Days Worth Living

   For the past month and a half I have been going for an hour-long run in the morning pretty much every other day.  England has "public footpaths" everywhere for people to walk which I have really come to enjoy exploring. Sometimes the paths lead you through towns, other times they lead you through fields.  It's a great way for one to see more of the countryside.
   I decided to start running 1) for the exercise and 2) for the chance to clear my mind and get focused for the day. Today my run was particularly worthwhile. One of the paths I often take is actually the route we take the young people that come to SPEC out on for the night walks.  It goes through some fields, over a bridge that hangs above the M-25(busy motorway around London),  down a road that's blocked off to cars, along a hill that's a fence-line away from the train tracks, and up and down a few hills along the way.  One of my favorite parts is where the path runs right next to a stream and under a bridge that holds up part of the motorway. Today the sun was shining beautifully and after a night of heavy rainfall, the trees and flowers welcomed the warmth.  As I ran under the bridge, I noticed the stark difference in the lighting as the sun was so bright, and when I was under the bridge it was so much darker. For those few moments I felt so disoriented, my eyes couldn't adjust well to the darkness. As the blinding sunlight hit me again, on the other side of the bridge, I suddenly became aware of what song was playing on my ipod.

Cause these are the days worth living
These are the years we're given
And these are the moments
These are the times
Let's make the best out of our lives

   It was like the sunlight was there to hit me in the face to get me to listen to the music.  I was needing something to remind me about the importance of every moment I have left here.  I've been so worried about getting future plans made and making sure everything gets done that needs to be done, I've forgotten how much I will miss out on if I spend my last month stressed out about everything. I was needing a reminder that life is a precious gift.  The words of the lyrics were the words I needed to hear.  Funny how that happens.


Our Lives by The Calling

Is it love tonight
When everyone's dreaming
Of a better life
In this world
Divided by fear
We've gotta believe that
There's a reason we're here
Yeah, there's a reason we're here

Cause these are the days worth living
These are the years we're given
And these are the moments
These are the times
Let's make the best out of our lives

See the truth all around
Our faith can be broken
And our hands can be bound
But open our hearts and fill up the emptiness
With nothing to stop us
Is it not worth the risk?
Yeah, is it not worth the risk?

Cause these are the days worth living
Theses are the years we're given
And these are the moments
These are the times
Let's make the best out of our lives
Even if hope was shattered

I know it wouldn't matter
Cause these are the moments
These are the times
Let's make the best out of our lives

We can't go on
Thinking it's wrong
To speak our minds
I've gotta let out what's inside

Is it love tonight
When everyone's dreaming
Can we get it right?
Yeah, well can we get it right?

Cause these are the days worth living
Theses are the years we're given
And these are the moments
These are the times
Let's make the best out of our lives
Even if hope was shattered
I know it wouldn't matter
Cause these are the moments
These are the times
Let's make the best out of our lives

             
Today is a day worth living. Thanks be to God.

Community Camping Trip in the Lake District

   Over our week of Half-Term Break, we decided we were going to take a community camping trip up to the Lake District, one of the most beautiful parts of England.  We all wanted to use our last real chance to take a trip together but didn’t want to do anything too expensive.  So 14 of us piled into 3 rental cars and drove the 4 hours up north to a little village called Windemere, next to Kendall.  We’d paid for 3 nights at a camping barn. Sounds dodgy, I know, but it was one of the coolest places I’ve ever stayed. It was an old barn converted into a camping lodge(which I guess is a common thing to do in England?) and it was nestled in right on the side of a huge hill. As you entered through the big barn doors, there was a main sitting room: a few couches and chairs on one side and a big floor space for all the little mattresses on the other side.  Keep walking in and up to the right, there was a few steps into what I called the “Bunk Room”(which I learned isn’t quite a common term in everyone’s vocabulary) with 3 bunk beds and a skylight!  Next to the Bunk Room, a straight shot back from the barn door, was the kitchen.  I thought it was a fabulous kitchen, considering the only stove/oven/anything else I've ever had for cooking has been a campfire. However, to the typical English camper, it wasn’t quite, how shall I say...up to par? One tiny sink, just enough to fit a pot in to wash, sat in the stone counter.  The fridge was a true English fridge…tiny.  (Think dorm fridge, one stacked on top of another) The oven was just big enough to fit one pan in, and the stove was rather entertaining to try to light(even more entertaining to try to get it to stay lit).  The cutlery and utensils was mix-and-match, to the extreme. To me it just made it that much more exciting to try to cook anything successfully.   “Whoever finds a knife sharper than a butter knife first, wins!”  I’d say the cooking was one of the most interesting parts of the whole camping experience.  Cooking for 14 people, in a tiny kitchen, on a small budget isn’t the easiest thing I’ve ever done but it was oh-so-worth it. 

