Journey to the Cross

Day 15 - Friday, March 9

Mark 8:34-38  "Cross Carrying"

"If anyone wants to come with me, he must forget himself, carry his cross, and follow me.  For whoever wants to save his own life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it." 
      We live in a me-first society, a keep-up-with-the-neighbors, how-many-cars-in-your-garage, do-you-have-latest-technological-gadget type of society.  Our focus becomes much too "inward".   Yet, how many can claim true happiness or a sense of substance to life?

"Pump yourself up with God,
not possessions!"

      Crosses are heavy.  Suffering can be painful. But is our cross any heavier than all the other "stuff" with which we burden ourselves?  To deny oneself without purpose is also meaningless, but to deny oneself FOR THE SAKE OF CHRIST can fill us with immeasurable glory!  Bonnie Cassida's message in d365.org for this scripture reminded me of the Scribble I drew for a line in Psalm 4:  "Pump yourself up with God, not possessions!"   If we can focus on the bigger picture as God does, we will find carrying JUST the cross much easier in the long run.  

Day 14 - Thursday, March 8

Mark 8:31-33  "Hard Stuff"

"Jesus then began explaining things to them: 'It is necessary that the Son of Man proceed to an ordeal of suffering, be tried and found guilty by the elders, high priests, and religion scholars, be killed, and after three days rise up alive.'  He said this simply and clearly so they couldn't miss it.   But Peter grabbed him in protest.  Turning and seeing his disciples wavering, wondering what to believe, Jesus confronted Peter. 'Peter, get out of my way!  Satan, get lost!  You have no idea how God works!' "  (The Message)

        We, like Peter, don't like to deal with the "hard stuff" - to listen to or face suffering.  It's so much easier and painless to dismiss it, pretend it isn't happening, and move on.  But that isn't how God works!  We can't ignore the poor, the war refugees, the immigrants, - the suffering - because it is hard or dirty or unpleasant or because it makes us uncomfortable.  We can't sweep it away, out of sight.  We must see the face of Christ and his suffering as we confront the suffering in our world.  There is the ultimate hope of the resurrection, but we must deal and respond to the "hard stuff" in this world, within the current limitations of this world.  God doesn't expect any less.    

Day 13 - Wednesday, March 7

Genesis 17:15-16  "Think Big. Act Small."

"And Sarai your wife: Don't call her Sarai any longer: call her Sarah.  I'll bless her - yes! I'll give you a son by her!  Oh, how I'll bless her!  Nations will come from her; kings of nations will come from her." (The Message)
     Just change one letter in the name, make the i an h, and you change the whole premise of the name Sarai from a personal term to one that encompasses the world.  How often does changing just one letter change the total meaning of the word?  Often!  Sarah and Abraham are to have just ONE baby.  How can many nations result?  Because God can take one small action and change the world!   He does it over and over!  
     God doesn't ask us all to be great orators or statesmen.  He doesn't often ask us to travel to other countries and make the headlines.  He asks us to perform small actions that HE can make great.  We might even be tempted to ask, "Is that ALL you want from me, God?" because our ego wants something bigger, something more earth-shattering.  But God will take all the small pieces of the puzzle and put together a world that is beyond our wildest imaginations.  We just need to obediently do our small part and leave the puzzle up to God.   

Day 12 - Tuesday, March 6

Genesis 17:3-7  "Look to the Future"

"I'm establishing my covenant between me and you, a covenant that includes your descendants, a covenant that goes on and on and on, a covenant that commits me to be your God and the God of your descendants." (v.7 Message)
     God made a covenant with Abraham and blessed him and all generations to come.  Abraham did not live to see all that would result from this covenant with God.  We can't imagine the future any more than our grandparents could imagine all the changes that have taken place in the last century.  But we do know this - the future holds God's blessings.  We do know that the choices and decisions we make today are helping to create the future our children will have.  What am I doing to bless my future descendants?  What am I doing to assure them a world that still manifests all of God's glory?  What am I doing to help create a future world filled with hope and compassion, filled with love?  What am I doing TODAY!? 

Day 11 - Monday, March 5

Genesis 17:1-2   "It's Never Too Late!"
"When Abram was ninety-nine years old, God showed up and said to him, 'I am the Strong God.  Live entirely before me, live to the hilt!  I'll make a covenant between us and I'll give you a huge family." (The Message)
     Usually we think our life is pretty well determined (and over) by the time we are nearing 100, but Abraham was really just beginning in his service to God!  The mistakes of the past weren't in the way of his new future.  We remember Abraham for what he was AFTER this conversation, this covenant.  It's never too late with God!  God can and will "bless us with a new identity and hope for the future." (bc)  May we see ourselves as God sees us: beyond our past, beyond today, to all the possibilities of our future.  God has something in mind - today IS the first day of the rest of our life.  Let's begin to live it!  

