R.O.W.E.

Recounting Our Wild,Wonerful,Weird Experiences

[thewerneriis-blog]

The Devastation of a School Calendar

The school calendar came out this year.  And I’m looking at it and barely keeping my composure. I don’t have the words for this feeling.  Frustration, despair, confusion, doubt.  Are we doing the right thing?  Is anyone?

Many of my brain cells are yelling we should just go full homeschool.  Many other cells are just as loudly insisting that the kids should be part of what community we can give them.  Is this enough?  Are we wrecking our kids if we remote learn?  Is it better than just homeschooling?  How much damage will we do if we keep them away from their friends in the interest of safety? How much damage will we do if we don’t? Will they resent us forever for teasing them with glimpses of their peers but keeping them away? Would they resent us more if they didn’t even get the glimpses?

Our numbers really couldn’t be better. For now. As we’ve seen, though, the numbers can change so fast.  These humans are my absolute everything.  They need to live their lives - and I need them safe and healthy to do that.

I just do not know and the uncertainty is dissolving my self-confidence.  I’m desperately grateful I have these brilliant young people in my family who are on board with having a conversation.  The situation is somewhat easier because each kid wants to remote learn - for safety reasons.  The first few days of school are going to emotionally devastate all of us, though.  I wish I could be even 96% sure we are making the right choice - and in the same breath, I don’t want to have our caution justified at the expense of a student or staff member’s health.

The Governor says for areas, like ours, with excellent numbers, we should keep doing what we’re doing. I think he’s right. And “what we’re doing” includes keeping our kids out of the classroom.  

My prayer right now is that my kids will know we are making the best decision we know how to make.  I hope beyond hope that it is the right call.  And I cannot stand that I may never really know one way or the other.

[thewerneriis-blog]

Anniversary.

Today marks the one year anniversary since the spouse started this job. People still ask us how we even found the listing, much less made the decision to change basically everything about our lifestyle to take the position.

If I’m being totally honest, there have been maybe three moments when I was ready to bail and head back south.

This year has been crazy.  We lost so many loved ones in 2019 and Covid flipped the entire world onto a new axis so far in 2020.

But the job and the lifestyle it brings with it is still worth it.  Being able to directly and positively impact someone else’s journey to better self-awareness or racial justice or becoming a better artist is meaningful and powerful.

The Universe had a strong hand in getting B into the right place at the right time.  Has he wigged out once or thrice?  Yes.  This is a huge crisis for the world and for the organization.  He is the right person to be at the helm, though.  I admire his unwillingness to accept “good enough”. I am inspired by his care and patience with guests, staff, volunteers, the Board, and his family.

We are nervous, as are many, many organizations, about how long we can weather this new (temporary?) normal, but with innovation and careful planning, we are in a better position than we might have been and credit goes to the human who took on this job one year ago today.

That might read like propaganda, but really it’s awe.  I’m in awe of the Mystery that led us here to this place where each of our unique talents are so well suited to this moment in the history of a 96 year old organization we’d never heard of before reading the job posting 18 months ago.

I need our friends and family, our new community and our old one, to stay well.  We want to see you here.  I want to share the Spirit of Rowe with you. One year in, but gods-willing, many, many years to go, we are just starting on this adventure and I could not be happier that we took this leap into the wild unknown.

[thewerneriis-blog]

Pandemic Makes Evident 'Grotesque' Gender Inequality In Household Work

With more people staying home due to COVID-19, journalist Brigid Schulte says it's impossible to ignore "the fact that women bear so much more of the burden of child care and housework."

This pandemic has been unexpectedly hard on my marriage. 

We came into this job/lifestyle with the idea that I’d be a support for my spouse. I can take on logistics problems they aren’t good with because I do logistics for fun.  I literally have spreadsheets I maintain for my favorite video games.

As that volunteer role expanded, I felt empowered and valued and celebrated.  I even started working for other departments. My spouse loved it.  They loved feeling supported and like things just “got done”.

All this work became exponentially harder when the kids resumed homeschooling. Not only did I have my volunteer work and running the household, I was also the primary education coordinator.  And my spouse became extra busy managing a 96 year old institution through its greatest challenge to date.  We both felt like they couldn’t take on more of the house stuff.

Over the weeks, however, my volunteer role has continued to expand and nothing else has let up. The Board wants me on as a paid employee now.  In theory, I love this idea.  Who doesn’t love a paycheck? (Side bar:  I find it borderline criminal that the hours and hours of work and care I’ve put into our kids and home over the last 10 years nets me exactly bupkis towards retirement/social security.) 

I’m downright panicked, however, that my spouse will give up entirely on trying to see me as a person.  I don’t want to be just a cog in our beautiful, complex machine. We talk about it - at least weekly.  Unfortunately, a lot of the planning or creating space for ‘us’ still seems to fall on me because my spouse is absolutely swamped. I see that and I genuinely want to do what I can to help ease that load.

I’m working on boundaries and continuing to speak directly and fairly to my concerns. The ‘mental load’ is very, very real, though. I’ll almost certainly be tracking down the book in the linked article.  We need some good tools in our marital toolbox.