Our barn

    The drive there ended up taking a bit longer than we expected but no one seemed to mind because we were all quite excited for a giant road trip together. Amelia, Erik, and Jess drove (I was going to but decided my manual driving skills aren’t quite up to snuff for English driving, and with a full car of volunteers) which was quite entertaining as none of them had driven since August, and Amelia and Erik had never tried driving on the left side of the road before(roundabouts, what!?).  So after we arrived safe and sound (only a few wrong turns to count), we unloaded the cars, set up our beds, and Seo-Yeon, our South Korean, set to cooking right away. She made us some authentic Korean food including some sushi rolls, some sushi rolls minus the sushi plus more vegetables, and a beef dish that was absolutely brilliant.   After we ate our weight in rice and vegetables, we did nothing but sit and talk. I enjoyed every minute of it.  There’s been so many times I’ve wanted to just sit and hang out with community but it seems there’s always jobs to do, places to go, young people to tend to (which is important, indeed). As we sat and conversed, I realized just how fast this year has gone, how much I’ve learned, and just how much I have come to love our community and everything about it.

  After awhile people started getting a bit antsy so we played what might possibly be one of the best games ever invented, called “No Holds Barred.” I’m not sure how easy it would be to explain here, so let’s just say it’s the kind of game I could see my brothers playing.  Though the severity of the war wounds was minimal, the number of bruises was abundant.

   Our first full day, Amelia took a group with her to hike a trail she’d found on the map and was determined to conquer.  The rest of us took our time getting out of bed and enjoyed a morning of relaxation on the sea of mattresses that had replaced the floor, sleeping bags and pillows scattered everywhere.  After about 12:30 pm we decided we should make the most out of our holiday instead of sleeping it away so we packed some sandwiches and filled our water bottles and headed out for Kentmere Reservoir, a place Jess had found on the map and decided it looked like a nice friendly route for an afternoon jaunt.  We set out with the agreement that we’d walk for an hour or two and however far we’d gotten by then, we’d just turn around and come back.  We hadn’t even made it to the bottom of our hill and we’d met these two older ladies sitting on a pile of rocks, studying their map and eating oranges. Since they had a map (and we didn’t)  I thought I’d ask them about the route, just to be on the safe side(I've learned the hard way that Jess isn't always the best with directions).  They assured us it was a lovely stroll, with the loop up and around the reservoir totaling 6 miles and we’d be just fine if we followed the signs the whole way. 

   Well, after an interesting encounter with a field full of sheep, a semi-treacherous crossing of a swampy pasture, passing a few abandoned yet beautiful buildings, several instances of “It’s gotta be  just over this ridge,” and about 3 hours later…we finally made it to the reservoir.  Though Jess and I were a bit disappointed it wasn’t exactly fit for swimming conditions (the strong gale winds would’ve made it a tish nippy), it was still an incredibly beautiful view from the top.  I have to say, I was fully enjoying myself as I have been yearning for some outdoor excursions like such all year, however, I think I was among the minority.  Everyone was pretty convinced the two ladies had miscalculated the length of the route but I think they were pretty close. It just seemed to last a bit longer with all the breaks we kept taking. As we started back down to our barn, I got a few rolled eyes when I was trying to spark some positivity and said, “Well, at least it’s all downhill from here.” 

Kentmere Reservoir~We made it!

  As soon as we got back, some of us jumped in the car and headed into the village to find a grocery store to get food for the evening.  It was the Americans’ night to cook and we decided we’d go BBQ style with hamburgers, crisps(chips), and vegetables with Ranch(which is usually impossible to buy in this country but we were lucky enough to find a small bottle at the store-we couldn’t believe our eyes!). After some serious frustration with the little disposable BBQ grills we’d bought, we ended up cooking our burgers on the stove inside. They still tasted amazing, seems everyone was impressed with our grill skills.  The night continued with more games and more chat, it was about 2 am when we finally turned in.

