I'm Going To Be A Missionary!

Well.... wow. First I just have to THANK anyone who responded to that last post in which wondering if this blog was being read by very many people. You don't know how blown away I was by those responses and I just have to tell you I'm grateful that you let me know. :) Super sweet of you ALL. I know the quantity of readers shouldn't really matter but when you write you can't help being a little curious about whose interested, if anyone. :)

Okay. Now I really need to admit, before this goes any farther, that the title of my post was a little cheeky. I had several people react with drama at the thought that I was possibly even praying about foreign missions work in my near future (not sheila going sheila to say sheila any names sheila...) so it kinda' humored me. (And made me feel very loved.) So I couldn't resist messing around with those unmentioned souls a little. And also, it's not a completely dishonest post title, because I'm determined to be involved in missions whether or not I live Stateside my whole life.

Forgiven?

Thanks.

I debated for a bit whether to post this post, and have finally decided that I will. Mainly, because I can use prayer, and mainly because this blog IS chronicling my life journey, in some ways, and I don't see any reason to keep this a secret because it's becoming a really big part of my life right now--taking up much of my thoughts and prayers. The reason I've hesitated to write about it--and I promise, I'll get to what "it" is in the next paragraph or so, but I'm the Queen of Disclaimers so bear with me!--is that I feel a little sheepish sounding like I have all these grandiose plans and ideas, and then in the back of my mind thinking, "Yikes, what if I never really get around to DOING anything? What if my life is going to consist of a bunch of scintillating ideas and visions that never quite get off the ground?"

That would be pretty lame.

But I'm starting to really, truly believe and trust that the God I serve does not have lame plans for me. I'm starting to see the power of prayer at work in my life. I'm starting to believe that it's okay to knock on doors and dream and have visions, as long as those dreams are held loosely and my plans are made with the full knowledge that at any moment, God could slam the door or wake me up from the dream or shatter the vision. He has the right, and I don't want to be afraid to let it happen. There's something really exciting about stepping out in faith, with no expectation other than that God will prove Himself faithful!

So.

Now to get down to what "it" is.

I'm praying about working with Wycliffe Bible Translators, in a 2-3 year project called the OneStory project. To be very brief in my description of it, OneStory takes a team of two or three people and places them in an area of the world where either:

1.) The Gospel has not yet been translated, or

2.) The translation is not yet complete.

During the course of two years, this team is almost completely immersed in the culture of the people group they're living with. They study the language, the traditions, the cultural expectations and understandings and framework of these people, and during this process begin to craft and record the stories of the Bible beginning in Genesis and ending in the New Testament. The "unengaged" or "unreached" people of the world do not learn by reading. They learn by oral storytelling. They pass on traditions and instruction and ancient culture through storytelling. So why not introduce them to Jesus by telling them His story? It's so simple, and yet so brilliant. All throughout the Old Testament there are beautiful analogies and paralells that prepare a people for the coming of a Messiah: the story of Adam's fall, the story of blood being required to cover a house before the death angel would pass over, the story of Abraham offering his only son Issac and God's provision of a lamb, the story of Noah and his family being saved from destruction by the ark.... God has placed in all these stories a beautifully woven thread that leads right to the feet of Jesus, the Lamb of God Who takes away the sins of the world!!!

Can you imagine being part of telling a person--or better yet an entire people group--for the first time that there is a Holy God who loves them and has reached down to befriend and forgive and save them from sin and destruction!? Wow! This has been a dream of mine for many, many years now.

When I was in Brazil I was able to visit this place:

Here, a ministry very much like OneStory is based. God's story is being recorded for remote Amazonian tribes to hear; tribes which have very few, if any readers....but many people who are hungry to HEAR the truth.

Here, a national missionary shows me the hand-crank and solar-powered tape players given to the tribe so they can hear the Gospel.

Shannon kindly interpreted for me as this woman showed me the computers and software used to record the Gospel.

What a cool "coinscidence!" These are indians who just happened to be at the station during the same time I was. They had come out of their tribe to record and help with this project. I was, admittedly, a little dissapointed by the lack of loin cloths, face paint, and feathers. Not even a bone through the nose!? Come on guys. You can be better "indians" than that, surely.

