Retreat Memories

Our Seaside Escape with the Calvary ladies was yet, another wonderful time of LAUGHTER, tears, quite stillness, prayer, conversation, friendship, support, singing, praying, eating, and dancing!  What a joy to know so many Spirit-filled, intelligent, funny, supportive, and likeable women!  I am so blessed.

The Retreat Staff shared with us the news upon our arrival that the conference center and retreat facility will close this November 30th.  We were saddened by the news.  Such a lovely space for retreats... and such a lovely Spirit in the space to meet and greet God.  I have been blessed with over 15 years of sharing in retreats at the St. Joseph Retreat Center and Little Noddfa. 

Just wanted to celebrate the memories and give God thanks for the good minstry that has happened in those spaces:

• remember the time we used sparklers to celebrate and caught the carpet on fire?
• remember The Orpah Show and how she was visited my 3 ancient and modern mystics?
• how about the year I spent hours sweeping snow off of the labyrinth so the ladies could walk it only to be blocked by Satan's wind.  grr.
• how about the time the directions were wrong and 98% of the ladies got lost in downtown Tipton?
• what about the time we didn't have enough snacks?  (oh yeah, that never happened)
• or the year we had a drumming circle in the chapel and about blew the plaster off the walls?
• remember when Jeri Jaggar fell down the stairs because she refused to use the elevator?!  (all ended well for that one)
• gosh, so many retreat leaders I have worked with... Cindy Torrance, Cherie McKay, Ellen Daniels-Howell, Rhonda Smith, Shirley Toth, Patti Hammerle, Sydney Powell, Katie Starks, Kendra Smith, and Holly Geddes.  And musicians for retreats: Allison Camillo, Cindy Torrance, Martha Wenrick, Katie Starks, and Susan Imel.  And dancers: Cheri Richard, Megan and Kristen Richard, Laura Portish, Shirley Toth, (me), and this year we added our hula dancers of Kendra, Allie, Linda and Becky!
• And a special shout out to our church matriarchs who have been able to retreat with us: Clari Bel, Laurel, Dodie, (even my mother in law) and many others before my pastoral tenure at Calvary.
• mostly- I remember how God's loving spirit met the women where they were (struggling with depression, eating disorders, unfaithful spouses, divorce, busy children, over full lives, grief of miscarriages, struggles with infertility, job loss, illness, cancer, change in income, care giving of elderly and needy parents, uncertainty, lonliness, their anger and dissappointment at Godetc.) and loved them through their lives.
• and for me too... God's gentle presence met me too in my lonliness, frustration, uncertainty, joy, gratitude, motherhood, ministry. 

 

As we finished our closing worship in the chapel, I asked the ladies to help fulfill a 'vision of remembrance' that was in my mind.  I wanted a photo of our group taken from the balcony of the chapel. 

 

Here we are blowing our kisses of thanks and appreciation to all who have gone before on our retreats, to the wonderful ministry of the Sisters of St. Joseph, and a kiss of welcome to all who will join us in future retreat adventures in a new and wonderful place!

 

Thanks for the memories!