A beautiful day in the mountains

The rain that began in the late afternoon yesterday continued most of the morning here in western North Carolina. Charles used the time to do some laundry, get a haircut and enjoy the quiet that is Waynesville. After the chores were done it was off on a day-long adventure!

First up was the Museum of North Carolina Handicrafts (in Waynesville), located in the historic Shelton House. What a surprise to find such an amazing collection of quilts, carvings, dolls, beautiful furniture, and much more. There was also a farmer's market taking place on the site and this market had something for everyone!

With a break in the weather Charles drove to Asheville and the North Carolina Arboretum. You could spend all day walking the paths around this beautiful and fascinating place. The aboretum has a bonsai garden, a herb garden and a quilt garden, a beautiful area that uses a planting technique called tessellation which creates a unique pattern - wow!

Charles then drove north on the Blue Ridge Parkway to visit one of his and Belinda's favorite spots, the Folk Art Center. With a wonderful collection of crafts on display it was a refreshing pause on the journey through the mountains.

Instead of driving back to Lake Junaluska on the interstate, Charles decided to drive back using the Blue Ridge Parkway. It took longer to drive back on the parkway than the interstate would have since he kept finding vistas that needed to be explored. One of the stops was at Mt. Pisgah where Charles hiked the 1.5 mile trail to the summit of the mountain, an elevation rise of over 721 feet (from the parking area)!

Making it back to Waynesville in time for supper, Charles stopped at Clyde's, a restaurant that bills itself as "the place where the home folks eat." If Charles and Belinda lived here, they'd be joining the crowd at Clyde's on a regular basis!

A nice day in the mountains

There has been something for everyone today in the mountains of western Carolina! The cooler weather seen this morning gave way to sunny skies in the afternoon which in turn changed to a steady rainfall since 5pm.

Charles hit the links this morning, returning to the village of Whittier and the Smoky Mountain Country Club. Thanks to Belinda, who noticed an offer on the course website, Charles was able to play a round for free!

Later in the afternoon, Charles was able to take advantage of the services of Jean Adams, a semi-retired professional massage therapist who lives in the Lake Junaluska Assembly housing. It was a surprise to discover that Ms. Jean is 81-years young. She provided a wonderful therapeutic massage.

Monday morning at Lake Junaluska

The air is heavy today at Lake Junaluska, and Charles decided that it was the right time to "lay low!" The morning began at the Evangelism Explosion event; afterwards, it was time to explore a bit more of Lake Junaluska.

First up was the Southeast Jurisdiction (of the United Methodist Church) Heritage Center. The Rev. Art Swarthout, a retired member of the Nebraska Annual Conference, greeted Charles and offered the hospitality of this small, but interesting museum of Methodism in the southeastern USA.

Next up was The Foundation for Evangelism offices, which was an interesting place to visit. In addition to meeting the lovely people who work there, Charles was given three books for his library (at no cost!).

After a walk around the lake, it was back to the AC in the room. Something interesting that was noticed today on the walk around the lake was the topiary of a dog, complete with bow! Who knows what the rest of today has in store!

Reporting from Lake Junaluska!

What a busy and full day this was!

It got started early with the 8:30 communion service in the Lake Junaluska Memorial Chapel. The chapel is a quaint stone building and the singing of the the fifty or so folks this morning really sounded great. The flock of Canada geese that were walking the labrynth even honk in the right key!

After that it was up the hill to the amphitheater for a praise service attended by nearly eighty people. It was a wonderful time, gathered beneath the Lake Junaluska cross, overlooking the lake below. The morning concluded with the "main" service in the Stuart Auditorium with more than 400 in attendance. This service included a liturgical dance troupe from First UMC (in nearby Waynesville, NC) and the Vision Jazz Trio from Simpsonwood UMC (in Atlanta, GA).

The afternoon was enjoyed at the Smoky Mountain Country Club, a golf course which reminded Charles of the mountainous golf courses in Japan!

The day ended with attendance at the conclusion of the 2009 Folkmoot Festival (the finale is held each year at Lake Junaluska). There were dance troops from Greece, Israel, Spain, Serbia, Mexico, Holland, Togo, and the USA. There were over 200 dancers and many more musicians, what energy!

Lunch with Friends in San Angelo, Texas

This week, Belinda had fun having lunch with friends at a downtown restaurant! In the picture, her mama Sheila is on the right, Mary is on the left and Mary's daughter Sandra is in the middle.

All that partying

I went to a luau tonight with my mama. We had a delicious meal and played Bunko. The group was so much fun!

For pictures, you can go to my mama's blog:
http://theretirementyears.blogspot.com/ .

All that partying... and now I am really tired. It's off to bed to dream, per chance... to win another round of Bunko! Aloha!

Has it been a week already?

Has it been a week at Lake Junaluska, NC already? It sure has, and what a week it has been. The third seminar ended tonight, although tomorrow morning's worship services will feature the seminar's topic of the sacraments.