Here they sit listening as the recording is taking place, and checking for any mistakes.

It was a really incredible experience to learn more about this organization and to see what an awesome work they're doing. Since I returned home, I'm been doing a lot of talking to my parents, Internet searching, and--yesterday--talked with a representative from Wycliffe to find out more details about this ministry.

I have to be honest and say that the thought of leaving everything (particularly my parents) for 2-3 years in a remote area scares me stiff. It also makes me so excited. How can so many conflicting emotions, (caution and abandon, excitement and fright, hope and shrinking) wage inside of me? I don't know but I'm grateful that I'm not making this decision alone and God has promised clear guidance and direction.

I really have no idea if this is going to pan out or not. And really, I think I'm very okay with it if it doesn't. But I figure that it's time to start knocking on doors and see if this vision and desire I've had for over 10 years is from God! If He doesn't want me to GO, than I feel very strongly that I need to be seeking for more potent ways to support those who ARE going. Why is it that we expect the missionaries to sacrifice so much to GO, but we aren't willing to sacrifice much to SEND them? I'm talking about fasting and praying for their success... supporting them through letters and boxes and love...giving until we are actually having to forgo things WE WANT in order to provide for the work of the Kingdom.

God help me, for I'm preaching to myself.

So...now a funny little story from the pictures above. Michawn, don't kill me for telling this!

Michawn isn't in any of the pictures because she was taking them. But she was there helping to translate and shooting photos... and there didn't seem to be any English speaker other than the three of us Americans in the whole building. So when we first saw the indians all sitting there, quietly talking among themselves, I leaned over to Michawn and said (much too loudly mind you because it didn't enter my thick head that these people would know English)...

"Wow. Check that guy out over there in the purple shirt. He's taller than most indians usually are."

Michawn was like, "Yeah. And hey girl... he's pretty handsome, too."

We laughed.

And then I said,

"Yikes I hope they can't understand us!"

We laughed some more.

('Cuz that would just be really embarrassing.)

A moment later they all got up and passed us to enter the recording room, and as one of them passed (I think he was the one with the white shirt on,) he looked directly at us and said,

"Goot mooorrrrning."

Whelp, Danigirl--(you shameless stereotyper!)--put that one down on the ever-expanding list of very embarrassing moments.

Some Brazil Pictures

Two very tired travelers waiting for our bus outside the Sao Paulo airport. We didn't arrive in Brazil on time to catch our connecting flight, so we spent the night in Sao Paulo. It was a

H-U-G-E ordeal but we called it an "adventure" and had fun for most of it! :) And, of course, the more exhausted we got the more slap-happy we got so we had a few good laughs while the good people of Sao Paulo stared at us sympathetically and wondered why the crazy, cackling foreigners had lost their minds.

The airport gave us a voucher for a hotel and--once we got there-- we really enjoyed our first Brazilian meal, a hot shower, and a soft bed! We ended up being glad we had missed our flight.

ON to Annapolis! Our friends Joel and Michawn live in central Brazil, and this is one of the beautiful views of their city. Such a pretty country.

Old meets new :)

Wow, the fruit in Brazil is amazing! Check out these mangos! One thing I did learn was to check said mangos for worms BEFORE taking several bites.

Yes, mangos can have worms. No, I didn't know that either.

Nate hangin' out with Grady. LOVE all the hammocks. :)

Joel is a missionary with Asas de Socorro, which I think is translated "Wings of Help." Their motto is "Giving Wings to Those Who Give Their Lives." Without organizations like this, much of the missionary work in Brazil would be nearly impossible. He took us on a tour of the hanger and Nate enjoyed working with him there several days.

Joel, Michawn and their adorable kiddos Grady, Hadley, Eissa, and Cass showed us such a wonderful time in Brazil! They were incredibly hospitable and they went out of their way to give us a lot of cool Brazilian experiences, like eating at this little market where my love affair with Pao de Queijo (Brazilian cheese bread) began. If I gained any weight in Brazil, it began right then and there.

Nate and I spent a day walking around downtown Annapolis and browsing the little stores and markets. Here he is checking out the tobacco (at least we guessed it was either that or hemp). I convinced him not to buy any.

