Wednesday, February 20, 2008

The final post from Camarillo

The end is nigh. It's Leavin' Eve, meaning it's the night before we leave to go back to Ohio. Where it's frigid.
Our feelings are bittersweet. The body really does get acclimated to warmer weather, and now 45 degrees is cold to me, whereas it used to be 10. Have I become a California softy? I'll soon find out.
We look forward to seeing family and friends and being around them again. But we'll miss being so near the oceans, mountains, elephant seals, Giant Sequoia Trees (I'll post some pictures of them when I get time), and of course, sea otters. The black squirrels of Archbold just can't compare. And mosquitoes are so rare here, they're not even a problem. We would leave our patio door open constantly and no bugs took advantage of it. Once in awhile you'd see a gnat.
Our time out here was short, but a lot happened. We had some struggles; like the initial housing situation, Julie's grandfather passing away, questions in our hearts and minds about the job of ministry. But we learned more than a few life lessons, I'd say, and some of them were heavy, so it sort of feels like we were here much longer than 6 months.
So, you can hear more about all that, if you want, when or if you see us in person sometime in the near future.
We plan to go through Joshua Tree National Park tomorrow and from there our next stop will be a motel in Winslow, Arizona, where we hope to stand on a corner and see a fine sight. Maybe it will be an Eagle. (let me know if you don't get all that)
Some of you we are leaving and you'll be missed. Some of you we will soon be very excited to see again... back in Ohio.