   The next day, Amelia and her gang left on another hike while most of us decided to have a lie-in(sleep in) and just take it easy.  About 3 pm, I decided to go for a run through the tiny village of Windemere.  The village was so cute, but the huge hills, however, were not so cute.  I ran to the top of one of the hills we’d hiked over the day before and as I looked down over the valley, the misty fog was hanging in the air so heavily.  The low clouds were sitting on top of the little cottages and the one church, it looked like a scene from a movie. It was another one of those moments where I had to stop and say to myself, “Wow. You definitely are in England.”  It gave me goosebumps.   I wish I could’ve captured the sight in pictures(I actually ran to the barn and back with my camera so I could try) but no photo would ever do it justice.  Another lesson I’ve learned this year: just stop. Enjoy the moment while you have it.

   That night we had one of the most entertaining meals that will definitely stay among my favorite memories of the year.  Hannah, one of our program leaders, decided it would be fun for the staff to host a “Mystery Dinner” for us volunteers.  I think I was more excited than most the others when she told us the theme and which character we’d be playing.  It was “Murder at Cactus Creek” and it took place in Texas. Yeehaw!!  If you’ve never done a mystery dinner,  imagine a  more in-depth version of the board game Clue: everyone gets dressed up and gets a script to read out and the challenge is to figure out who the murderer is as the story unfolds.  The 3 program leaders cooked a 3-course fajita meal for us- it was fabulous!  I was quite impressed with how much everyone else got into the whole thing, they all brought costumes and everything!  My character was Honey Pott, "Cowgirl whose Daddy is one of the richest landowners. Likes to think she's a crack shot and as good as any man. Wears cowboy boots and a big white Stetson perched on her blonde curls and a gun tucked into her garter."  Though I didn't have a big white Stetson(or a garter) I did have my Fatbaby cowboy boots that I wore with jeans and a plaid flannel shirt.  I think the others enjoyed it so much because they were acting out a lifestyle that was so different than they were used to whereas I loved it because I felt like I was back in the mountains of Wyoming, where I worked for 2 summers on the wagon train.  I also enjoyed it because I, or rather, Honey Pott, turned out to be the “murderer”. 

  After dinner, we all seemed to crash as we knew we’d have to be up and ready to leave by 10 am the next day.  So as Thursday morning came, everyone was running around trying to put everything back together(it’s amazing how much damage 14 people can do in 4 days) and we were waving goodbye to the sheep by 10:30.  

Blackpool Beach

   We decided that we’d make the most of our trip so instead of driving straight back to SPEC, we stopped off in Blackpool for a few hours.  It turned out to be the perfect ending of our wonderful adventure together.  Blackpool is famous for its Winter Gardens, Empress Ballroom, and Pleasure Beach Amusement Park.  It was a perfectly sunny day for exploring the beach and the piers though the tide was a bit high so we couldn’t do much swimming.  One of my highlights was going to the amusement park, which was literally right across the street from the beach, with Jess and Anthony.  Anthony is a 22-year old Zimbabwean and he'd never been on a roller coaster before so we decided it was time for him to experience the thrill.  Let’s just say for a  guy who has such a deep bass voice, he can scream pretty loud…and high.  We had a good laugh about it afterwards. 

4 pm rolled around and we decided it was time to head back so our caravan took off for the last leg of the journey and we returned back to SPEC by about 7:30 that night.

  Everyone was at the “exhausted-but-still-on-a-high-from-the-exhilaration-of-the past-four-days” stage so soon after returning, everyone dispersed and crashed.  As I laid in my bed that night, looking at the stars out my window, I couldn’t help but think how incredibly blessed I am to be a part of such a beautiful community.  The people I’ve met, the places I’ve been, and the things I’ve learned this year have made such an impression on my heart; these are the memories that will last forever.
 

I thank God for blessing me with such an abundant life.  

Highland Cattle, Loch Ness, and Tea on Easter Sunday

(A continuation from my last post)
    As we drove across the border into Scotland, I could just sense the excitement from the others in the car.  We'd spent one week in England and we'd finally made it up north, what we'd all been waiting for.  Don't get me wrong, England is lovely. But Scotland...now that's the kind of country I love to see. Besides that, Pat(Patterson) comes from a very strong Scottish background and he'd never imagined he'd have the chance to explore the area his family once lived.