Mmmmmm another love affair begun, but this time with churros (pronounced "choo-hoos")! THANK you Michawn! Move over, doughnuts. You got nothin' on your Brazilian cousins.

...And, more churros. Filled with creme` de leche`. Wowzers.

Cass, Eissa and I. Love these girlies!

The headquarters for New Tribe's Mission and Wycliffe in Brazil is located in Annapolis. Nate and I enjoyed visiting both places and talking with the missionaries there. We heard SUCH fascinating stories. I wish I could write them all out here. This picture is of a map hanging at NTM's headquarters showing the different known tribes in Brazil and the missionary presence (or lack thereof) in each. There are SO many tribes who have yet to hear!

CHECK OUT THIS PICTURE. This is just one of the tribal translations of the Bible that we got to see when we visited the Wycliffe headquarters. This is a tonal language, so that's why there are 1's, 2's, and 3's above each syllable of the words... to alert the reader to which tone should be used in reading this text. Can you even begin to imagine the type of work missionaries did to translate the New Testament in this language!? It boggles my mind.

This is a doomed chicken. He was very quiet, but kinda' glaring around at everyone like he was not enjoying the ride.

I hated to even think such a thing, but I'm pretty sure he was gonna be dinner that night.

We spent a day hiking to some waterfalls. SO gorgeous, I can't even describe it! Nate couldn't resist jumping into this pool. :)

Joel took us all the way to the top of the waterfall in the background. It was a breathtaking view...

This is one example of the exquisite flowers that we saw all around us. I had a little mini worship service when I saw this one. :) WHAT a Creator we serve!

Joel, Michawn, Nate and I flew to Puerto Velho in Northern Brazil for four days. There's a mission station in a remote area there, and a plane needed repair so Nate and Joel worked on it. It was really cool to see the Amazon and it's tributary rivers from the air. Speaking of Amazon, did you know there are a LOT of bugs in the Amazon jungle?

Yeah. There are.

This blue building was our housing on the mission base. Can you tell how pretty the jungle trees and the red dirt roads and the GREEN surroundings were? Really neat.

...And there were a LOT of bugs here.

A view of the mission compound. So beautiful! But lotsa' bugs.

...Oh and did I mention the bugs? This was a twig bug! I actually liked him; he was kinda' cute in his own little way.

(I actually think he thought I thought he was really a stick. Teehee!)

There are "bugs" and then there are "BUGS." This spider was in the kitchen. I found that a combination of strong Brazilian coffee and a tarantula do wonders for waking a person up FAST in the morning!

Incidentally, there were also some big bugs around that area. This one was dead so I was happy... but then I saw a live one. They call it a whip scorpion and I'm not sure why because it's not actually a scorpion- but it has some NASTY looking claws.

The mission station is located on Wood River.

I just loved this guy. Such a happy fellow, with this big grin, baling water instead of rowing the entire time I saw him. LOL!

We would call it poverty, but it's just normal life there.

The plane hangar on the mission base.

There's my bro!

It was exciting and rewarding for the guys, once the plane was fixed, to take it down to the river and give it a test flight!

Joel and Michawn... such a cool couple.

Anna Laura was one of the native missionary's daughters. She didn't speak any english but we had a blast together. She was SO stinkin' cute! :)

I took a jungle walk late at night with these crazy guys. Was glad a few of them had machetes. :) We saw a few alligators and... oh did I mention the bugs? They seem to multiply at night. I'm still scratching my mosquito bites from that night. :)

Just in case you didn't see the picture the first time.

He was IN OUR KITCHEN.

We're home now! And here is my awesome souvenir of the trip: a beautiful Brazilian hammock hanging in the room. They have these in all the homes in Brazil and they're really fun. Nate helped me to hang it, and I LOVE IT! In fact I'm sitting in it right now. :)

Nate and I made a Brazilian dinner for Mom and Dad, our Grandparents and my Uncle Tim a few days after we got home. It was surprisingly authentic tasting and we had so much fun cooking it together.

And of COURSE I have a few bags of Pao de Queijo mix, so I won't have to go without my Brazilian Cheese bread even though I'm home now. :)

How on earth...

