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My morning began bright and early, 6:00am to be exact, the sun was well into the sky by that time. It was glorious. I stayed with Dawn and Ralph Sampson and had a wonderful wonderful evening. It was pretty laid back, we watched t.v and ate cheesecake. Dawn and I ended up being locked out of the house for about 45 minutes and had to wait outside for Ralph to come home. While we waited she asked her neighbour if she could make the cheesecake from the package that we bought at the grocery store, she said absolutely and we enjoyed just before bed. It was great.

Dawn drove me to the airport this morning at 8:30 so I could catch my 9am flight to Savannah (Mango Creek) however, my 9am flight was actually at 10 so I had to wait around for a bit which was no bother for me, got to read a book FOR FUN which was glorious. I arrived in Mango Creek and was greeted by Miss Lorna Longsworth. She looks great it was so great to see her. As we drove into town, I couldn't help but continue to feel like I was coming home!! We dropped my stuff off at her house and waited around for Shanton (her grandson) to come home. She was telling me that all last night he kept asking where I was, who was picking me up, and when I was going to arrive. So I waited in anticipation for him. As soon as I saw him I almost started to cry, he has grown so much and his smile was contagious. What a wonderful strong young man. In the last year he has gone through a lot. Shortly after I left Mango Creek, Shanton's mother who I got to know quite well passed away suddenly. Miss Lorna has said it's been a hard year for him, but that he has been doing well. She also said that when he found out I was coming he was incredibly excited, and that she hasn't seen him smile this much since I was here last. It's been great to see him and chat with him. I missed him and Miss Lorna tremendously.

Miss Lorna took me around town to say hello to friends that I haven't seen. One of these people included Mr. Peter's my neighbour who kept an eye on me all summer last summer. He told me he's going to come to church on Sunday, it's going to be great!!!

I found out that school is out tomorrow as it is the last Friday of the month and they don't have school. So Miss Lorna and I made a trip to IPS to see some of the kids. I must admit I was expecting the kids to make noise and run to give me a hug. It wasn't like that at all. When I walked into their classrooms their expressions resembled that of a deer caught in the head-lights. It looked like they had seen a ghost. They were incredibly shy and didn't say much. It was a bit awkward. However......I knew them well enough to know how to break the ice......I simply held out my hand in preparation to receive a high five and they raced to me. It was great. Their faces lit up, and they demonstrated their high fiving skills for me. They haven't lost it. God continues to be at work here. Mango Creek does not have full time clergy. Fr. Gordon who is full time in Placencia comes to Mango Creek once a month to do Eucharist, all of the other Sundays Miss Lorna leads. I will be joining her this Sunday. I'm very excited.

There is also Circus in town. Miss Lorna, Shanton, Miss Shirley (Lorna's daughter-in-law) and I are going to attend. I'm really looking forward to it. It's just across the way from the Longsworth's, so all afternoon I've been listening to the Lion and Tigers roaring. It will be a fun evening. Not quite sure what tomorrow will hold, haven't thought that far ahead, and probably won't until tomorrow. I envision a lot of reading in the hammock on Miss Lorna's deck - about 3 hours of my day were spent in that hammock today.....BEAUTIFUL!!!!

It's been really great seeing people here. Mango Creek is small enough that people still remember me, we've kind of picked up where we left off....and I really like being able to do that with people. It really is home for me and the people here have become family. What a wonderful gift and blessing to have!!

It's 6:00pm and it's pitch dark outside which means it's time for me to bath and get ready to go to the circus with the Longsworths! As always take care and talk to you tomorrow!!!!

In Christ,
C.