your favorite foods one can’t carry it all on paper plates so I traipsed over, through the snow, to the Guide Sale to pay for my tree, and to see if there might be three dinner sized plates for cheap. You wouldn’t guess, there were three dinner plates that match the two already in my kitchen. Voila! I love the serendipity.
Thanksgiving is an excuse to cook ALL your favourite foods and have enough people over to eat it all or most of it. If we were at home we would have seafood gumbo, scalloped potatoes, with pecan pie and lemon bars. The 10# frozen ordinary turkey cost $30 and there is no Dungeness crab, Italian sausage or linguica to be found, nor pecans or pie plates or fresh lemons, or canned pumpkin for that matter. I improvised. I made oyster sauce rice with mushrooms, pecans, cilantro, and green onions, and yummy mashed potatoes from scratch. Having a vegetarian guest, I made a kale pear walnut salad, and a mango, pea pods, pistachio salad, and garlic roasted root vegetables. Nuts in everything hand carried from California and stored in the frig for just a time as this.
The Bible tells us to practice hospitality. (Hebrews 13:2) and for the church to pray together in 2s and 3s to invite the Holy Spirit (Matthew 18:20), as well as functioning as a body (Romans 12:5). These are things we are planning and preparing to do at The Loom.
We want our new home to be a place where we discuss truths of the Bible, share craic (fast talking humor)), take tea, and talk to God (Acts 2:42 They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer). These lofty goals are done, amongst the mundane tasks of assembling and arranging furniture, hanging pictures, clotheslines and curtains. In due time, it will be more of the former and less of the latter. Three from our church recently met with Maria and Sharon with whom we share the rent for the house. The plan is to start small with two early morning prayer times at 7:00-8:00 a.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays. Sharon brought two futon chairs and covered some pillows for the prayer room. This plan expanded to an afternoon quiet hour at 5 pm after which Marda goes to a restorative yoga class with Maria. We will also meet once a month to connect, have a meal, and plan other activities. More on this as it unfolds.
We announced in the church bulletin “We want to practice Christian hospitality and welcome you to visit us any day between 9 and 3 if you see the silver Picassa, parked in front or around the corner. You are very welcomed and we will stop whatever we are doing for a cuppa tea as many of you have done for us”.
At this point we can’t plan any formal outreach. Jack our minister has been sick and thus we haven’t sat down together for a discussion of the way forward. So we continue our waiting and praying.
Email: wardstothers@cten.org
Phone: (028) 90 291986 From U.S. 01144.2890.291986
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