...Do I start blogging again!? So many things whizzing through my mind that I could write about. Sorta' overwhelming.

Well, I guess we'll start with first things first.

I went to Brazil!

And it was amazing!

My brother Nate went with me, which made it EPIC! He is an incredible guy, an awesome brother, and a treasured friend. I kept on feeling immeasurably blessed to be in that beautiful country with him. We stayed with friends in Annapolis (central Brazil) for about a week and a half, then traveled with them about three hours north to a mission station in Puerto Velho. Here, several organizations including Wycliffe and YWAM (known in Brazil as "Jocum" are based. This is a strategic spot for reaching several of the MANY remote tribes in Brazil.

Nate, who is a pilot and is preparing for mission aviation work, offered assistance with a plane that needed repairs. During the three or four days he was busy with that, I pretty much wandered around the base exploring (which was very fun!), read some, and spent time in prayer, too. I couldn't help but feel that God had definitely lead us to Puerto Velho for a reason other than tourism. Part of me was completely content with that reason being for Nate (that he'd get a clearer vision of what sort of missions aviation God is calling him to)... but another part of me kinda' hoped that God had something for ME in Puerto Velho, too. Someone I should meet; something I should see; a ministry I should know about, maybe. So I prayed about it.

I'm long winded. So because it's a long story, I'll fast-forward a bunch of things that I would be jawing on and on about if I were telling you this in person, and simply say that on the LAST day of our time in Puerto Velho I met people who are working in a ministry that I can really see myself serving in (it's an international ministry, so I'm not talking about necessarily moving to Brazil any time soon!). I felt my heart burning with excitement and with a vision to help reach remote people groups with the Word of God; a vision I've been passionate about for close to 10 years now, ever since I read the book "Bruchko."

As I contemplated these things on the flight home, I decided that I need to make this an active matter of prayer and start at least "knocking on doors" to see if God wants to send me soon. It's a terrifying thought, to leave my family and my comforts here, and I don't think I'm quite ready for it... but I trust that if God has given me this passion, He will equip me for it in due time. Perhaps God wants me to stay stateside for now and continue serving here for Him. I'm definitely willing for that. But I also feel like it's time to start looking into the possibility of going.

So, if you think to pray for me as I start tentatively seeking for guidance, please do. I would be SO SO grateful! I'm overwhelmed and excited; feeling cautious and eager all at once. God would have to do a LOT of things in order for me to move overseas anytime soon. But He's a big God. His dreams are bigger than mine. And my heart is increasingly burdened with the truth that there are tribes out there who do not know Him; people who do not know how to die. Men and women who are being hurtled into a Christless eternity without ever having heard that there is a God who loves them. It's so wrong... and I want to be part of telling them.

A little side note that doesn't have much to do with the rest of this post: I'm wondering if there are very many people who actually read this blog. So would you mind, if you read THIS post, just leaving a tiny comment? Nothing big. You can even be anonymous. Just say something like "Hey! Read it!" ...And I'll be happy. :) And you'll have done your good deed for the day.

I'm just curious.

KEITH GREEN

I'm reading "No Compromise," the story of Keith Green. I've been wanting to read it for a couple years now. I remember my parents listening to his records (yes, RECORDS) when I was younger and a few years ago I downloaded his songs on iTunes. They grip me. He was passionate.

He was only two years older than me, I think, when he died. I'm gripped by stories of men and women who make short lives COUNT. Maybe God knows I'll live a short life, and He wants me to make mine count. Or maybe if I marry some day, I'll be married to a man who expends his life for the Kingdom at a young age, and I'll have the honor of furthering his vision. I don't know. Foolish conjecture, I guess.

I wonder, when I read the biographies of men like Keith, Jim Elliot, and others.... where are those sort of men today, in this needy culture? ...I mean, I know they're OUT there, but I haven't met very many young men who've felt a drive from the time they were young to serve God with passion and wholehearted devotion. Guys who are intensely devoted to Jesus before they're even in their twenties. They seem to mess around with their lives until they're older, and THEN make the choice.

My prayer today is this: that God will impassion young men in this generation. And that He will raise my friends and I up to be the women who will stand behind them and share their dreams and cherish their vision, making them successful for the kingdom.