SUNDAY, March 4  - FOR THE NATIONS

d365.org featured author this week is Bonnie Cassida. 
"It's hard, mostly impossible, to see the world the way God does." 
We focus on the narrow view our own lives reveal and fail to see the whole picture.  This week's devotion will help us see what God sees and hear his message for all Creation.  


Psalm 22:23-28  "Love the Afflicted"
"He has never let you down, 
Never looked the other way when you were being kicked around.
He has never wandered off to do his own thing; 
He has been right there listening."  (Message v. 24)
or as the NIV translation puts it, 
"For he has not despised or disdained the suffering of the afflicted one.."
     God loves us all in our imperfections, our brokenness, our "afflictions" - whether we be poor, outcasts, rich, immigrants, or sinners.  When we are able to sense and perceive that love for OURSELVES then we are better able to show compassion and love for others different from us in their afflictions.  For whether it is overt or not, we all carry some sort of affliction.  We are all God's children and are loved.  

Day 10 - Saturday, March 3

Psalm 25:6-10  "Follow the Signs!"
Bruce Reyes-Chow (d365.org) returns to Psalm 25 to end the week.  Verses 8 and 10  from the Message read: 
"God is fair and just;

He corrects the misdirected.
Sends them in the right direction...
From now on every road you travel will take you to God.
Follow the Covenant signs;
Read the charted directions." 
We are on a continuous "trip" to find God and the heavenly relationship he has for us.  God forgives our stumbling along the path, our "wrong turns" and continuously sets us back on the right path.  He has given us a guidebook, The Bible, he has given us mentors and leaders to show us the way.  He sets his signs to keep us from making wrong choices.  What an incredible tour guide we have in God!  Why do we struggle to "sign up" for the tour?  The destination is heaven and a right relationship with none other than God himself.  Wow!  Count me in for this vacation!  It is life itself! 
The benediction for the week from d365.org will serve as a fitting conclusion:
Go now with open eyes.
Go now with listening ears. 
Make your way with the assurance
That God is leading you. 
God is providing the signs you need
To see,
To hear,
To find your way.  

Day 9 - Friday March 2

Mark 1:14-15  "The Time Is Now!"

"John was arrested, Jesus went to Galilee preaching the message of God: "Time's up!  God's kingdom is here.  Change your life and believe the Message."
It's so easy to procrastinate - to put off until tomorrow, especially when the task doesn't have a firm DUE DATE.  My list is filled with "have to do todays" with all the "sometime" tasks at the bottom.  Where do I put God on my TO DO list?  In Mark, Jesus is telling the people, "The time is now!  You can't wait any longer! Repentence is due today! "  Bruce Reyes Chow writes, "God calls us every day to be different and better than we were the day before."  I can't put God on my list, do it once, cross it off, and say "That's done!" - because God must appear again tomorrow on my list....and everyday.  No more procrastination!  The Project of ME is due today...and again tomorrow... and all the tomorrows to come!  
PS.  I redrew the Scribble for Day 8!  


Day 8 - Thursday March 1
Mark 1:12-13    "Into the Wilderness"

"At once, this same Spirit pushed Jesus out into the wild.  For forty wilderness days and nights he was tested by Satan.  Wild animals were his companions, and angels took care of him." (The Message)
Struggle helps us grow; steel is refined in the fire; wise choices are learned as a result of poor choices.  Without some conflict, we don't learn to trust God.  When we strip away all the comforts and distractions of life, we are left with God....and our relationship to him.  We are left to discover that God is present, especially during our wilderness moments.  This made me think of Jesus going out on an Outward Bound experience!  What is my wilderness?  My trials?  How did/do I find God ever present?  


Day 7 - Wednesday February 29
Mark 1:9-11  "You are my son!"
The Message says, "The moment he came out of the water, he saw the sky split open and God's spirit looking like a dove, come down on him.  Along with the Spirit, a voice: "You are my son, chosen and marked by my love, pride of my life." 
As children, didn't we love to hear those words, "I'm proud of you" from our parents?  Especially when they occurred, not after some sports victory, but when we had made a good choice or decision. We tell our own children, "You make me so proud!" when we see decisions that show them growing into the person God intended.  Jesus heard those words from HIS father upon his baptism - as Jesus was publicly declaring his role as a "child of God".   We, like Jesus, have been "chosen and marked by love".  God longs to tell us he is proud of our choices, our actions, our deeds of compassion. God longs for us to make decisions that help us grow into the persons he created.   We are chosen!  We are marked in love!  What a gift! What a responsibility!




