This post is going to highlight a few special moments for me at Synod.
Seeing friends again - Quite possibly one of the greatest blessings about being able to go to GS was the fact that I was working, but also reconnecting with some old friends. I was able to spend some time with Pastor Darrell, and even got to see Esther for a few moments before worship on Thursday night. I was also able to reconnect with some global mission folk: Jay, Jhonny, and Duncan. I was able to reconnect with some of my other random friends with the RCA, like Stephanie and Claudette. I was also able to reconnect with April, a good friend who interned at Home Acres about 8 years ago... and I hadn't seen her since! Who would have thought that a business trip could be so filled with friends?
Iced coffee - Honestly, this was a super highlight for me. On either Saturday or Monday, I can't remember which one, I decided to sleep in and skip the whole "going to breakfast" thing. Besides (as you will read in the next section), I had granola bars and fruit galore. In the middle of every meeting, coffee and water would be brought in - and usually right before the first break in plenary. As this coffee arrived, I saw a jug with an unusual sign. On the days before, there had been "coffee," "water," "punch," and "tea"... but never saw this one before. This one should have been written in sparkles and lights and practically alive, because that's it would make me: sparkly, lit up and alive. It contained ICED COFFEE! Hallelujah! It was a good morning.
A trip to Walmart - This. I will probably never forget this.
First off - the trip that failed. I walked into town (I didn't rent a car) during the early Friday morning session. I was hoping to find a little mom-and-pop store in which I could purchase massive amounts of fruit and healthy snacks. After checking foursquare and wandering around for a bit, it appeared as though one didn't exist. Mind you, it was also around 8a. No one was really open yet and the town had yet to really start bustling (we're not in NYC anymore, Toto!) Finally, there were two people working in the park and I asked them. They told me that not too far away, there was a Fairway grocery store. I took off walking... and walking... and walking... and after over a half hour of walking in the direction the ladies had sent me, I realized that I would have never been able to carry a large amount of fruit back to the college... so I turned around. I ended up stopping at the Dollar General and loading up on granola bars, breakfast bars, and fruit snacks.
After telling one of my friends and mentor/boss/i'm not really sure what to call him, Jay, about the fact that I couldn't find any fruit within walking distance, he suggested Walmart. He assured me that it was within walking distance and even gave good directions about how to get there. Now, the following story may sound like a lot of complaining and I wish to assure you that this is nothing against Jay. His directions were completely accurate. April offered to travel with me and I'm so thankful she did. First of all, I may have mentioned somewhere that it was HOT in Pella, Iowa while we were there. Like, 90-100* hot. I also did not bring good walking shoes. I assumed I wouldn't be doing much walking for some reason and tennis shoes take up a lot of space in a suitcase. I brought 3 different pairs of flats (read: no sole) instead.
So, anyway, April and I headed out on Friday evening toward Walmart. There weren't any direct roads to Walmart, so we cut across grass and then a gravel road. Finally, after about a mile of gravel road, we reached pavement again. Another half mile, and there was the Walmart. I don't think neither April nor I had been so excited to see Walmart in our lives. :P Then came the fun part: buying about $50 worth of fresh fruits. Apples and oranges and bananas, oh my! We filled my purse with bananas and then carried bags of oranges and apples in the plastic bags... then headed on our way back to the campus.
That mile and a half back to Walmart was actually not so bad compared to the trip back to campus. We decided to stick to the sidewalks, so it was a little less direct. Then... we were carrying loads of fruit... in the heat... with bags breaking. It seemed like it lasted forever. However, we got back to the college and immediately decided that we were thankful we'd not have to do it again. We had gotten enough to last the entire time... as well as enough memories to smile for years to come!
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