It is Saturday morning and I’m sitting at McDonald’s. I never thought I would be grateful for there being a McDonald’s. But when you find yourself in a strange town, I know that I will find at MacDonald’s a place to park my car and trailer, that there are toilets I can use, and that I can eat something and sit down and pause and relax.
The oldies Bible school at Rathmines ended yesterday sometime after lunch. I said my goodbyes to many old friends and many new friends m, telling them or how much I have enjoyed seeing them.
I said goodbye to my niece Suzanne F, thanking her for the beautiful Afghan she has crocheted for me. Suzanne and her husband Kevin are such a hard-working people. They can be observed working in the background in all sorts of ways wherever they can find themselves useful.
Throughout the camp there were another two people that I observed time and again walking around the camp organising and doing odd tasks here and there as needed in the running of the school. Pam Mansfield and son Simeon are such faithful hard working people.
Watching the dedication of so many I really felt quite inadequate at this camp. For me, just getting myself here and there, hobbling along with my stick, was enough for me this trip. But I really did and do appreciate the faithful labourers who worked so hard for the good of everyone in this last week.
I only got to hear the second speaker each day. The talks of Anthony Oosthuizen, formally from south Africa, were so very good. But after the camp we were all given a CD of all the talks during the camp so now that I am on my way home I have already started to listen to them. By the time I get home I know I will feel so enriched.
I said goodbye to everyone, and after a couple of false starts, leaving my dark glasses in the auditorium and having to go back to fetch them, I was finally on my way.
I drove to Gail B’s place at Morriset, where I was to be spending the night. I took a few things inside. I badly wanted a shower so I climbed up the stairs with difficulty went into the bathroom changed out of my clothes, went and stood in the shower, turned on the water, nothing!!
There are roadworks going on outside in the street and have been for the last week. I presumed that the water was turned off and would not be available until some unspecified time. That was too much for me. I gathered my FISA put them in the car and drove to the Morriset Showgrounds.
I paid $15 for the night drove to a nice shady spot and immediately went and had my shower in the shower block. Soon I was sitting comfortably in my camp chair with my feet up on the carpeted box my dad made for me 32 years ago. Thank you again and again dear dad.
I was pretty tired so I decided to go to bed. I slept peacefully until about 10:30 PM. Having woken up I checked my emails and Facebook. I had a conversation with my friend Sim Sawell on fb and then went back to sleep. I woke up again at 3:30 AM. And this time I had a conversation with my brother who also could not sleep. He had put a document into dropbox and now could not find it. I sympathise with him, I know how he feels.
Now it is 10:48 AM Saturday morning and I am going to drive to my friend Gail’s place and see what’s happening there.