Saturday

Don't be fooled into thinking that life on the field is such an easy assignment. Saturday morning we were awakened by the pastor's two little girls. They'd decided that there family needed to shovel out of the snow and go swimming at the pool in a neighboring town. What could "Aunt and Uncle" say as we read, "we need to relax and retreat" written all over mom and dad's faces... In route to the pool, we passed two markets that had been closed the day before because the weighty snow accumulation had collapsed their roofs. That troubled us little while we romped in the pool, languished in the steam room and sped down the tubular water slide with toddlers in our arms. Ponce d'Leon was looking on the wrong continent for the fountain of youth! On the way home we stopped in at a new supermarket that had been closed the day before for fear of their roof's collapse. To entice shoppers, they offered a 10% discount on all purchases beyond the normal sale items. We all stocked up on staples like any good steward would...

The big event of the weekend was a masquerade Party sponsored by the local congregation for the entire town's children and their parents. It was our task to provide the participants with Ken's skills as a balloon twister and Linda's keen eye as a judge for the best costume in each age group. We had hours of fun frolicking with the kids and giving the local church added acceptability in their community. By the fall of evening, we were retreated away with the pastor, and his wife, doing our customary debrief and personal tune-up session. The snow continued to fall...