Friday, June 20, 2014

Up bright and early to a beautiful morning. Not a cloud in the sky, need to remind the team to use sunscreen. Breakfast was eaten quickly, the trailer and the cleaning of the church were also done quickly and done well. Everyone was excited. The weather was perfect for the river and all who were going on the river could not wait. Before we left St. John's, we gathered for one more prayer service. The prayers today were for safe travel and fun on the river, and there were also prayers of thanksgiving for all we had experienced for the opportunity to do it again next year. Afterwards, we said our goodbyes and those who were not going on the river headed home while the rest of us made our way to the outrigger and the river.

 

As we unloaded the tubes, and tied them into groups, our youth were even more excited than when we left the church. Before we knew it we were floating down the river. The sound of voices laughing and yelling between groups echoed between the banks. There were those who jumped in the water, those who tube surfed, and those who just laid on the tubes and enjoyed the gentleness of the drift. By the time we reached Smith Falls, it was lunch time. We quickly found a couple of picnic tables, opened up the coolers, and enjoyed the sandwiches we had made for ourselves at breakfast.

 

Once everyone had eaten lunch, we made our way along the path to the falls. The water was cold but the weather was warm so it sort of balanced itself out. The youth climbed on the rocks for a while and some took turns sitting in places where the water cascaded over them. As other groups started arriving, we decided to get our annual group picture in front of the falls before it got too crowded and then headed back down the pathway to our tubes and the river. We only had about a 15 minute float down river to the landing, and the end of our journey. We helped load the tubes back on the trailer and it was off to the outrigger's to change and get ready for the ride home.

 

Once we loaded in the vehicles, it was amazing how quickly it got quiet. There was lots of chatter for about 30 minutes, then the only thing you heard was quiet. We eventually made our way to Norfolk and dinner at McDonalds. As we left Norfolk, our youth began calling home to let their parents know we were on the way. Along this stretch of the road, we drove past Pilger and could see some of the damage a tornado four days ago caused. It was sobering to think of what the families had gone through.

 

As we approached Fremont, we picked up some light rain and shortly thereafter we were faced with a heavy downpour. By the time we reached west Omaha we had gotten ahead of it and we prayed that we would have enough time to unload at the church before the rain arrived. God does answer prayers. The parents were there waiting, the trailer was quickly unloaded and the van quickly cleaned out and all before the rain arrived.

 

In closing, it was another wonderful and grace filled year working together. Our youth, the adults, and those we met on the reservation come away from the experience changed, if only a little bit. We pray that God gives us the opportunity to come together again next year, as a diocese, to be God's hands in the world and share in the love God has poured out on us all.