Three pictures that tell a vacation story...

We have been of a rest and renewal pilgrimage: it has been sweet and real and just what the doctor ordered after a VERY full year of ministry.  Three pictures tell the story of this time away in different ways...

First is this little lemonade stand we stumbled upon in the Outremont neighborhood of Montreal: little girls making money with homemade brew while little sister entertained the post Grand Prix crowd on her violin. We thought we'd gotten lost on our way to the Khyber Pass Afghanistani eatery - part of our remembrance of September 11th - only to meet this trio who were pure heaven.

Second is my sweetie sipping vin rouge in Jardin Nelson en le Vieux Port on a Saturday afternoon.  A small jazz quarter was playing "Wonderful Life" and Dianna's smile says it all for me:  growing together, sharing, learning and celebrating the fullness of life.  Our ups and downs and lots of in-betweens, oui? And throughout it all we've found ways to nourish one another - God knows she does that for me - and this foto says it all...

And then the privilege of having time off... here's a picture that captures my gratitude. For two introverts being in ministry is exhausting!  Wonderful and enriching, challenging and beautiful, but also exhausting.  I've cultivated a very public self that thrives on being with people in community, but then I have to crash and regroup because it wears me out. This year - after a wildass time in Turkey - both of us felt we needed a LOT of alone time.  Add to this the fact that we had to cut our time away short because of Di's work schedule and we opted for seclustion in Quebecois Montreal where we could venture out into the world only when we were ready and wanted to go public.  And each time has been a gas - a balanced treat of quiet days mixed with 10+ hours of wandering without a clear plan - and it has been soul cleansing.  This shot of the Community Jazz Project from Rue St. Denis expresses this for me...

I am grateful to God, to my congregation, to my family and lover and my friends for sharing this away time with us with such grace.