These past few days have been very precious to me. I feel like God is doing something in my heart and life, and I'm not exactly sure WHAT.... where it's all headed. As I was talking to my friend Danelle a few days ago and she was describing happenings in her life I said "It seems as if God's playing Connect The Dots in your life and you sense it happening but don't quite see the whole picture He's drawing." (I know, isn't it tacky that I just quoted myself? On my own blog?) ...But, it's what's happening.

I feel like God is desiring to do a great work in our country--perhaps even the entire world-- and that I must somehow prepare my heart to join Him in some small corner, some tiny, personal part of that work. He said that if HIS PEOPLE (not the unbelievers but HIS people) would humble themselves, pray, and seek His face, and repent, He would move. Since there's nothing particularly special about ME, I think that maybe God is doing the same work in the hearts of believers all over the world. I think maybe He's beginning a work of great grace: to stir us to long for revival.

I'm going to share with you some of the dots I believe God is connecting. Who knows; maybe the big picture will emerge sooner rather than later! (Heh! Doubtful though.) :)

First of all: I have been reading a book called My Heart In His Hands, the biography of Ann Judson of Burma. Not going to write a book report about it now, but I will say this: it's a fantastic, challenging, extra-ordinary biography. As I was reading it one morning, I was actually stirred to tears; tears of longing. I want to be used of God like she was. To the best of my shamming mind's ability to feel this way, I don't think I care if it's a remote, inglorious, and even terribly hard field as long as I sense that God is using me as His servant to fulfill His purposes and spread His glory. I guess the reason I was filled with longing to the point of tears is because I realize in reading Ann Judson's biography that in order to be used as Ann was I must walk in the fellowship with God that Ann did. And I am far, far from that. I long to be there, but there is so much distracting me and I want to somehow learn how to extricate myself from the world. Things that are very commonplace in my life are things that Ann did without (internet, movies, TV, etc.) and I sense that I must drastically reduce the input of these things and drastically increase the input of what she spent her time on: the Word of God and prayer. Normally I try not to be too personal on here, and I hesitate to reveal these inner workings of my heart so publicly, but I'm writing this here on my blog partly to encourage my brothers and sisters to do the same, and partly to set forced accountability. I've typed it for you to see, now, and I encourage my friends or family to ask me upon seeing me if I actually DOING what I've written here. Please; love me enough to challenge me.

So that was one of the first "dots"-- a desire for something greater. Greater dedication of myself for God's purposes and God's work, and a greater sanctification of myself in holiness for preparation to that work.

The second "dot"-- a trip to Pennsylvania with dear friends. What a fantastic few days it was. These are some of my dearest sisters in Christ and I see them too rarely. These are people I look up to and admire as those I know who are walking in close fellowship with Jesus. We talk, literally, for hours about nothing but God and what He's doing in our lives. And it's lively, exciting, animating, stirring discussion. Whew!!!!!!! :) In the course of our conversation we began to discuss a book called "Red Moon Rising." I haven't read it yet but am about to, now. it's about prayer movements that are springing up across the world. Prayer ALWAYS, ALWAYS seems to proceed revival. And it looks like God is beginning to move His people to prayer. I got goose-bumps (or "goose-pimples," or whatever you call them, though I think "goose-bump" is a much more palatable term) when we were talking about these prayer rooms that are popping up around the country. And my friend Esther and her husband William are involved in one in their own city!! They are seeing God move in beautiful, amazing and unprecedented ways in the hearts of people in their region and they believe that it is in DIRECT result of prayer! Churches of completely different theological persuasions are coming together to agree in prayer. Unbelievers are hungry and open. God's doing amazing "coincidence" type of miracles to bring people closer to Him. I got to visit the prayer fascility, called a "CPR" or "Community Prayer Room" and was blown away by it. An entire place, dedicated to nothing but interceding for God's will to be done on earth, as it is in Heaven. (Goose-bumps, anyone!?)