  After stopping at the border to get our fill of pictures(with the signs and with the huge heard of cows right across the fence) we made our way to Edinburgh, where we'd planned to stay for a night or two. We'd arrived around 5 pm, just in time for social hour (we weren't sure what that entailed) but once they told us about the 24-hour bar available, we figured we'd sort something out.
  Mom and I went to the lounge for a bit to check in on our e-mails and such and as we were sitting there, we looked around at what was going on.  Mom leaned over and said, "Kari, I feel like I'm in a movie."  The room was full of rather posh over 60's, all smartly dressed, standing around talking about cricket.  A few men even had canes, while the women laughed in a dramatic sing-song amidst the posh Scottish/British accents. The wine glasses were shining, the fancy watches were gleaming, and there was Mom and I, sitting on a couch in the corner with our t-shirts, jeans, and Merrell walking shoes. We observed a few minutes longer(to which I found myself watching everything like it was a movie) then decided we'd retreat back to the comforts of our own room.
   As Dad and Pat decided they needed a break that night, I decided us girls needed a night out on the town.  I took Mom and Evelyn to catch the bus and head into the city to meet up with fellow Cobber and YAGM, Biz Sorenson, who is spending her year serving at a homeless shelter in Edinburgh.  Another friend from Concordia, Laura Mills, had been studying in Norway for the semester and was visiting Biz for a week so we had a mini- Cobber reunion.  We enjoyed (enormous!) desserts at an amazing Italian place two doors down from Biz's flat.  After overindulging our sweet tooth, and laughing hysterically as the Italian waiters smoothly flirted with us(mostly Evelyn), we decided it was time to head back as we had a big day planned ahead of us.

As seen on the Royal Mile

    The next day we headed for the Edinburgh Castle and spent a good few hours exploring there. I had seen it when I was in Edinburgh at New Year's but I still quite enjoyed it because I was with the others who hadn't seen it before.  I think they were most fascinated by the Scottish Crown Jewels- so BIG and SHINY!  We then started walking down the Royal Mile (the stretch of road between the Edinburgh Castle and Palace of Holyroodhouse, where the Queen stays when she visits Scotland.  We turned off and headed for Princes Street, which is the main high street, mainly pubs and shopping.  After that, we, rather spontaneously, decided to head back, get the car, and drive to Dundee, a little town about an hour and a half north.  Dundee is where Pat's family came from and we figured, we'd come this far so we might as well go all the way.  When we got there, we walked around the town a bit then found a pancake house to have our lunch.  It was so cool to hear Pat tell stories about his family that had been passed down through the generations.  You could tell he was excited to finally make it there; he was all smiles that day.
  As we drove back to Edinburgh, we found our way to the St. Andrew's golf course.  St. Andrew's is home to the Open Championship(has been over 28 times, happens every 5 years) and thus attracts many players such as Tiger Woods and John Daly.  As Scotland is where the sport of golfing was invented, it seems rather fitting that they have the oldest course in the world.  Dad was excited, he kept saying "That's the actual place...I've always seen it on tv!"  To top off the wonderful day, we got to see one of the most spectacular bridges I've ever seen: the Forth Bridge, which is a railway bridge that stretches over the Firth of Forth. As we drove on the Forth Road Bridge, we looked across and through the fog and mist, we could see the shiny beams of steel that connects Edinburgh to Fife. I was blown away to read that over 200 trains pass over that bridge...in ONE day! We tried to get some pictures but we were moving too fast...guess we can find some on Google.
   The next day we set out on our coach tour to "Loch Ness, Glencoe, and the Highlands."  In the 12 hours we were gone, we saw SO many incredible sites, heard so many intriguing stories, and met some fascinating people.  As we traveled further north, passing the Stirling Castle, we started seeing more Highland cattle and even noticed that the road signs were showing the Galic(Scottish) names first, English second.  Our tour guide, though we decided by the end of the day he was actually exaggerating his Scottish accent, was rather knowledgeable.  He shared stories of William Wallace(who's story was turned into Robin Hood), Mary Queen of Scott, and cleared up a few inaccuracies of the Braveheart movie. I actually ended up taking some notes because he was sharing so many stories, I didn't want to forget them all!

Here's some of what I learned about Scotland:

• There are twice as many sheep than people.

• Over 30,000 Lochs(lakes)- gives Minnesota a run for its money, eh?

• Highland cows(the cute ones with really long hair, commonly ginger) used to be all black until the Norse brought the gingers over to cross breed.

• St. Andrew is patron saint of Scotland.