Day 6 - Tuesday February 28
Genesis 9:9-17  REMINDERS!
God put the rainbow in the sky as a reminder of his promise.  We fill our lives with "reminders" of people, events, relationships, and shared love - Christmas ornaments, pictures, tokens of affection.  This reminded me of Joshua's "stones of memory" the Israelites erected after crossing the Jordan to remember God's mighty acts in the wilderness.  With what reminders do we surrounded ourselves? More importantly, do we actively seek to recognize God's reminders or signs of his constant presence and love?  Seek the signs and then may we all REMEMBER to give thanks and praise to God for his enduring love.  






Day 5 - Monday February 27
Genesis 9:8-11  PROMISES!
I have just realized that the d365.org devotions must follow the Lectionary to a degree, since this is the same scripture we had yesterday in church!  
"The rainbow is the sign of the covenant that I've set up between me and everything living on the Earth." (The Message, v. 17)
God alone initiates a covenant, unlike our many legal contracts today.  God pledged to uphold his promises, but he also expects certain commitments from his people.  
God doesn't break promises.  The rainbow is our sign that God is present, that God's promises are forever.  God is with us.  Always.  
------










For this season of Lent, inspired by my son Luke who has committed to writing everyday, I shall commit to at least a Scribble every two days!  I finished my series of drawings and study on the Psalms on Ash Wednesday, so it must be God's desire that I find another avenue for expression.  I realize that this blog is for "Rembolds on the Road", but since I am using as my inspiration an online devotion called "Journey to the Cross" (http://www.d365.org/journeytothecross/) I am still traveling - towards God.  I also found my devotional journal looked really bland when it was all writing and no pictures!  I am such a visual person!  


Ash Wednesday - Day 1
2 Corinthians 5:20-21 - Ambassadors of Christ
I went to the Ash Wednesday service, received both ashes and a confirmation of baptism plus communion.  How much more blessed can one person feel?  Ash Wednesday marks a time to unite with God on a deeper level, to reconcile with God and with our world.  In d365.org, Shannon Kelly writes, "This is a day of reconciliation, of being joined back together with God, of being reunited with the one who made you.  This is a day of intentionally stopping to remember that we are made in the image of God and we are to treat others AS the image of God." I especially like the last part - if we see God in everyone person we encounter, would we treat them differently?  I think so!  

Day 2 - Thursday, February 23
Matthew 6:1  - Do not flaunt your piety!
The Message phrases this "Be especially careful when you are trying to be good so that you shouldn't make a performance of it.  It might be good theater, but the God who made you won't be applauding."  In other words, "Don't toot your own horn!"  But Jesus also said to "Let your light shine!"  How can we do both?  It is a matter of attitude and intent.  AB Bruce offered a good formula, "Show when tempted to hide and hide when tempted to show."  


Day 3 - Friday, February 24
Matthew 6:2-4  - Do not flaunt your giving! 
The Message says, "Just do it, quietly and unobtrusively."  This is how God operates within us ....behind the scenes and without recognition most of the time.  Share.  Give.  Remember that gifts come in all shapes and sizes: money, time, listening, rides, food, helping hand.  Kelly (d365.org) writes that changing someone else with whatever gift you share will change yourself as well.  

Day 4 - Saturday, February 25
Matthew 6:5-6  - Do not flaunt your prayers!  
The Message  says "Find a secluded place so you won't be tempted to role play before God.  ....The focus will shift from you to God and you will begin to sense his grace." 
Jesus prayed in public.  We can pray in public. But so often we become self conscious about the ME in the prayer and fail to sense or convey God's presence.  Shannon Kelly advocates STEALTH PRAYING.  Behind the scenes, hidden, just you and me God, type praying.  Find time for stealth praying and "you will find God sneaking into your life in transformative ways." 
(I pondered my devotional subject matter when I had to Google an image of a Stealth Bomber for my scribble!)
Each d365.org devotion ends with a benediction for that week.  This week's, by Shannon Kelly, reads:
"Move now into the broken world. 
Travel with intense determination
To find your way into healing.
to take the message of reconciliation
With you,
Within you.
For everyone."

Sunday, February 26
Psalm 25 - "Show me your ways, O Lord, teach me your paths."
Bruce Reyes-Chow is the featured author on Journey to the Cross this week.  To make quotations from the feature author easier I am going to include them in colored print from now on.  
Reyes-Chow's focus today is on how we treat those who abuse and slander us.  When we want to strike back at someone with angry words, follow God's path: Show our enemies that we live differently, a way that shows God's presence in the world. Is this easy? Never, but then again, living as God intended never is.  
God has laid the signs out for us.  The path is there.  It is up to us to follow it, to find our way.  

