Charles is home!

Charles made it home this afternoon from his stay at the Oblate Renewal Center in San Antonio and his first session of the Two-year Academy for Spiritual Formation. It was a good experience, and there is certainly a lot to look forward to in the coming two years!

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Each day consisted of a morning prayer service, a morning learning session, a quiet hour, mid-day prayer service, an afternoon learning session, another hour of quiet, daily eucharist service, a covenant group session and an evening prayer service.

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Charles reports that the grounds and facilities of the Oblate Center are really beautiful, and the food that was provided was fantastic!

New Wellness Center Hours Start Monday

Preparing for a new fountain!

This week, various rocks and materials were delivered to the wellness center in preparation for next week's construction of a beautiful new memorial fountain! Stay tuned for the finished look!

Tuesday Night in Odessa!

Tonight Bobbie and Bill treated Belinda and her mother to a special dinner at The Barn Door in Odessa. What a fun evening! The drive there and back was a lovely one. "Mo" Hammitt really enjoyed the views of the sunlight striking the mesas, and the clouds were particularly bright and puffy this evening.

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The legendary Barn Door restaurant has AMAZING food! To begin, they deliver warm home-made bread and butter to the table, along with a big block of cheese. Following, they served fabulous steaks, cooked to perfection. All the "fixin's" were good too. The company was delightful, and the food was delicious!

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Praise be to God for loving folks who take the time to enjoy one another's company!!!

Happy Tuesday!

Yesterday Charles reported that he arrived safely in San Antonio, where he is about to begin his first of eight 5-day retreats over the next two years. This spiritual formation journey is sponsored by the Upper Room. Both Charles and Belinda have attended stand-alone 5-day retreats in the past. However, this is different because the same folks (or "pilgrims") will "progress" together over the next two years... to deepen and broaden their faith. As Charles and Belinda always say, "Hold on to your sombrero!" (.... meaning ... here we go .... we're about to begin another amazing journey!)
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(Note: Charles decided that it would be best for this week of retreat... that he not plug into the cyber-world, i.e., he is going to do his best to NOT surf the internet while he is away on retreat. He said that he wants to plug into what God has to say to him, so he needs to focus only on that this week. Therefore, Belinda will be the only one blogging until his return this coming weekend.)
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Yesterday Belinda appreciated and enjoyed the busy "first day" that the wellness center was open for public use. Adult members in area communities are really buzzing about all the possibilities that now await them! The staff and brand-new-members ... and about-to-be brand-new members... all the folk with whom Belinda is speaking... they are visioning that they are on the brink of a new beginning. This month marks the beginning of a new chapter in their life-journeys... towards better health and fitness! We are all on the brink of a better life! It is a very exciting time to be living in west Texas: Yee-haw!
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We saw a lovely cat on the wall of the parsonage's back garden. S/he enjoyed some fresh water we have in a dish we placed on the ground.

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It will be exciting to see what else is in store for us today! Yea, God!!!

Sunday in Iraan and McCamey

Another hot day was in store for us in Iraan and McCamey today, as we threw ourselves into our Sunday routine. In Iraan, we enjoyed the monthly breakfast potluck and a wonderful worship service. Charles held up for view... our new large-print hymnals for use in services at the churches in Iraan and McCamey... and at the weekly convalescent center worship service every Sunday afternoon.

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In McCamey, it was a great time for worship at the First United Methodist Church and at the convalescent center. After the last worship service, we headed straight for Elena's restaurant with the Lester's for a wonderful lunch!

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When we got back to the parsonage, we spotted two special sights. First was the beautiful yellow rose that has blossomed. Charles planted three rose bushes to go with the one that was already there when we moved in last December. We have really enjoyed the colors of their blooms. We also have enjoyed the antics of the chipmunk family that resides in our back yard. Today we got a picture of the entire family in one shot, such a cute family!

McCamey Hospital District Picnic

After the birthday party, it was off to make an appearance at the new McCamey pool, where the McCamey Hospital District was hosting its annual employee picnic. We had a lot of fun seeing folks having fun in this great family setting! And Belinda really enjoyed her little piece of chocolate cake!

A Wonderful Birthday Party!

This evening, we went to McCamey's Sante Fe Park to attend a birthday party in honor of Henry White. It was a wonderful time of fellowship and yummy food! Praise be to God for times that family and friends can come together and really enjoy one another's company!

Happy Saturday from McCamey: Yee-haw!

This morning, Charles was victorious after seven weeks of phone-dueling with AT&T. The parsonage is now WIFI-capable! The final tally is 23.7 hours on the phone with AT&T! Praise be to God for the patience of a husband who, just today, has seen the results of all his phone-labors!
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Belinda enjoyed the morning, visiting with neighbors and parishoners who congregated behind the parsonage. She took out iced water and fruit juice and enjoyed a good-old-fashioned time of small-town visiting. Thanks be to God for our neighbor Jug, who generously includes the outer regions of the parsonage and church property, when he is on his riding lawn mower, mowing his own property! And thanks be to God for Jack who was doing repair work at the church. And thanks be to God for Bobbie and Bill who stopped by to lend their helping hands and encouraging words!
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Meanwhile, Charles was at the church, getting ready for tomorrow's worship service. He is also getting ready for next Sunday's worship service, since he leaves on Monday for a 5-day retreat in San Antonio. This is the first of eight 5-day retreats he will attend with other pilgrims like him, who will be progressing through the Upper-Room-sponsored two-year academy. (Yes, it will be a "pilgrim's progress," and he is very excited about it! Thanks be to God for a church family who is willing to sponsor him on this very exciting journey of faith!!!)
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God is SO GOOD: what a great place to live!

Our Friday in McCamey & San Angelo

Belinda just worked this morning at the wellness center, before leaving for a quick day-trip to San Angelo.
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Belinda had an appointment to get her hair cut and a special two-hour message. She was due for some pampering after the past few weeks of burning the candle at both ends! Charles did the "manly" duty of taking the car to the dealer for some maintence work.
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On the way out of town, we stopped by for a quick visit with Belinda's mother. Belinda was excited to deliver a copy of the McCamey News with the article about the new wellness center. Belinda was presented with a copies of the San Angelo newspaper, which had a front-page story about the wellness center! The picture of them includes them wearing their wellness center t-shirts. Belinda's mother approved of the both the design and the good quality of the shirts themselves: high praise, indeed!
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We drove back to McCamey and enjoyed the sights of west Texas. We spotted a road runner, a jack rabbitt, some deer and lots of sheep and cattle. We stopped in Mertzon to take a picture of some of the largest boots in west Texas (such creative people)! As we were passing through Rankin, we spotted something really amazing. There was a large gathering of turkey vultures circling a grove of pecan trees looking for a roost for the night. It was a really cool sight!
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(Note: The first picture featured above is of a sweet critter who lives in our back garden.)

Wellness Center Grand Opening, part 9

Wellness Center Grand Opening, part 8

Wellness Center Grand Opening, part 7

Wellness Center Grand Opening, part 6