The next "dot" is that I am in Chicago right now. Visited with my dear friend (and now a wife and soon-to-be-mamma!) Kendalyn and am staying at Jane Hawthorn's home with The Grens. (She is the younger sister of Jim Elliot; a dear, dear woman!) It's been so special to be back with Elisabeth, and Lars too. I missed them a lot; especially caring for Elisabeth. The reason I mention it though is that Jane recommended that we visit the Wheaton Archives and Billy Graham Museum at Wheaton College which is literally just down the street. My mom and I went first (she spent the first coupled days in Chicago and we had a beautiful time! Which I'll describe later in a 'nuther post!) Then the next day, Lars, Elisabeth and I went. I was glad to have a look at the museum twice because it hugely, HUGELY stirred my heart. The Billy Graham Museum was never anything I particularly wanted to visit, but I was SO glad I did. The emphasis of it was on revival. (Just me or is that word seeming to pop up a lot?) And, of course, they mentioned that the key to revival was prayer. It would take many more paragraphs to explain the further workings of my heart from this trip to Chicago. So I won't bother because this post is already interminably long.

Is God stirring your heart in any ways? If he is, I encourage you to take time to respond to Him. ask Him to further reveal what He wants to do IN you and THROUGH you. I think we are all just one tiny piece of the puzzle.... one tiny dot among the millions He is connecting, and if we His people will readily say "here am I, send me," He will take us up on it. He will move us. Maybe not to the ends of the earth, but perhaps across the street or to our own family or in some way, to have an impact on OUR sphere of influence. But first of all, I think He wants to move us to pray. And that's the hardest move of all, I think.

Just decorated my Grandpa's side of the house for Christmas, and am sitting with him watching White Christmas. He interrupts the show with his silly comments or random stories. (One such comment just popped out a second ago when a very lithe, very young Betty Haynes comes out in her dazzlingly white outfit for one of the shows. "Why, she looks just like my mother." Then he smirks, (his mother never looked like that) and looks at me for my response.

I love this...

Our Christmas tradition. :)

I want to learn to better cherish moments with those around me. To live fully in those moments; to delight in the sweetness of relationships and the joy of being with people I love with all my heart... and even--dare I say--their quirks. I've been praying recently that God will fill my heart with greater love for people. Great Source of Love, infuse me with it!

Dickens on Christmas:

"I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round -- apart from the veneration due to its sacred name and origin, if anything belonging to it can be apart from that -- as a good time: a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time: the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow-passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on their journeys."

-CHARLES DICKENS, A Christmas Carol

My Life Goal

I was reading in one of my favorite little books today, "My Utmost For His Highest". It is a compilation of sermon excerpts from Oswald Chambers. Sounds dreadfully dull but it's actually incredibly heart stimulating and mind exercising. I read this, and was stirred!

"I am called to live in perfect relation to God so that my life produces a longing after God in other lives, not admiration for myself. Thoughts about myself hinder my usefulness for God."

Yes, yes, YES! I am leading a young girl's discipleship group called "Bright Lights" right now, and I can't even tell you how much I enjoy each of my little 14 girlies! I keep on praying, fervently, that they would love me-- but NOT for my own sake: it's because I want to point them to Jesus. I think back on the people in my life who I've greatly admired, and was drawn through them to the Christ they were consumed by. I want to be that to my Bright Lights girls. I was talking with a friend the other day who mentioned that we are to be like the moon: just a dull piece of dust-covered rock, in and of itself... but because it simply reflects the sun's brilliance, it is luminous and breathtakingly beautiful. May God take this dull piece of flesh which is me, and make it breathtakingly beautiful by the radiance of HIS presence. I LONG for my life to be this (I know I've quoted it here before but here it is again!):

"Father, make me a crisis man. Bring those I contact to decision. Let me not be a milepost on a single road; make me a fork, that men must turn one way or another on facing Christ in me."

And if by my life I cannot accomplish it, let me do it by death!

God alone sees that these aren't just words. By His grace, this is my heart-cry.

Warm Fuzzies

I am a huge fan of warm fuzzies. Warm fuzzy sweaters (I'm wearing one now!), warm fuzzy blankets, warm fuzzy cups of hot chocolate (okay minus the fuzz)... I love it all and Christmas is the ultimate Warm Fuzzy Inducer. This was evidenced by the beautiful, jingly, wonderful candlelight evening downtown a few weeks ago!*

W-worth usually holds a candlelight walk, I think, but I'd never gone to it. Actually, I'd envisioned it as being a bunch of cold people in winter coats solemnly carrying candles down the Main St. sidewalk in silent procession. I'm weird, I know. But that little mental picture I'd drawn was certainly enough to curb my interest.