Redmond Family Reunion 2012

VIEW pictures from our weekend

Friday, February 17:

Smith Rocks State Park

This will be the second year that my sister Liz has gathered her family together at Eagle Crest Resort in Redmond, Oregon for a week.  Rick and I are going over again this year for the long President’s Weekend, with Kady and Luke driving over from Newport to meet us.  We are all staying with Gretchen in one of the suites at the lodge.  Staying down in one of two condo units will be Liz and Dave, Grandma Mac, Doug and Tommy (who flew out from New York), Kirsten and Kaila (who flew out from Colorado), and Reinhart and Kate, Eric’s father and step-mother from Vancouver.  Shawn and Eric were not able to come. 

            Rick and I leave Baker City around 10 on Friday for a leisurely drive over to Redmond.  No one else will be arriving until later tonight.  The weather is partly sunny and the passes are fairly clear with only minimal snow.  All in all, a good trip over in just over 4 hours. 

Tucker helps us move the cushions
to make up the hide-a-bed. 

            We stop for a little Wal-Mart shopping in Redmond and then catch an early dinner at Panda Express!  Check in at Eagle Crest around 4:30 and then some relaxing quiet time watching TV, reading, etc. before Luke and Kady arrive at 9:15.  We visit with them until Gretchen and Tucker arrive shortly after 11:15.  Finally around midnight with sleeping arrangements worked out and furniture moved, we are all down for the night!! 

Saturday, February 18:

            Tucker begins the “getting up” process and everyone soon follows – hard to sleep in for Luke or Kady when they are sleeping between the hide a bed couch and the kitchen counter….on the floor.  We are decided to take an outing this morning and the weather is cooperating magnificently!  Clear skies, but windy!  Another storm is supposed to be moving in, so this morning is the time to go.  Our destination is Smith Rocks State Park, just 5-6 miles north of Redmond. 

Rick found a "Tucker-size" cave!

            Luke and Kady, both of whom Tucker has attached himself to firmly already, travel with Gretchen, while Rick and I drive in our car.  We bundle everyone up to face the cold wind, but the sunshine is wonderful when we are in the wind protected areas! 

Our ultimate goal is the rock
 formation at
the base of the U:
Asterisk Pass

Ginger pops through a gap
returning from Asterisk Pass

            I haven’t been to Smith Rocks since my Live Learn and Teach grad class at Lewis and Clark College back in 1979!  Rick has never been here.  The rocks are gorgeous with their many shadows in the early morning sunshine.  All in all I take over 120 pictures in the next couple hours as we hike the trails along the northwest side of the Crooked River. We must pass nearly 10 groups of rock climbers in various locations, even though major portions of the park are closed to climbing right now due to a major Eagle Festival taking place next week. 

            Hiking with Tucker opens up all the world of nature through the eyes of a three year old!  We all have to climb inside a little cave, we spot giant heron tracks down by the water, we throw rocks into the Crooked River, and hurl a mullein spear.  We find pigeon feathers.  Tucker hikes with Rick in hand, Luke, and Kady.  We watch the climbers.  He moves flawlessly from one adult to another! 

Our group along the Crooked River at Smith Rocks

Rick & Tucker

            Toward the western end of the canyon, Rick heads down to the river with Tucker, while the rest of us continue up, eventually rock scrambling, to Asterisk Pass.  It is a fun little adventure.  We climb into the pass and gaze to the west – the clouds are hiding the Cascade peaks unfortunately.  We also find the wind blowing hard and cold up on the pass, so our stay is relatively short! 

            Back down to the river trail where Rick and Tucker have been throwing rocks into the water and watching the rippling circles emerge.  Tucker orchestrates a few group tosses to see all the circles at once!  A group picture in-between a large troop of Boy Scouts moving through on the trail, and then we head back up the river and canyon to the cars. 

            Grocery stop at Walmart for lunch goodies and then back to the condo room for lunch, naps, and relaxation for a few hours.  I play a few games of cribbage with Luke and Kady, everyone showers, and I attempt to defrost our soup for dinner which is still a solid brick when we take it out of the ice chest.  Uh oh!  Some time on low on the burner is in order.

     Around 3pm, Liz calls to say they have arrived and Gretchen and I head down to the lobby to greet them while they are checking in.  Dave has driven with Doug and Tommy in one Subaru, while Liz and Mom Mac in the other.  They couldn’t get five people AND all the stuff for the week into one car!  I run out to say hi to Mom and Doug waiting in the cars! 

Tucker points to the screen as he watches Jed draw. 

