Feeling Blessed

Wow, I am slow about getting these things posted. Life is rushing by too fast and I want to grab it by the coattails, dig in my heels and lean back to slow things down. Only two weeks until Randy rolls out of here in his little white pickup. I can't bear the thought. My heart is so full after this weekend.

Saturday a vanload of us drove up to Parkersburg to help with tornado cleanup. As we drove north on highway 14 the traffic slowed to a crawl as cars, vans, busses, trucks converged on Parkersburg from all directions filled with people ready to roll up their sleeves and work. The town is flattened (and I do mean flattened). If you want to see photos, go to: http://picasaweb.google.com/generaldcmills/ParkersburgTornado/photo#s5204893272879008178. It staggers the mind and heart. As we stood on the foundation of the house we were working at, we could look out across town as far as we could see, and thousands of people were there sorting the debris into piles: wood, metal, debris, combustibles. Heavy machinery would then move in and haul away the piles little by little. Red cross vans drove around offering free tetanus shots, water, and work gloves. The Iowa Pork Producers fed people all afternoon at the Methodist Church, which has become the relief staging area. It helped put things into perspective for me. My basement may be full of things to sort after we had four inches of water, but we have stuff to sort. The place where we were working was reduced to splintered wreckage in which barely anything recognizable remains. We found one silver spoon, a small pile of recipes, a couple small pieces of china. That's it. The rest is just gone.

Then Saturday night I was sitting with my feet up recuperating from the day of bending and throwing mangled wreckage in the sun and the wind when we got an invite to join the Draffens for their backyard barbecue. We sat outside and talked until dark, then they lit the bonfire and we continued talking while the flames were reduced to glowing coals and the smoke kept the pesky mosquitoes at bay.

Sunday morning was Randy's last time to serve communion to our church family here in Reinbeck. He wanted it to be extra special, so he decided Alyssa and I should join him and we could serve communion to each person individually. Alyssa held the plate of bread. I held the plate of cups, and Randy used anointing oil to bless each person. I about came unglued as all these dear faces stood in front of me and I realized I can call every single person by name. What a treasure! How difficult to leave them all behind in a few short weeks. I can't even think about it or it undoes me.

That afternoon the church threw a great party for our family, to which they also invited the community. It was an Open House from 2-5 p.m. Sherrie filled the place with gorgeous flowers from her yard. Marlys baked the famous Orange Marmalade cake from the Mitford series of novels. Rachael took pictures (you can see some on her blog. She also framed a photo of our family at Randy's graduation with a large mat around it for everyone to sign their name on. Sara sustained me with hugs and her wonderful smile. Dan and Tom kept everyone's cups filled with punch and coffee, Jean, Sherri, Kathy, Carol and many other ladies from the church kept the dessert table filled with mouthwatering delicacies. We felt very loved as people stopped by to give us their best wishes and their hugs.

Today found us in the church kitchen again serving the meal after Alan Hinders' funeral. Those ladies run that small kitchen like a well-oiled machine. It's a sight to behold. This time I got to help! It's always a wonderful time of fellowship, making sandwiches, drying dishes, refilling trays, and chatting all the while. It always reminds me of holiday meals when I was growing up when all the women would end up in the kitchen. Now I know why they enjoyed it so much! It's a perfect picture of hearts and hands working in harmony.