• Back in the days when Vikings would try to attack the sleeping Scottish, they would walk into thistles that were everywhere, thus alerting and waking the Scots. Thus the thistle became the national emblem(and is to this day).
• There is a fault line that separates the highlands and lowlands, containing 3 sea lochs and 1 ocean loch- this is where Scotland used to be connected to Canada.
• Fort William is the wettest places in all of the British Isles and holds the highest mountain. This is also the only place in Scotland you can order a BigMac in Galic.
• Ben Nevis,the highest mountain in the British Isles, has about 10 deaths a year due to poor visibility through the fog...and people walking right over the top of the mountain. 
• Scotland is the only land that Romans visited but did not conquer.
• There are over 300 whiskey distillers, of which 90% of their whiskey is exported(mainly to Europe and America).
• Golf was invented by the sailors-they would take a break from work and hit seashells into rabbit burrows. 
• Bagpipes were used to call men to war.
• The Battle of Culloden, which was the last pitched battle fought on British soil, was between the British Army and the Jacobites(the Scottish clans who were opposed to monarchy and were trying to regain the throne). Between 1,500 and 2,000 Jacobites were wounded or killed while the government only lost 50 people and had about 200 injured. At that time, the government cracked down on the Jacobites and laws were put up against the Highlanders; they weren't allowed to play bagpipes, wear tartan(Scottish plaid), speak Galic or bear arms.  Many of the Highlanders were then shipped off to Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, and Australia...and replaced with sheep. 

Urquhart Castle on Loch Ness

  We continued up through the Highlands and reached our destination: Urquhart Castle and Loch Ness. We had about an hour to explore the Castle which rests on the hill right beside Loch Ness and though is mostly ruins, is still beautiful to see today.  We then boarded a boat for a short ride across Loch Ness, keeping our eyes and ears open for possible Nessie sightings. It was such a beautiful ride, the fog made it even more magnificent (and somewhat eerie).  Our tour guide said in the 9 years he's been leading tours, he's had 5 sightings of Nessie from people on his tour, unfortunately, we weren't included in that figure.  So the mystery remains...
  As we returned from our long day, we decided to end our wonderful Scottish time (that wasn't quite long enough) with a feast at the Italian Restaurant we'd visited a few nights before.  Of course the flirtatious waiters were delighted to see us again, and we had yet another entertaining meal with them.  Biz and Laura joined us for dessert again and it was so fun getting to hang out with friends AND family!

Fellow Cobbers Laura and Biz!

   We set out the next morning with St. Albans as our destination but a planned stop off in Manchester to visit a distant relative of Mom's.  Vera is 87 and two years ago Mom and I had met her while visiting relatives in Arizona over Thanksgiving. She used to go to AZ once a year to visit but as her health has seemed to be failing, the trip two years ago she decided was her last one. I remember drinking English tea with her and being fascinated by the idea of adding milk into the tea.  I drank so much tea with her that Mom told me I was drinking up her whole supply and should be more courteous(which Vera, of course, assured me she wasn't bothered by).  Two years ago, I remember being completely enthralled by her stories of life in England; I'd never dreamed I'd get to have tea with Vera at her house.  So as we sat there sipping our cuppa, I told her how wonderful it was to be there.  That's a smile I will never forget.
   Her daughter made sure we had the right directions out of town, as our Sat Nav (gps) had been giving us problems, and we headed back to St. Albans.  Getting in rather late that night, we decided we'd sleep in a bit then explore more of St. Albans the next day. Saturday is market day so the town was bustling full of people but I wanted the others to experience such a thrill that I've become rather accustomed to.  Though the markets of India and Egypt are a bit more intense, English markets are still rather exciting.  I wasn't sure what Dad and Pat were going to do while I took Mom and Evelyn through the markets but things worked out great as they ended up making friends with a couple sitting in the coffee shop who were dairy farmers from New Zealand and had come to England to visit their son.  Thank goodness my Dad has the ability to start a conversation with anyone, he ended up being perfectly content for the afternoon as us girls explored the shops.

Easter Sunday at St. Peter's Church

   The next day, we decided to celebrate Easter Sunday at St. Peter's Church in London Colney instead of going straight back into London, like we'd previously planned.  I think we made the best choice as the family kept talking about how much they felt at home there, even after just one Sunday. They loved the fact that people recognized them from the week before and were so interested in hearing about life in the States and their trip so far.  After we finished our tea and chat, I informed Dad and Pat that I wasn't about to let them stay at the hotel all day and I'd decided they were going to come with us girls and take the train into London. Pat was excited because he'd never been on a train before and he never dreamed his first train ride would be in England. Yay for a trip full of "first-times"!

