Thanksgiving Vacation part 1...plus a prequel

The Tuesday before our Thanksgiving-week-plus adventure, I was driving home from a Bible study wondering what in the world I was doing. Literally--why am I in south Arkansas, deep in the Bible belt (if such a thing exists anymore), where there are churches galore and few people who don't know about Jesus, and not somewhere in the world telling people who have never heard?
That night was our Thanksgiving feast/share time at the BCM. One of our girls who has been with us from the beginning is graduating in December, so people were telling her good-bye as well as just sharing what God is doing in their lives.  I was happy to see another senior girl there, since she's been scarce this year. Then she stood up and started talking about that very thing--how she regretted not spending more time at the BCM this year, and encouraging the freshmen to stay faithful. She said she had been resisting God and trying to force her own plans, but that she finally gave it up to Him and is going to be involved in missions. It was very emotional, especially when I remembered other students we've known and loved with who are now serving in pioneer areas here in the States and overseas. I felt so reassured that God has us right where He wants us, and that what we do is meaningful.

It was a perfect warm-up for the missionary appointment service the girls, my mom, my brother, and I went to in Springfield, Missouri, two nights later. I expected the service to be nice, but my word! I didn't expect to cry practically through the whole thing! It was in a very nice church, with a huge choir and orchestra (We laughed at the drummer in his cage. Hey, we're from a small town!) and some great songs. The way the appointees presented their testimonies was dramatic and touching. So touching my nephew couldn't say his lines! (Ok, maybe he forgot them. Maybe both? Maybe he was choked up because he forgot his lines!) I loved how different all the appointees were, in how they presented themselves and what they'll do and where they're going. We had a special time when we gathered around Jason and Kelli to pray, and it all became very real, that they are really moving across the world. Happily for us, we get to keep them around until the baby is a few months old. :) I couldn't help but think how thrilled my dad would have been that night.
We got bookmarks in our programs with all of their names, so we can continue to pray for them. I'm keeping mine in my One Year Bible, and hopefully will get more consistent in using it now that we're home and getting back in our routine!
More on the rest of our adventures later...

A Thankful 10 on the Tenth

Today I am thankful for...

1. My Aggie-lovin' husband, who loves his Lord and his college students even more, as evidenced by the missions conference he took them on this weekend, causing him to miss 3 quarters of today's A & M victory over Alabama. But we watched the 4th quarter together, and that was a FUN football game!
2. My three girls. Just when I think I'm a failure as a mother because my kids won't get along, they spend a day playing outside together in perfect harmony. And my heart greatly rejoices.
3. Beautiful red, orange, yellow, and brown fall leaves falling like snow all around me as I drove down a 2-lane highway on my way to...
4. Lunch with my sister-friend Angelina K.B. Lechner! I am so thankful that she and her family have moved an hour south of me, so we can get together and visit face-to-face. She is such a gift to me.
5. Fuji apples sliced and baked in an apple pie--even the smell makes me happy.
6. 5 sweet, teeny little 2-week old puppies whose eyes are just beginning to open. And their mama's pretty sweet, too.
7. Unlimited texting. I mean, seriously, am I the only one who remembers scheduling one long-distance phone call a week, because they cost 10 cents/minute? Only hearing from far-flung friends when they sat down and wrote letters and mailed them? Now Jackie in Oregon can send me a "Woo-hoo!" text after A & M beats Alabama, and it's (almost) like she's just across town. 
8. 2 cent pumpkins!!! 2 CENTS!! You can't even buy a gum ball for 2 cents anymore! I bought a bunch to decorate my front porch even though I'm leaving town Wednesday and won't be back until after Thanksgiving.
9. Billy Graham. We caught a little of the show honoring him on his birthday earlier this week--what amazing passion and faithfulness and fruit that man has shown in his life. I pray we don't drop the ball.
10. Laura Ingalls Wilder. (Don't laugh at me!) Rebecca and I are reading Little House in the Big Woods in anticipation of our visit to the Little House museum when we're in Missouri this Thursday for my nephew Jason and his wife Kelli's missionary appointment service. (By the way--they are the ones I'm really thankful for.) I couldn't tell you how many times I've read that book, and I'm still enjoying it! Just reading about all the vegetables in the attic makes me feel all cozy.

