Reconnecting

This retirement trip has brought us back together with so many people. Sometimes those people have been relatives – siblings, nieces and nephews, cousins and their families. Those family times have been rich and precious ones, catching up on one another’s lives and stocking up on hugs because they do not happen often enough.

Sometimes those people have been friends with whom our lives connected sometime along our journey but whom we rarely get to see. If you’ve been reading the blog, you know that we got to spend time with a seminary friend, Dave McConnell, whom we’d not seen in 30 years. This weekend, we will get time with another of those seminary classmates, Richard Ketchum, and we can hardly wait! (Added later: we had a wonderful time with Ketchums this weekend. Neil was honored to do the dedication of their youngest daughter, Sarah Jade, at worship on Sunday. See picture.)


Sometimes those people have been our former seminarians, students for whom we have been mentors or even surrogate parents as well as with some of my (Patty’s) former Fuller student wives. With all of these young people, we have been honored to walk their seminary journey, sharing the ups and downs of seminary life as they prepare to go into ministry.

Sometimes those people have been ministry couples, friends who have encouraged us, and hopefully whom we have encouraged in return, in the challenges and joys of ministry life.

Sometimes those people have been former parishioners whose lives connected with ours in our civilian parish in Sylmar, where we pastored during our seminary years in the early ‘70’s, or from chapels in our military career.

One of our most special evenings was spent in the home of Beverly and Marty Hoffman in Sequim, WA. (Pictured to the left: Marty & Beverly with Frank and Chris Bru.) There is quite a group of former DoDDS (Department of Defense Dependent Schools) teachers who have retired in that amazingly beautiful corner of our country, and who can blame them? It’s gorgeous there!

Marty and Beverly’s sunroom overlooks the Juan de Fuca Strait. As six of us sat visiting just before sunset that evening, we watched in awe as a pod of 30 – 40 seals swam by, catching dinner enroute, with the birds swooping down to get the leftovers.

That evening, there were five couples gathered at Hoffmans to reconnect and enjoy fellowship again. Most of us had taught together, with Marty as our fearless leader/principal, and most of us had worshiped and sung in choir together at the Ft. Espinar Chapel on the Atlantic side in Panama -- great memories with truly fine folks. (Pictured at right: Wallace Teal & Beverly, Neil & Patty, Randy & Donna Grubbs.)

What a joy to reconnect!