Crammed in the cab(Evelyn's hiding)

  I'd been telling Mom and Evelyn I'd take them to the Camden Markets, which were even better than the St. Albans market and even though I knew Dad wouldn't be too keen on the shopping, I decided Camden was just something they all needed to experience. The thing is, Camden is usually a stop on a normal tourists' route.  The people you see there are, well, something of the interesting sort. It's kind of hard to explain. The shops will be everything from goth/punk/neon garb to artsy/vintage/retro style to ethnic/worldly/earthy type.  It's quite an eclectic place, I've never seen anywhere quite like it.  I thought it was something my family should experience simply because I knew they wouldn't have a chance to see something like it anywhere else, especially in Montana.  I figured they'd either find it incredibly entertaining or they'd find it absolute rubbish and hate it all and then I'd feel bad for making them go. But it was a risk I was willing to take. 
    I'll admit, I made the harebrained assumption that because it was Easter Sunday, most people would be at home spending time with their families so the market wouldn't be too busy.  Well, I was wrong.  There were so many people there I even felt myself becoming a bit claustrophobic(which is saying something considering I've had the whole year to get used to huge crowds of people everywhere I go). I was so proud of Mom and Dad, they followed close behind as I ducked in and out of shops and took shortcuts to find the shops I thought they'd enjoy. I was determined to show them what I think is the coolest part of the whole place, the Underground Horse Stable Markets.  The market is built in the former Midland Railway stables and horse hospital which used to serve horses that pulled barges along the canal right next to it. As Pat has been a vet for several years, he was well intrigued by the place and Dad was happily interested in seeing so many antiques and vintage shops. I was relieved I didn't let their expectations down.
    I told them I really wanted them to see Westminster Cathedral before they left so we decided we'd catch the 5pm Easter Mass.  As we left the markets and got into the taxi and headed for the Cathedral, Dad said "Well, I can honestly say I'll never see any of those people ever again."  I laughed.

Westminster Cathedral

    We made it to Westminster Cathedral with about 20 minutes to spare so we walked around looking at the mosaics and little chapels and I showed them where we had our SPEC Commissioning Mass back in October.  As Mass started, I quickly realized that I must've read the schedule on the website wrong.  The 5 pm Mass was a sung Mass, which meant most of it was in Latin, and it was the one service that the choir wasn't singing.   So it wasn't quite what we'd expected but I was still glad they got to experience Mass in such a beautiful place.  The acoustics alone were something incredible; listening to the hymns (yes, mainly listening... only a few of them had somewhat recognizable tunes) was breathtaking.
  After Mass, we took the train back to St. Albans and I took them to dinner at the Colney Fox, one of my favorite establishments in London Colney/St. Albans.  It was the perfect way to end the trip: burgers, chips, beer, and dessert and all in the company of some of my favorite people in the world. When I told the bartender it was their last night in England, he said he felt honored we'd chosen to eat there and wished them safe travels back home.  Full, weary, and content, we went back to the hotel to start packing bags for an early morning departure for the airport. 
   It was such a weird feeling as I stood there, waving goodbye to my family.  I've always been the one that's left them behind, but this time they were leaving my place.  After a few rounds of good-bye hugs, several thank-you's for offering my chauffeur/banker/tour guide/informational services, and a few...okay, several tears, I assured them that the next three months were going to fly by and I'd be home before we knew it. Pat had given me some of his Scottish money he had left over and said it was a tip for all the trouble.  I assured him it was no trouble, it was an honor.  I couldn't think of a better way to spend Easter away from Montana then with my family, showing them around my home-away-from-home. 
  As I watched them make it through the queue for security, I realized just how quickly our two weeks together had gone.  Just then, an Indian guy, who looked about my age, said, "That your family?"  I said, "Yeah, I hadn't seen them since August and we just had two weeks together here."  He said, "Yeah, that's my Dad," as he pointed to a man in the line who had definite resemblance. "He was here visiting too. I didn't think it'd be so hard to say goodbye."  I said, "I know exactly what you mean." Then there was a slight pause, and then he quietly said, "Time goes by so fast. I guess the best we can do is be grateful for all the happy moments we have together."
   As we both stood there, watching our loved ones leave, the tears rolled down my cheek. I turned and looked at him to see tears in his eyes too, and all I could say was, "Amen."