Long-story-short, they gave the candlelight walk the wrong name.

It was the Quintessential Christmas Experience. Even the real Old St. Nicholas, horrified as he may be at what Christmas has become in our day and age, couldn't help but break a smile if he'd have walked downtown that night.

Mom and I were greeted by the strains of Sinatra and his fellow crooners singing the old wonderful carols as we stepped into the festively lit square. W-worth has a quaint, beautiful little square normally, but at Christmastime it's transformed into something extra special. The lampposts are strung with garland and lights; the gazebo is decked, and next to it a huge Christmas tree graces the square. Shopkeepers try to outdo each other in their lights and decorations. The pastry shop has an intricate little train set running... it's beautiful and I can't help but smile every time I drive through town at night! But the Candlelight Walk night was even more spectacular. Even before you saw the beautiful horse drawn carriages giving people rides through the streets, you could hear the full, merry jingle of the sleigh bells attached to the horses' harness.

Stores were packed with people ooh-ing and ahh-ing over the Christmas merchandise proudly displayed' folks who evidently enjoyed displaying their own Christmas spirit with holiday shirts, crazy hats, and--in a few cases--full blown Dickens regalia! The jewelry store had a little kiosk in front of it with a woman ladling out steaming cups of hot chocolate. A number of shops had cookie trays and snacks in the back, and the antique shop beat all... with a live display of a huge jack-in-the-box, wound every minute or so by a woman we thought was a mannequin until she suddenly moved... and then out popped a real human jack-in-the-box!

As if it weren't all almost too good to be true, as mom and I passed the barber shop and glanced in the window we saw this: Yep! A real barbershop quartet right there in the shop, with their darling little outfits and appropriately gregarious personalities to match! (And, like all good barbershop quartets they had one rather tall and one rather short fellow.) With the sight of that, my warm fuzzy-odometer simply maxed out and mom and I agreed to run home as fast as we could--we live about 5 minutes from the square, but the event was closing within 15 minutes!)--and grab our cameras! (Heretofore we'd been moaning and groaning that we were crazy for not having brought our cameras... but really all I was expecting was a bunch of cold zombies walking around dark sidewalks with candles and I didn't think that would be much to take snapshots and blog about.)

So mom and I rushed home and while I grabbed the camera she made a quick cup of hot chocolate for dad, who was one of the police officers patrolling the event. We brought it to him and took a few pictures with him. He is a very good sport because police officers aren't normally supposed to have photo shoots with their daughters in the back of the police cruiser while they're on duty. Kinda' ruins their "tough cop" persona, if anyone's watching.

We got back in just enough time to snap a few pictures of the barbershop quartet before they finished for the evening...

Then--lo and behold!--the kind horse people let mom and I take a last ride in their carriage before they packed up for the night. It was very, very fun and even a bit rotic (i.e. "romantic" without the "man").

We snapped a few more shots around town:

A few last folks in the sandwich shop before closing time,

Storekeepers pausing to wave to us as they closed up shop for the night,

So doesn't this look like some sort of Kinkade painting? :) All it needs is a little old man smoking a pipe sitting on the bench out front, with a dog at his side.

And AHA! THIS is the reason it's called a "candlelight walk!"

Well, in all it was a completely unexpected evening full of joy and Christmas spirit. Mom and I couldn't stop exclaiming about it the entire way home! Thank you, W-worth, for a wonderful, beautiful start to the Christmas season. Thank you for keeping it "Christmas" and for embracing the joy this season brings without all the political correctness that is erroding at the birthday celebration of my King. I'm grateful and I will definitely be back for the candlelight walk next year if I'm around!

...Now if we could just think of a better name for it...!?

*(Yes, this was a few weeks ago meaning they were celebrating Christmas before Thanksgiving had occurred. This is usually an unpardonable sin in my estimation, but since it created such vast amounts of warm fuzzy feelings in my heart, I'll pardon the grievous misdeed.)