There is a missionary family that owns a dry cabin in Chiniak, one of the two villages on the road system. They make the cabin available to people from the church to use; the usage fee is doing a maintenance project while you are there. This past weekend a group of young adults went out to cabin. And it was wonderful.
First, the rainy, cloudy weather of the last long time, broke Friday afternoon. So we arrived in the evening to the above scene, across the road from the cabin. And it got better!
We hung out on the beach, by the bonfire, for the evening. Slept in the cabin, some in beds, some on sleeping pads, one on the couch. Saturday morning Fred left early to go to work for the day and I didn’t fall back asleep. So Alanna and I went for a sunrise walk on the beach, while we waited for everyone else to wake up.
That walk alone was worth the whole trip (there were many of those moments, it was a great weekend).
We watched the colors around us shift with the rising sun, listened to the waves wash the shore, caught up on life. I felt refreshed and energized and so appreciative of the family that God has given us in Kodiak.
Both Fred and I have dear family by blood and dear family in the communities we grew up in. Our time at George Fox added more family, and in over six years here we have added more. So many dear ones, scattered around the globe, who hold our hearts, who have given us foretastes of heaven.
The day got better as more people woke up, as the fellowship extended. Work was good, conversation around work was good, lunch on the beach after work was good.
The sun was glorious, reading and visiting on the beach surrounded by people we love was wonderful. Most of the group left in the afternoon, leaving five of us (until Fred got back from work) who stayed until midday Sunday.
We went for drive, looking for a perfect spot to hang out in hammocks, then realized that the back of the cabin lot was probably the ideal place. So we got a fun ride in the sun and then had a restful session of reading/napping on the edge of the forest in the sunlight.
Fred brought pizza for dinner, followed by a rousing game of Bang, then a solid night of sleep. Sunday morning we had church together after breakfast and a last cabin cleanup. We sang, read Ephesians, prayed. Then drove back for needed showers and our regular Sunday afternoon potluck.
By Sunday evening we were exhausted, but what a good exhaustion! Soaking up sunshine, working hard, worshipping hard, loving each other, my heart is full. These times are my favorite, wherever they happen, with whichever part of my family, my spirit swells and sings, as we sang together, “Then sings my soul, My Savior God to Thee, How great Thou art! How great Thou art!”