The shark is ready to gobble up the goldfish.  

Just before Liz called, we finally got connected with Jed up in the room.  Luke “talked” with Jed first. After I returned, the fun began.  Jed couldn’t get his Skype to work right so we couldn’t see him – he was Darth Vader cartoon on the screen.  But then he began to change his screen view to what we saw, and settled on a drawing program, from which he drew Tucker a stick man. Well, Jed didn’t realize that Tucker’s favorite game is to have people draw for him.  Then ensued an hour of Jed drawing, painting, and designing animated pictures at Tucker’s direction.  It was amazing to watch!  I made a video clip of the shark eating the goldfish!  We also had a volcano and a blue heron (both inspired from this morning’s walk at Smith Rocks.)  We told Jed he had a new calling in children’s entertainment if the professor deal didn’t work out!

  Finally time to head down to the condo and see everyone and get dinner started!  Liz and Dave have two side by side units near where they were last year – facing the river (can’t see it) on the east side of the golf course.  We saw a huge flock of Canada geese and a herd of elk grazing on the way down. 

A line-up of Liz's grandkids at dinner time:
Tommy, Tucker, & Kaila

Kirsty has arrived with Kaila and Laura.  Laura will be heading back down to Bend after dinner.  Condo 411 is the baby unit: Kirsty, Kaila, Doug, Tommy, and Liz and Dave are staying there.  Condo 412 is the entertainment and grandparent unit!  Mom Mac has the downstairs and Kate and Reinhart will be upstairs.  All noisy things will take place here, while the other is reserved for baby quiet times.  Hopefully a good plan for all! 

More soup, Dad, says Tommy

I get the soup on the stove (it finally defrosted enough to separate into two pots) and when I go to defrost the sausage, realize I grabbed the WRONG container from the freezer and I have MORE squash puree!  I am so mad at myself mostly because the soup would be better and has such good flavor with the sausage in it, but we eat it vegetarian!  Plenty of bread and salad to go with it, and then I have two types of cookies and apple/cranberry cake for dessert.  No one goes hungry, but they should go to bed bloated either! 

A happy Kaila

The little ones are getting a little cranky from their travel days, and Kirsty puts Kaila down around 7.  They had a very late night last night, arriving at the Bend airport around midnight!  We play with Tommy for awhile and then Doug takes him next door.  Must be game time!  A 5 round game of Dominoes fills the time until 9, a game which Luke wins soundly!  (Mom Mac, Dave, Gretchen & Tucker, Kady, Luke and I). 

Back up to the lodge when Gretchen heads to bed with Tucker, Rick crashes, and Kady, Luke, and I stay up for one game of cribbage. (Kady wins, Luke second, I….last L)   Even with that, I am in bed by 10:15!!  Early night, but everyone is tired. 

I will be up in the morning to take Liz and Mom to church for an 8:30 service.  We will be back before most anyone misses us! 

Sunday, February 19:

            Up at 6:45 to type on the computer for abit and then head out to the hall to do my bible study.  All is quiet in the room, and remains quiet.  I grab a little breakfast from the fdim of the night light in the kitchen, although I can hear Tucker talking softly with Gretchen in the bedroom.  Shortly before 8 I leave to pick up Mom and Liz and we go into Redmond to the Community Presby Church for worship.  Not sure I would bother another year – this is their contemporary worship and the style of the service is not one that I would like week after week.  If I lived in Redmond, I might have to commute down to the Bend church!  I would have to give the traditional service a chance first – I am more of a contemporary-traditional blend advocate. The best part of heading off to worship this morning was the opportunity to view all the Cascade mountains in the beautiful morning light - clear and white and cold!  

            Anyway, back to the resort around 10 and take Mom and Liz back down to the condos.  I leave the car there, and hitch a ride back up to the lodge with Gretchen.  Now we all have a good excuse to walk back down and the car will be available for driving home later at night! 

            Luke, Kady, and Rick are watching old Law & Order reruns on TVs – no one got moving too fast around here.  I think everyone needed a good night’s sleep! 

Kirsten and Kaila

            Around noon, Luke, Kady and I walk down to the condos. I forgot I had my camera in my pocket and never turned around to take a picture of the mountains, which are visible from the far side of the golf course pond. Kady and Luke walked with their bedding laundry wrapped around us so they could do a little laundry in the condo machines.  Probably not the best choice, as bedding is a little large for these small units, but they got it done! Rick opted for a little more R&R for the afternoon and walked down around 4pm. 