This afternoon during the break, Charles made it back to Maggie Valley and the newly discovered (for him) "Wheels Through Time" museum. This fascinating place features many restored vehicles, although most of it concerns restored Harley Davidson motorcycles. This is a wonderful experience for anyone, not just "bikers!"

For lunch, Charles discovered the best place to eat, the "Maggie Valley Restaurant." What it lacks in creativity for a name, it more than makes up for in awesome chicken, the best green beans and fried okra (sorry, Cracker Barrel) and some tasty cornbread. Charles is one happy boy tonight!

Friday at Lake Junaluska

The second seminar for Charles this week, Conflict Transformation, came to an end this morning. Really good material and some helpful insights into what had transpired in our ministry these past few years!

After lunch, Charles took advantage of the free time to visit the World Methodist Museum, located next door to the facility where he's been staying at Lake Junaluska. The museum is packed with all manner of documents and memoribilia of the pan-Methodist movement including actual items from the Wesley family, churches in England, items from Coke, Asbury, Whitfield and many more. The museum is offered by the World Methodist Council which has its headquarters in the adjacent building, a duplicate of the Old Rectory at Epworth.

After registeristing for his third seminar of the week, The Sacraments (which started Friday evening), Charles decided to explore the nearby Blue Ridge Parkway and drove a stretch of this famous route. Stopping at Waterrock Knob (elevation 5, 810 feet), he climbed an additional 1/2 mile on foot to the summit for an amazing, if not exhausting, view! Flush from his victory of reaching the summit, Charles saw two bicycle riders attacking the summit with seemingly little effort. He was bummed!

Thursday at Lake Junaluska

Another beautiful day here at Lake Junaluska! The seminar on Conflict Transformation is going well and the information is going to be very useful.

The afternoon was time to rest and then it was off to Asheville and an evening of baseball! The Colorado Rockies' class A team is called the Asheville Tourists and they were playing the Lakewood BlueClaws. The home team lost, 6-4, but it was a great evening and a lot cooler than the last game Belinda and Charles attended in San Angelo (by about 25-30 degrees!).

Wednesday at Lake Junaluska

Charles finished his first seminar, Family Systems and Church Leadership, this morning, and this evening, he began the second seminar Conflict Transformation.

The afternoon was a relaxing one with time spent reading by the lake-side coffee shop, walking around the lake, a stroll around the Susanna Wesley Garden and even trying his hand at kayaking on Lake Junaluska!

Tuesday at Lake Junaluska

It was another amazingly beautiful day here at Lake Junaluska! The seminar on Family Systems is very interesting, and the material being discussed will be utilized!

In the afternoon, Charles ventured across the road and got in another round of golf (score of 87): What a great way to spend the late afternoon/early evening in the highlands of North Carolina. After working up an appetite playing golf, Charles discovered a wonderful eatery right next to the main entrance to Lake Junaluska called Granny's Chicken Palace. As Charles was going in, a man coming out said, "Try the fried chicken, it's awesome!" And he was right!

A brisk walk around the lake (2.6 miles) and a call to Belinda using Skype , and Charles is done for the day!

It's Monday at Lake Junaluska

It was a beautiful day in the mountains and Charles took advantage of it! First up this morning was a walk around Lake Junaluska (a 2.6 mile trail) made all the more enjoyable due to the wonderful people one meets.

While not on the agenda for today, the weather kept beckoning Charles and he found himself at Lake Junaluska's golf course which was just fine with him! A round of 88 was the reward on this par 70 course, not too shabby!

Coming back to the main part of the complex, a visit to Corneille Bryan Native Plants Garden was in the cards. This beautiful, and peaceful place was created in 1989 and contains over 500 species of plants native to the Carolina mountain region.

After supper it was the opening session of Charles' first seminar of the week, Family Systems & Church Leadership. Eight pastors, most of them UMC's, are taking part in this seminar which runs through Wednesday.

Sunday at Lake Junaluska

Charles spent the day in the mountains of North Carolina savoring the cool temps (only about 72F) and enjoying what the area had to offer.

First up this morning was attending church at Long's Chapel UMC (in Lake Junaluska, NC). This was a fantastic experince - everything about this congregation said this was a community leaning forward! They have two contemporary services on Sunday morning, a traditional service Sunday morning, an awesome sounding service on Saturday night, a mid-week gathering (with food!) and so much more. The singing was incredible, I've never heard a UMC sing with such passion and the offering of the Lord's Prayer sent goose-bumps up my spine. Wow!!!

After church, Charles drove to the nearby town of Cherokee where he enjoyed a fantastic meal of Cherokee Fried bread and beans at Grandma's, a little place with a big-time idea of good taste!

 

Then it was on to visit the heritage of Cherokee Nation and the Museum of the Cherokee Indian, the Qualla Arts and Crafts display, and and historic Cherokee village, Oconaluftee. This village also had a botanical garden with all the medicinal plants used by the Cherokee and much more.

On the way back to Lake Junaluska, Charles noticed a sign pointing to Maggie Valley Golf Course, one of the better known mountain courses in the country. With only time for nine holes, Charles is happy to report that this is one AWESOME course!