Tim and I took an opportunity to visit my old youth pastor and his family, a couple weeks ago in Nelson, British Columbia. To say we were psyched about this trip would be a huge understatement! We hadn't seen Arden since he married us, six years ago. We hadn't seen his family since at least two or so years prior to our wedding. It was a wonderful time of retreat, and spending lots of quality time both as a family, and with our dear friends. We hadn't investigated Nelson too terribly much prior to us visiting, as we were really going to see our friends. We were sure in for a surprise!
Pot-smoking, weed-growin, dodge-draftin, and....whatever else you can think of hippy-ish defined this small town of 10,000. It was so uncharacteristic of what we knew of our friends, to live in a town like this, however, it was evident to see God placing them there, and to be given an opportunity (a challenging one at that!) to show God's grace to these people who are so desperately seeking hope amidst some very destructive lifestyles. We weren't too far from home though, as we found commonalities with many of these "hippies". Lots of baby-wearin' mamas and papas, organic, health-conscious, earth friendly people were surrounding us....the biggest difference besides the obvious apparel choices (hemp, dreads, tattoos) was the smell! I kid you not, nearly everywhere we went, there was this lingering smell of marijuana in the air. It was rather odd. Okay, onto the good stuff...
Hiking Pulpit Rock
Spending time with Arden, Marcia, John Erik, Elena and their dog, Keesha was priceless. It was wonderful to see how much their kids had grown, hear of their times in Nelson and Norquay, and just catch up on the past seven years. Elena thoroughly enjoyed Kairis, and taught her how to climb down the stairs. She was our built-in babysitter. I wish we could take Elena home with us! :) John Erik and Tim shared many commonalities, including a love of percussion. They enjoyed beating on things in the evening....:) I got my first ever motorcycle ride on the back of Arden's bike. It was a blast, and I honestly think he's converted me to the joy of biking....maybe someday! Kairis also started walking while we were there, so it was a real treat to have their family be in on a special time for Kairis. We were fed wonderfully too, thanks to Marcia's amazing abilities in the kitchen. We even got to enjoy some deer sausage! Those of you who know me, know I don't usually eat game, but man, this was seriously good stuff.
Oh, and as for the nine hour car ride....we left at 11pm Wednesday, Sept. 2 (the day before my b-day!) and arrived in Nelson by 9am the next morning. Not bad, considering we waited at the border crossing for an hour and a half for them to let us through. We left the following Monday, and drove home during the day, and surprisingly, Kairis did pretty well for such a long car ride home. Kairis felt right at home (we all did!!) when we arrived, slept well, ate well, (we all did....thanks to Marcia's amazing cooking!) and thoroughly enjoyed exploring a new home while we just stepped back and relaxed.
Celebrating my b-day with home grown peaches and icecream!
Ferry ride to Balfur (spelling?)
Nelson, and church Arden pastors...
I should also mention we did some site-seeing as well in town. Nelson is centered in the midst of beautiful mountain ranges, and a river (well, maybe a HUGE lake? not sure....) and is an absolutely breath-taking place to live. There are many outdoor enthusiasts who live there, and enjoy motor-biking the hills, hiking, water skiing, hang gliding, fishing, boating, snow sports, biking, etc. Tim, Arden and John Erik climbed Pulpit Rock while us girls toured a beautiful lakeside park. We enjoyed a free ferry ride, ate at a couple local eateries, enjoyed an awesome cup of joe at Oso Negros (a unique community oriented coffeehouse), visited a SERIOUSLY hippy farmer's market (amongst other things...), visited the church Arden pastors, had an amazing peach-rose milkshake from Cocoanut Lounge (I think that was the name....) and probably a whole bunch of other stuff I'm forgetting to mention. Anyway, we had a great time and intend on visiting again.
Cool wind power photos...(almost reminds me of Kansas)
stopped for a break along the way home at the Spokane mall...
Elena and Kairis
Keesha and Kairis
my first bike ride!
I'm hooked!
hanging out around the table...drinking iced coffee, yumm!
