we could have stopped to see, but our stomachs were telling us it was long past lunch and we were in desperate need of some good ole’ Southern cookin’. We asked the bus driver if she could recommend someplace, and she happily told us of the Dreamland Bar-B-Que on Tallapoosa Street just a short walk from the Visitors Center that serves “the best ribs around.” (Note-ALWAYS ask the locals about the best places to eat….this one was a real winner!) After a sumptuous huge plate of ribs, potato salad, cole slaw and lots of sweet tea, we “waddled” back to the truck and headed back to the campground – calling it a full day!

The Alabama State Capitol:

Old office of the Treasurer

Looking up at the rotunda

Looking down on the original House of Representatives

The old senate chambers

A portrait of Alabama's famous governor, George Wallace

 The White House of the Confederacy: 

The Alabama State Archives Building

 Dreamland Bar-B-Que....YUM!!

After a huge plate of ribs, this says it all!

On Wednesday we spent the first half of the day sightseeing and the last half getting packed for our drive to Flovilla the next day. In the late morning, under gorgeous sunny skies and mild temperatures, we took a drive to the Blount Cultural Park on the west side of Montgomery. This beautiful 300 acre park developed in 1983 and completed in 2000 was inspired by the English countryside. It is said to be one of the finest and most unique offerings of cultural and family activities in the world. Set among numerous lakes, trails, gardens, and pavilions are  the Alabama Shakespeare Festival buildings and Shakespeare gardens and the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts. The museum is the oldest fine arts museum in the state of Alabama. It houses an outstanding array of 19th and 20th century American paintings as well as 3,000 works in the permanent collection of some of the finest examples of the 15th through 20th century masters such as Durer, Rembrandt, Picasso and Whistler. It also has works by Southern artists and contains 18th century Worcester Porcelain and 19th century Chinese export wares as well as a hands-on-gallery and art studio for children, Museum Shop, Research Library, cafe and outdoor picnic facilities where you can view some fantastic outdoor sculpture. And the cost to see all of this?? FREE!! Amazing!  

Alabama Shakespeare Festival building

The Shakespeare gardens

All the plants in the garden were mentioned in the various Shakespeare plays

Some of the park "residents" living around and in the pond

Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts

 Some of the outdoor garden sculpture:

 

Wheeeeeeeeee.......once a kid always a kid!

Day 10 Thursday – a short 200 mile drive to Flovilla and our MMAP project at Indian Springs Holiness Camp.

We are here with two other MMAP couples. The task for the next three weeks is to refinish 200+ wooden benches in the outdoor tabernacle where their annual 10 day camp meeting will be held this next July.

This event draws over 3,000 people for this southern camp meeting/revival that has taken place every year at Indian Springs Holiness Camp since 1890. The camp property itself is a very unique 70+ acres with over 215 buildings as well as the RV area with 45 full-hook up sites. (Our three rigs and one other part-time camp worker are the only ones in the RV section.)

Our "home" for the next month

Some of the buildings are public camp-owned meeting locations for the various activities that take place during camp meeting, some are camp owned rooms and dorms and a hotel facility. In 1960 Asbury College, a Christian liberal arts university that has been in existence since 1890 and is located in Wilmore, Kentucky bought one of the homes and uses it to house college students who wish to attend the camp meetings. One of the other cottages is a four room lodge built in 1995 by the Wesley Biblical Seminary in Jackson, Mississippi that is used to house students and guests of the seminary during the camp meeting. But many of the cottages are privately owned, built by various families over the camp’s 121 years of existence. (Although the structures themselves may be privately owned, the land belongs to the camp and is rented to each home owner for a nominal fee.) Over the years, many of these homes have passed on to family members that have been attending the camp meetings for several generations and use the summer event not only as a way to invite friends to hear the gospel, but also as a family reunion time.

It is an eclectic array of very large homes that can sleep numerous guests as well as medium sized older cottages, and some old ramshackle tiny bungalows. Almost all of the bungalows, cottages and homes are only occupied the 10 days of the camp meeting, then left empty the rest of the year. During this “off season” time of the year, prior to the start of camp meeting, a hike around the grounds is rather eerie. It’s like walking around a ghost town - complete but abandoned - waiting patiently for its residents to “come home” for the annual summer camp meeting.

Some of the buildings, cottages, homes and bungalows at Indian Springs Holiness Camp~

WOW...our very own road!