            Afternoon is a chaos of babies awake, babies crying, babies asleep, adults in and out, napping, and some good game playing.  I went down to the sports center with Luke and Kady and we played some ping pong.  They continued playing and went for a walk.  I played several rounds of Spite and Malice with Mom, a Qwerkle game was played after Luke & Kady returned, and eventually a round of Quiddler after Kate and Reinhart arrived!  There is no lack of someone willing to play a game with this crowd! 

Tucker and Tommy find play partners in Luke & Kady

            Rick and I took a walk down along the river right before dinner.  No snow unlike last year!  I forgot to bring my camera.  Maybe tomorrow morning – there is a possibility for some tonight. We headed down river to the resort boundary and then back up the East End Trail to the main road. 

            Kirsty and Gretchen are in charge of dinner and prepare an excellent chicken enchilada casserole.  It tastes like the one I remember Mom making, so pretty sure it is an adaptation of her recipe with the olives, etc. in it.  Was very good.  Also had salad, flourless chocolate cake and ice cream, and wine slushees for dessert! 

Tucker & Kaila play together

Silly Doug and son, Tommy

            After dinner we did not get pictures taken as children were put to bed relatively quickly.  Hope I got enough of everyone in candid shots.  I didn’t get a group picture of the little ones in their tie dye.  Will have to ask Liz for one if possible before Gretchen leaves tomorrow.  We DID play another round of Quiddler and then a game of Dominoes!  Quiddler for me was an all-time LOW score!  One hand I held 6 consonant cards, fortunately mostly 3 and 5 point letters, none of the really big ones, so only a 31 point loss.  The Dominoes game was a rotating clientele as young parents dropped out and others filled in! 

Quiddler game: Mom Mac, Luke & Kady

            Back up to the lodge room around 9:30 to find all quiet.  Gretchen had come up around 8:30 to put Tucker to bed.  Luke and I stayed up to 10:20 playing a couple short rounds of cribbage (he won both, but the second game I was only 1 point from winning, but he got to peg first and snatched my victory from me.) :(   

           

Monday, February 21:

           Up around 6:15 to blog on computer and then we all pack up for the return trips.  Luke and Kady need to be on their way by 9, as Luke has to work today at 1 at the Rec Center.  So….time to get people moving around here! 

Tucker and his buddy, Luke

            As usual, once we get going, we are in “time to hit the road” mode, and Rick has most of our gear out to the car by 7:45.  We leisurely grab some breakfast and help Luke and Kady finish packing up while visiting with Gretchen and Tucker.  We said all our goodbyes last night, so will not be heading back down to the condos. 

            Luke is sending some jackets and a TV stand home with us and taking his mini table tennis, plus the good paddles and a few other goodies, off to Newport.  All packed up, goodbyes to Gretchen and Tucker, and we part ways on Hwy 126 at 8:30 am, Luke and Kady to the west toward Sisters, and Rick and I to the east toward Prineville.  Gretchen will stay in the lodge one more day, and then head for home while Tucker spends the week with Grandma and Grandpa! 

Snow around Austin Junction

            A smooth trip home, although we run into more snow than we did heading over.  Light snow from John Day on, and considerably more snow going over Occhoco Summit as well.  We stop in John Day for a quick Subway sandwich to share and home by 1:30 pm.  Rick drove the whole way while I worked on finishing up some Christmas angels in needlepoint!  (Yes, I am already working on NEXT Christmas!)  Had the text from Luke and Kady at 12:40 announcing their safe arrival in Newport! We saw elk and deer coming home, as well as two bald eagles in a tree just opposite Salisbury Junction near Baker City. 

            A good weekend of family!  Always good to see Kirsty and Doug – the condos will be lively this week with all the little ones!  Hopefully some moms and dads will get caught up on some missing sleep!  And all the grandmas and grandpas – greats as well – won’t get too worn out!  

MERRY CHRISTMAS from the REMBOLDS!

A Nativity example of Ginger's Scripture Scribbles

MERRY CHRISTMAS from sunny Northeastern Oregon! There’s about 3 foot of snow in the mountains, but here in the valley it is dry and cold.  We had snow before Thanksgiving, but it has since melted.  Which makes holiday travel much nicer!  Ging and I met Luke north of Bend, OR, for Thanksgiving in a yurt at Tumalo State Park.  Have microwave, will travel!  We had a great time.  In another week, Ging will drive to the Boise airport to pick up both Jed and her mother for the holidays. 

With Luke at our yurt for Thanksgiving

          Luke is spending this year on the Oregon coast in Newport.  No, he didn’t dry out during his YAV year in Tucson and require extensive rain to reconstitute (although he says it has seemed that way lately!) He has had a two year, long distance, relationship with a lovely young lady named Kady whom he met at Linfield.  She has an Americorp job in Newport, and they thought it might be nice to be in the same town for a change.  Luke is working part time at the local recreation center while volunteering with the Presbyterian youth group.  He is enjoying the coast while trying to discern the next step in his future. 

