last night

Tuesday night was the night we said goodbye to Kitty's Road for the year, perhaps for longer. The morning session was rather sparsely attended at first (it was a cloudy morning, and a lot of the teens in particular were enjoying sleeping in), but more trickled in as the morning progressed. We spent the afternoon at Silent Valley, enjoying a game of "football rounders" (kickball). The evening, then, was our big production, our last hurrah. The Kitty's Road community had prepared a jaw-droppingly bountiful dinner for us all, after which we had a variety show, a time of wild hilarity. The community center was packed. Our team did a few sketches, reviving an old favorite "The House is on Fire" and introducing a new one or two. Some Kitty's Road girls did a country-western style dance, and one Kitty's Road boy, who had adamantly refused to demonstrate his karate skills, had volunteered instead to read something from the Bible, and accordingly read Psalm 1 in a clear, steady voice.

After the show came the eagerly anticipated slideshows. Some Kitty's Road ladies had put together an excellent one with loads of photos from our week's adventures. Merren, on our American team, had also put many hours into a brilliant video compilation from footage she'd gleaned throughout our time. There were a few words, then, from a Kitty's Road community committee member and from our N. Irish leader Dave, and then it was time for mingling and goodbyes.

Suffice it to say that was hard.

We'll have our whole-team debrief, Lord willing, tomorrow at Castlewellan, after which I'm sure I'll have many more stories or perspectives to share to help communicate what this project has really been. In the thick of things, it can be hard to grasp the big picture, or the direction of things. As our project winds down, the pattern of grace is coming more clear. More on that later.

Today was a team day. We got to sleep in, and then met for lunch and headed to the beach, where everyone who stuck around near the beach long enough either went into the water of his own accord or was--er, helped along by a team member or three. It was windy and the water was cold (but not, I kept reminding myself, as cold as Lake Superior), and also it's around full moon time, which means high tide and big waves. It was really quite a neat experience, diving into the green-grey waves and getting that shock of cold and mouthful of salt.

Finally, this evening was our host-home dinner. The team and our host families gathered in the church hall for a meal, a rendition of one of our award-winning skits (this one, "The Pencil Salesman"), slideshows, and a few words from the team leaders. It was a great time to recognize what God has done through this outreach and to specifically thank our hosts, who have served the team in an irreplaceable way and have become some of our best friends in this country.

As we reckon with the fact that our trip here is almost over, pray that we'll continue to make the best use of our time, that we'll persevere in love for each other, and that God would solidify the lasting impact of the trip in those to whom we ministered and in us.

"You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you." John 15:16