Speaking of cozy, my husband is home from the conference he went to this weekend, my girls have cleaned the kitchen, and now we're going to watch an hour of "Anne of Green Gables." And life is good.

A Good Day

A week ago today we were on our way to Texas when we got the news that Mike's mom, Arnelia, had already left this earth. Mike's sister Jeannie was with her. They were listening to Christian music and had just heard the song she requested for her funeral, "I Can Only Imagine."
Mike is the youngest of four--eight years younger than Jeannie, who we stayed with. I'm glad we were already on our way, because she needed to see her baby brother. Most of the funeral plans were already set, but the 2 of them finished up the details the next day, and then we took advantage of being in the big city by shopping the rest of the day away! We found some bargains and everybody got something.

All that shopping wore Mike, the girls, and our neice Andrea out!

On Tuesday we drove an hour north to Oakhurst, a small town outside of Huntsville. Mike's parents and grandparents are buried in an old country church cemetery there. For a long time, if you saw a spot where you wanted to be buried one day, you just put a rock there with your name on it and it was saved for you! We saw Bartee (Arnelia's maiden name) and Malone (her mom's maiden name) graves all over it.

This sign is so odd to me!

The pastor of the church turned out to be a friend of Mike's from his Texas A & M days, who also had served in the Northwest when we were there! I love when God arranges things like that.
All the family got together and walked over to the gravesite, and Arnelia's hospice chaplain led the service. He did such a good job sharing personal details about her life that I got a copy of his notes to keep. He mentioned how she grew up in that area, sharecroppers on a cotton farm, and about her and her brothers and sister singing gospel songs on the local radio station, and how she passed down her instinctive style of cooking to Mike and his brother Jeff. He also led us in singing "Rock of Ages" and "I'd Rather Have Jesus," and played Mercy Me's "I Can Only Imagine," which made me cry--not sad tears because of her being gone, but happy tears at imagining how she is now! Better than she's ever been before! (I also cried when her grandchildren each went up to the casket and laid a rose on it...and my little Rebecca turned around and started bawling. I wanted to go hold her, but before I could get to her she was surrounded by cousins and sisters loving on her.)
After the service, Mike mentioned to his friend Bryan, the pastor, how we had once tried to find Raven Hill, where Arnelia grew up, but never could. He said he could take us right to it, so we loaded up all the cars and he took us there! We don't know exactly where her house was, but we passed several old abandoned houses in the woods, and Bryan also pointed out spots that used to be old homesteads. It was so fascinating to me. He also said he still has lots of church members who are Bartees, some of whom probably grew up with her. Hopefully we're going to go back and meet some of them one day.
Raven Hill is not a town, just an area people refer to. Originally it was Sam Houston's plantation, and he took us to the memorial marking that.

 

The grandchildren

The children

The whole family!

Uncle David told the kids about how Arnelia and her brothers and sisters used to entertain themselves by working together to pull a pine sapling down toward the ground, then one of them would hold on to it, the others would let go, and they would fly through the air! They had to quit when her brother broke his wrist-

The plantation was owned by another family by the time Arnelia was growing up. We explored the old barn and the bois d'arc trees, took some family pictures, told some family stories, and took Bryan back to his church before heading to a Mexican restaurant for supper. I sat near most of my neices and nephews and got caught up with them. After supper everyone was going their different directions home (except us) so we stood in the parking lot a long time, "saying good-bye." The kids found a field and started running around playing tag! Right when I grabbed my camera to take some pictures Ethan stepped (barefooted) in a bunch of cockle-burrs, so the game was over.

3 of my neices with their "mini-me's" (Kay and Jessica, Andrea and Mikayla, Callie and Rebecca)

It's funny to me how a day that sounds like it ought to be sad--and was touched with sadness--could also turn out to be so good. The weather and scenery were beautiful, we had sweet time with family, reunited with old friends, and worshiped our Lord, honoring one of His daughters who'd gone home. It really was a good day.