With Jed at Lake Isabelle in the Colorado Rockies

          Jed is in the process of writing his thesis for his doctorate.  He is still teaching labs and filming the moon when weather allows. He is looking to finish this summer.  Then…who knows?  A teaching job at a small liberal arts college is the goal.  Any openings for a physics prof, let him know!  He is enjoying family, friends, and volleyball in the central New Mexico area. 

          After a great deal of soul searching and prayer, Ginger resigned from her teaching job last June.  It was time to move on.  She is enjoying (too much!) her time volunteering at the library and food co-op, reading with elementary students, and working on the myriad of craft projects accumulated in the basement!  A new job will be teaching two classes at the community college this winter.  She is ever involved with the church, recently serving on the committee that found us a new pastor.  Artistically, she’s begun to publish her Scripture Scribble books!  Come March, she will be able to officially retire under the Oregon PERS system.  She’s a happy girl and now a lifetime Weight Watcher member! 

Fall hike in the Elkhorn Mts. 

          Meanwhile, Rick is almost half way through his 30^th and final year of teaching.  I still enjoy the kids and colleagues, but Ging and I have fall and spring travels that we have been waiting to enjoy.  We had a great trip through the spine of Colorado last summer on our way to pick up Luke.  Many mountain passes and hikes in the thin air!  We think we would enjoy combining volunteer work and traveling.  So we are looking to get a trailer (more than our pop up!), hook it up to the truck and see some country.  Who knows?  We may be coming to an area near you in the future!  In the meantime, I keep busy with weekend hikes and snowshoe trips. 

          Have you noticed a common theme in our family?  None of us is exactly certain what the future holds!  A time of transition and change for us all, but we are healthy and excited to see where our journeys and God take us. 

Rembold family all dressed up for the
Christening banquet

The USNS Wm McLean launches!

A family highlight of the year was Ginger’s participation in the christening and launch of the USNS William McLean, a naval resupply ship named in honor of Ginger’s uncle.  The San Diego April gala included over 40 McLean family members from as far away as Connecticut and Alaska!  Jed picked up Luke in Tucson and made the drive from New Mexico.  What a reunion!  Ginger also joined her sister Margaret in August for the sea trials of the ship. 

          We think of all of you often.  We wish you peace, health, and happiness.  May God’s grace be with you as we celebrate the birth of his Son. 

Rick and Ginger

Thanks everyone for welcoming our electronic

card!  We are saving trees and pennies!  

rgrembold@q.com

elkhornrandg@gmail.com

1704 Broadway St. 

Baker City, OR 97814 

THANKSGIVING RENDEZVOUS WITH LUKE

Sitting down to Thanksgiving dinner

TUMALO STATE PARK

BEND, OREGON
November 24-26


See all pictures by clicking HERE

          Rick and I left Baker City around 8 am on Thanksgiving morning – right at our intended departure!  It is cloudy and cool, but the roads shouldn’t be too bad.  In looking at the map, we have 3 passes over 5,000 feet to cross and 2 over 4,000.  Luke’s big challenge will be Tombstone at 4400’ and Santiam at 4800’.  The latter has had up to three feet of snow this past week, but it has melted quickly also. 

          We hit slush on top of Tipton and Dixie, but not the “packed snow” the internet indicated.  Truly clear sailing, and near Prairie City, when we stop at the rest area, we are greeted with sunshine which accompanies us until Prineville!  I take over driving in PC, through the John Day valley, Mitchell, over Occhoco to Bandit Springs Rest Area where we stop and switch drivers again.  At the top of Occhoco we seemed to run right into a front: the temperature dropped 10 degrees and the wind really picked up.  But the wind seemed only temporary.  The clouds did turn dark and ugly as we approached the Cascades.  Any idea of seeing the peaks was quickly squelched. 

          We arrive at Tumalo State Park a little before 1pm, check in, unpack, and touch base with Luke, who is currently in Sisters!  He arrived by 1:30!  Everyone here safe and sound! 

          We pull out the menu for our Turkey Dinner, Rick sets up the microwave on the porch bench, and we cook and reheat our meal.  Luke sets the table complete with tablecloth, decorations and candles.  It is THANKSGIVING after all!  By 2:30 we are sitting down to our fine meal! 

          After dinner and phone calls to family and Kady while Rick cleans up the dishes, we take a walk in a light rain.  It ends up longer than planned, much to Luke’s chagrain as he is still wearing what amounts to his slippers, and to mine as I didn’t have my camera with me!  We hiked to the top of a small butte above the campground where we had a great view of the Deschutes and the surrounding area.  Then we walked nearly a mile along the swollen river – it was flooding over its banks in places. 