1 Adult, 4...Seniors.

   As many of you may know, I was fortunate enough to have four wonderful visitors over the Easter holidays.  My parents were joined by Pat and Evelyn Patterson, long-time family friends, for their overseas excursion.  As it was the first time traveling out of the country for all of them(except for trips to Canada), it was quite an exciting time.  It was also the first time any of them had taken a two week holiday, so I wanted to make sure they got their money's worth. I know vacations are supposed to be a time of peaceful rest and relaxation and we did get lots of that...at night. There was so much I wanted to show them, it was hard to not pack the days full!
   The first four days we spent exploring the city of London.  I told them they were in for the full English experience so the first thing we did after we dropping our stuff at our hotel was find a pub across the street for some grub.  They hadn't even been in the country two hours and I'd already gotten them a pint and a burger. It wasn't until after they finished that Dad looked at his watch and realized it was only 6:30 am back home...then he said something about not having had a drink that early in the morning for quite a long time.  ha! 
    That evening we walked from our hotel across Hyde Park to Buckingham Palace. I didn't realize how long of a walk it was going to be but everyone was such good sports. They were quite excited to finally see the Palace that they'd heard so much about and were thrilled when I told them that the flag was risen, which meant the Queen was actually home.  "She's in there....somewhere!"  Of course, they were fascinated by the rigidity and discipline of the guards standing out front.  "What if they need a bathroom break?  Is that what those little huts are for right behind them?"   Don't think so...
    The next day we visited the British Museum, which I had been to once before but found such enjoyment in watching and listening to the others' reactions when they would find stuff they only ever expected to see in history books. The Egypt, India, and the limited-time Afghanistan exhibits were among their favorites.  All the excitement was heightened even more by the fire alarm that went off and caused everyone to evacuate (apparently it was something that happened in one of the kitchens), it's crazy how many people you can fit in one building! And on one sidewalk! After exhausting ourselves of the museum, we walked to Oxford Street, which is known for its big fancy shops and popular attractions.  Though I was wanting to give them the "full English experience,"  I quickly realized that maybe there were a few things we didn't need to spend quite so much time on.  Although, I have to say, I thought that for 4 country folk, they did very well amongst the never-ending-quick-paced-get-outta-my-way-I'm important-hustle-and-bustle that is Oxford Street.  I sensed it was a bit more anxiety-inducing rather than excitng for them so I found a place for us to sit down and eat as fast as possible.

     On Thursday, we jumped on a coach bus and headed for a tour of Windsor Castle, Bath, and Stonehenge. What a whirlwind of a day-but so incredibly fascinating!  Seeing the changing of the guards at Windsor was definitely a highlight-we even got to see the band march up the street!  In Bath we spent most of our time exploring the famous Roman Baths- I couldn't stop smiling as Mom kept commenting on "just how OLD everything is!" We finished out the day with Stonehenge, which blew us all away(literally...it was quite windy). I'd heard from a lot of people that they'd found it rather disappointing because it was "just a pile of rocks," but I still thought it was pretty incredible. By the end of the day, I think we were all a bit overwhelmed by the amount of information we'd taken in, but we all felt it was definitely worth the ride.  To top it off, we had the most amazing tour guide. Her name was Trudy and she was about as British as they come.  She kept calling us "lady babes" and the men "silly sausages" and referred to Prince Wills and Prince Harry as "Prince William and His Hairiness".  She had us giggling all day, so we made sure we gave her a nice tip.

Hard to get a good picture-
St. Paul's is SO BIG!

   On Friday, we had a rather humorous, and unique, realization as we headed to Westminster Bridge (right by Big Ben) to jump on a boat for a river cruise of the Thames.  I figured it would be the most relaxing way to see all of the important monuments along the Thames: London Bridge, Tower Bridge, Tower of London, etc. As I was reading the tickets I'd printed off from the internet, I laughed as I read aloud what it said (something I didn't even notice when I'd ordered the tickets the night before). "1 Adult, 4 Others." Because my four traveling companions were so young, they qualified for the Seniors discount which left me, the youngest, as the only "Adult."  We indeed had a good laugh at the irony as we had never encountered this kind of situation before; usually there would be way more Adults, and it was rare that I was included as an Adult.  Let's just say from that point on, we took advantage of the "1 Adult, 4 Others" discount as much as we could. And yes, we laughed about it every time.
   So on the boat, we decided to get off at Greenwich, "the centre of time and space," where the longitude is 0º and the clock is absolute.  I remember learning about the Prime Meridian in 5th grade but never expected I'd get to be so close to it!  At that point, we sent Dad and Pat in a taxi so they could go explore the Museum of Zoology at the University City of London while I took Mom and Evelyn to check out Harrod's (really famous fancy department store).  I thought this would be a good time to introduce them to the Underground. Well, I thought wrong...I had totally spaced off the fact we'd be hitting the 4-5 pm rush hour. So as we were standing in the Tube, packed tighter than sardines, Mom and Evelyn holding on for dear life, I looked at them and said, "Well, welcome to London."  After a quick dash through Harrod's (mainly just to find the bathroom), we hurried our way over to St. Paul's Cathedral to meet Dad and Pat for the 5 pm Evening Vespers service. Even though we were a few minutes late, I was so glad we made it.  St. Paul's is one of my favorite Cathedrals, for the music and the architecture.  I also wanted my family to see where I got to spend Christmas Eve service this year.  They were all blown away by the grandeur of the place. I think it does have a rather majestic feel to it. 
    The next morning we got a taxi out to St. Albans where we picked up our rental car and headed for St. Albans Cathedral and Abbey. I didn't expect them to enjoy the Cathedral so much(mainly because it's smaller and not quite as extravagant as St. Paul's) but we spent over an hour walking through and reading about the history of the place and the story of Saint Alban, which they found to be quite fascinating. Then I took them to the oldest pub in England, just down the hill from the Cathedral, called Ye Olde Fighting Cocks, where we enjoyed yet another burger and pint.