Just a "wee cabin in the woods"

For Wesley Seminary students and guests

This large home is owned by multiple families and can probably house a lot of people

The Asbury College cottage

The camp hotel

One of the dorms

The nursery

After arriving and meeting our fellow MMAPers, we spent all day Friday cleaning the “road dust” out of the rig and unpacking all the boxes we had kept packed while on the road. Our MMAP coordinators, Jim and Jean White (from Bakersfield, CA) took the weekend off to visit their grandson stationed at Fort Benning, Georgia. So our Friday evening was spent with the other MMAP couple, Rusty and Sharee Rusthoven - full time RVers for the past 12 years after retiring from a career in the US Marines, and who call the Tri State area of Washington home base. We played a rousing game of Rummy Tiles. 

Jim and Rusty also spent Saturday morning playing 9 holes of golf at one of the local courses while I finished cleaning the rig. Saturday afternoon we made a quick drive to the tiny town of Jackson (4 miles from the camp) to stock up on groceries. (Even though the camp is located in Flovilla, there is actually no longer a town of Flovilla- just a small post office.) On the way to Jackson, we made a stop at a local roadside fruit stand to pick up some more juicy vine ripened tomatoes and some delicious sweet white corn. On Sunday morning the four of us attended First Baptist Church of Jackson, one of the many big beautiful churches in this area so aptly dubbed the “Bible Belt”.

Sunday afternoon we took a short drive to see Indian Springs State Park and then a hike around Dauset Trails, a 1200 acre nature center with scenic trails, creeks, lakes, flora and wildlife that is just a few miles away. Again, can you guess what the cost was to get into such a beautiful place?? FREE!!  

Whimsical decoration along the woodland garden trail

A small turtle sits on the head of the larger crocodile. That's an odd "friendship"

This weird looking bug is a type of cicada that has been emerging through the red clay of the south and is causing quite a racket all during the day. We first heard their high-pitched buzz when we stayed at the RV park near Montgomery. It was only when we were walking around the nature center that we actually got to see some up close and personal. The best way to describe the noise they make is like hearing hundreds of blow torches going full blast constantly all day long. The sound only stops after dark. The critters are known as periodical cicadas, which are smaller than the so-called "dog day" cicadas that emerge every summer in Georgia. Entomologists say they have lived underground for the past 13 years and are emerging to mate. No wonder this guy's eyes are so red....he is frantically looking for his soul mate! Waiting 13 years is a long time!!

On the way back from our hike, we stopped in the little tourist area of Indian Springs Village near the state park and treated ourselves to hand-dipped butter pecan ice cream and visited with some local folks there.

We visited with this family while enjoying our ice cream. Southern folk are so incredibly gracious and friendly.

On our Sunday drive, we also got to see first-hand some of the damage a tornado that had gone through this area the week prior had done. Its path of damage was about a quarter mile wide and although it was nowhere near as devastating as the destruction done by the tornadoes that hit Tuscaloosa and Birmingham, Alabama, it was nonetheless evident what havoc these twisters can cause.

Watching the local newscasts and listening to local radio stations reporting the tornado damages has been both sad and heart-warming. It was sad to see and hear about the loss of life and property, yet heartwarming to hear the countless stories of neighbors and communities assisting those in need so quickly and selflessly. Traveling from Texas to Flovilla, we saw lines of disaster teams responding to help. Jim spoke to a man at one of our gas stops that owns a tree trimming business in a town many miles from the storm damaged areas. He was on his way to offer his services free of charge. We listened to a local radio station DJ who had been up days in a row, taking calls from those with needs, and connecting them to other callers willing to help. It seemed that no request was left unanswered. The generosity and willingness to help in times of crises is one of the strengths of the people of this great country. We live in a nation that should make us all proud to be called Americans!

Our next update should come in about three or four weeks, after we finish up at Indian Springs. We hope to share with you what is accomplished on the project and what places we find to explore in this part of Georgia. 

So we close this update with this thought:

Contemplating the tornado damage of last week and the flooding damage caused by the Mississippi River this week makes it very clear how fragile our existence this side of heaven is. What we think will last forever (our “stuff” as well as our lives) can be gone in an instant and many times there is little if anything we can do about it. Don’t hold on too tightly to your “stuff” and make a decision now on WHO will hold on tightly to your life.  To those of us that trust Him, our God promises – “I will never leave you or forsake you.”  

That’s something that lasts forever – even if everything else is swept away by flood or tornado.