          Back to the yurt to dry off and pull out the pies!  Luke brought an apple pie that Kady had made (it looked beautiful!) and I brought the pumpkin.  We took care of a third of each, complete with whipped cream! 

          Rest of the evening filled with good conversation and games.  Rick even played three games of bananas, prior to curling up with his book while Luke and I fought a 2/3 round of cribbage.  I won the first game, but that was the LAST game I won during the visit! 

          Friday dawned absolutely clear, cool, and sunny!  What a wonderful surprise!  I had come expecting rain off and on, and we ended up with incredible sunshine and warmer temperatures!  After breakfast (Rick ate pie, Luke pumpkin chip bread, and I finished the pumpkin cranberry bread) and a lazy pace, around 10 we headed in with the intention of finding the trail to Tumalo Falls.  Upon leaving the campground, however, we drove up to the top of a small hill and realized we could see ALL the peaks glorious with the eastern sun on them.  Our plans quickly were altered to head into town and hike to the top of Pilot Butte first! 

The three of us on top of Pilot Butte,
Three Sisters in background

          We wind through town following our gut instincts and a few signs and locate the parking area for the trail to the top of the butte.  The road is closed this time of year, so the trail is the only option!  But it is only .8 mile to the top on a well graded trail.  By the time you wind the entire circumference of the butte, you have enjoyed views in every direction!  To the Sisters and Bachelor, to Jefferson, Hood, south to Newberry Crater, and east to Powell Buttes. A nice panorama from the top with signs pointing to the various peaks.  And an easy 1.5 RT hike to start the day!

Near Tumalo Falls trailhead

          Back down and off through downtown Bend and along Drake Park on the Deschutes to find Skyliner Road to Tumalo Falls. Rick had photographed directions this morning from the signs at the solar shower, and then visited with the ranger lady at the top of the butte as to the alterations to find the road from Pilot Butte.  We easily followed her directions and within minutes were winding our way up Skyliner Road and into the snow!  The trailhead for the falls is about 10 miles west of town and is shady, so the snow was constant for over half of the way.  The last 2.5 miles to the main trailhead is on a gravel road that isn’t maintained or even open after September, so we parked and grabbed a bite to eat before taking off on the 5 mile round trip hike to Tumalo Falls – all of it on a snow packed road.  Hiking was definitely easier on the return trip as more people had packed down the snow by then! 

          Highlights of the hike were the every changing clouds in the sky!  Wispy, drifting, clouds ever changing.  We were following the creek through what was an old growth forest burned 30 years ago in a fire.  On our right was a massive rock cliff and peak, covered with new seedlings and an occasional burned out snag of a fire remnant.  The falls are 97’ in height in a straight drop off a notch in a side canyon.  They definitely had a cold feel to them today! 

Tumalo Falls

          By the time we arrive back at the car, the sky has darkened with clouds moving in.  Good time to be done for the day!  Seems to cool down some as well.  We drive back to the campground, following Mt. Washington Drive much of the way.  Rick and I test the solar showers (Luke tried it out this morning) and then some time to just relax and read, draw or fall asleep on a 5 star Sudoku puzzle (the latter two would be me!).

          Around 5 we start heating up our leftovers for dinner!  We plan out the Christmas Eve service for the church and then….it is game time!  Rick reads while Luke and I play two rounds of Quiddler, with Luke winning both by a TOTAL of 6 points!  Then two rounds of cribbage.  I didn’t get skunked, but Luke’s victories were considerable and easy! 

          In bed shortly after 10pm to read and…..goodnight!

          Saturday morning, I woke and turned on the light to read in bed for about 45 minutes.  Eventually all are up around 7:45 to clean up, eat breakfast, and pack up the cars.  By 9:40 we are ready to be on our way! 

A final picture before we leave our yurt. 

          We wave goodbye to Luke as he turned north to Sisters and we head towards Redmond.  However, we missed our turn to 97 somewhere and ended up at Eagle Crest Resort.  So we took a slightly longer route to Redmond and missed the cheap gas station!  Alas, alas! 

          Sunshine and incredible vistas all the way home!  Sprinkling of snow on the peaks, deep red ponderosas, red and golden willows, every shade of brown imaginable!  Rick drives the entire way as he is enjoying himself with a little light jazz on the CD!  Home by 2:30 to get Luke’s text that he was home safe and sound around 1:30. 

          Thanksgiving is for family and we joyfully spent the time with part of our family!  A wonderful Turkey Day in a Yurt!