Where the cock fights would take place

Ye Olde Fighting Cocks: proper English pub

  After lunch, I decided it was finally time to show them the place that has become my home for the year.  As we drove out to SPEC, I pointed out as much as I could in hopes that they could get an idea of what it was like to live here for a year.  Jon and Roseann, our Director and his wife, had invited all of us and the few members of the team that had not yet left for the holidays, over to the Farm Cottage for Cream Tea in the garden(tea and scones in their backyard). I was so grateful that my fellow team members were willing to come meet my family and spend time with us.  It was late afternoon and we watched as the sun slowly began to drop behind the big cross in the Cross Field.  As I sat and listened on to the several conversations that ensued, among the smiles and laughter, there was a peaceful contentment that came over me.  At one point I looked at my mom, and she was just sitting there, smiling, and soaking in the experience and I said, "Welcome to England." 
    After Cream Tea, I told my family to prepare themselves for the grand tour as I showed them as much of the 72-acre site as I possibly could. They were blown away by the size of everything, and the historical background of the place.  I made sure to take them down to Chantry Island so they could see the outdoor chapel where Saint Alban walked and also the big campfire pit we use quite often with the Loft kids. Mom said she was trying to imagine what it's like when it's full of young people singing campfire songs, I told her, "Pretty sweet."

Chantry Island Chapel

   I was so incredibly thankful I had the opportunity to share with them what has been my life this year.  I had been looking forward to their trip all year (just as much as they were) and couldn't believe it was finally happening. It helped them understand so much more of what I'd been doing all year and where I'd been living.   
    That Sunday I took them to St. Peter's, the Anglican church in London Colney I've been attending somewhat regularly. As we processed in with our palms, as it was Palm Sunday, I could see the sheer enjoyment on their faces.  There we were, singing "All Glory, Laud, and Honour," a whole ocean away from church in Lewistown, yet they seemed to feel so at home.  I smiled and thought in my head, "Welcome to my church."
    After church I thought they'd enjoy some fancy waffles so I took them to the Waffle House in St. Albans.  The food was amazing but we all decided if we ever went back there, we'd go for the slightly less sugary option. (It was so much more of a dessert than a breakfast food!)  So after we had quadrupled our sugar intake in one sitting, we jumped in the car and headed for Cambridge for the afternoon. Only about an hour down the road, we enjoyed a relaxed walk around and seeing the incredible architecture of the universities.  Mom and I were really hoping to go punting on the river (riding a long flat bottomed boat, similar to gondolas in Italy) but the chilly weather and our tired bodies caused us to have second thoughts.  Mom said, "Guess we have something to look forward to next time" to which I raised my eyebrow and said, "Seriously? Next time?!?!"  I think she's caught the travel bug...finally!
  The next day, we started our journey up to Scotland.  So we packed up the car and decided we'd shoot for getting as far as York(about 3 1/2 hours north), and finding a B&B to stay in for the night. After exploring the town for a few hours(which was after we drove around for almost an hour looking for a parking space) we crashed at a beautiful B&B called Hedley House.  Mom and I went to the lounge and called JoAnn(Dad's secretary) to find out they were getting snowstorms back home.  We tried not to rub it in her face that we'd been having the most beautiful Spring weather we could've asked for, not a drop of rain yet!  There was a couple playing cards with their son at the table next to us and they overheard us talking about snowstorms and said "You guys aren't from Washington, are you? I hope we're not getting any of that snow..." They were from Seattle.  They'd come to visit their son who was doing a semester of university in London.  We ended up talking for over 2 hours, Mom was pretty excited to share with them all we'd done so far and hear about where they'd been. 1 am rolled around and we decided it was time to head to bed as we had a long drive in the morning.  So we wished them goodnight and went to our room and within 5 minutes we were both in bed, dreaming of the beautiful Scottish countryside we'd be soaking up in the days to come.