[thewerneriis-blog]

The Moral of the Story

We took an income reduction of 45% and moved 1700 miles away from anyone we knew because the spouse felt called to a job, a type of work and I felt called to live in a new part of the world and our kids felt like they wanted to be part of the school and local community available here.

A relative told me they would never do something like that “because of the money”.  Friends told us they wished they could do something this crazy.  A new friend here told us they still think we were crazy to take this leap.

We found out two days ago that the spouse’s former employer laid off more than 94% of their employees - including spouse’s entire department. 

I’m desperately grateful we made this jump into work that feels good in a place that inspires me daily most of the time, and weekly for sure, among people who are interesting near wildness, wildlife, and a wild life that we get to live.

I’m glad that we made the choice for our life and didn’t wait for life to make the choice for us.  I acknowledge the privilege we had in this move - the emotional and material support of our friends and family, that we had health and means and motivation to do this. 

I’m here to encourage you to take that big leap you feel called to take.  You really can’t know the goodness you can find on the other side or the ickiness you have avoided by leaving the “stuck” behind.

[thewerneriis-blog]

Coping with Covid

As of 10:44 today, there are no cases of Covid19 in our county. 

I’m watching my spouse handle a public health crisis and he is doing an amazing job.  I’m ridiculously impressed and proud of his ability to stay on top of his research, make contacts, and disseminate information. He’s in touch with the town nurse, the regional health organization (in fact, he’s going to be on a health status call today); he’s actively researching options to keep our leaders, guests, staff, and volunteers healthy and safe.  In fact, we were one of the first groups to put out statements and start taking action to keep our facilities friendly.

Obviously, as the situation has progressed the steps have changed and this guy is on it like jelly on peanut butter.

I knew this was the right job for him when he found it; I was certain when he was offered the job; I wobbled when it came time to say good-bye to our village and again when I saw our first non-profit-org paycheck, but rebounded as soon as I had the pleasure of seeing him at work.  He’s in exactly the right place at the right time.

Am I worried? You betcha. I’m worried about our health and how far away our doctor is.  I’m worried for the kids’ education if the schools shut down now that we don’t have homeschool materials on hand.  I’m worried for my own stress level (or I was until I finally stocked CBD ;) ).

I’m worried for our organization.  It’s awful not knowing how long Covid-19 will be an acute concern and nonprofits aren’t really set up for long term dormancy. Even after cases peak, how long will it take for guests and leaders to trust that a group setting is safe?

We have positives in our favor, though.  We have days between conferences in which to clean, sanitize, and for gross things to die off on their own. Our facilities are not fully contained.  Guests have to go outdoors to get to their rooms and dining area and conference area. And, to bring this full circle, my husband is at the helm.  He’s kicking ass at this crisis management thing and I could (possibly literally) burst with pride.

Stay safe and wash your hands, friends. We can’t wait to see you all on the other side of this.  I wonder if the board game Pandemic will still be fun to play after we’ve all done the LARP version.

[thewerneriis-blog]

Happiness is a bruised banana.

The kids have fully transitioned to loving their new home.  I like to sprinkle openings for them to express concerns into our conversations. Six months, four months ago even, I heard a lot of “I like it here, but...” or “I just wish we were near...”  Last week we left the state to hang out with my sisters-in-law and on the way back I again made an opening for any wobbles.  “That was really fun. Do you guys want to live here?” I got a resounding “No! Why would we leave our home?”

My biggest fear moving far, far away was that the kids wouldn’t be able to or be willing to fully acclimate and getting that response (for the first time) was like the cherry on top.  I can finally let go of that fear and relax into our new life here.

I have two bruises on my awesome New England banana, though.

1) I absolutely hate being too far away to watch my niece grow up.  It’s irritating how much I love that brilliant human.

And 2)...

I miss homeschooling my kids.  I miss being with them and getting to see the Ah-Ha moments, the Eurekas, the wild ideas made real.  We had a parent-educators’ meeting yesterday and one of my kids scored quite low on a problem solving evaluation.  I was thrilled to see other team members step in to suggest the evaluation carried quite a lot of bias, but I found myself going full Angry Porcupine over the idea that my incredibly unique young human should be knocked down because she wasn’t spotting the exact same solution as the average says she should. I desperately miss getting to spend every brain cell I have creating a space for my kids to try the weird ideas they have just to see what happens.  I resisted building school for so long in part because I didn’t want to see them asked to perform to The Average.

The kids are doing great in building school, but, of course, they were doing great in homeschool, too. They are great kids.  I am confident we need the building school environment to help settle us into our new home.  I’m looking at this feeling of mine, this desperation to see the kids challenging themselves, playing outside the rules, learning in the way that they learn best instead of the best way they can inside the average, and taking it as a challenge to find ways to create that space as best as I can outside of their primary education time.

"After-schooling” is the homeschool word for this.  I’m not thinking lessons, but making space, maybe a touch of the Montessori idea, to leave open the possibility for some independent Ah-Ha moments.  

The link below is not a curriculum recommendation, but a source of further reading for anyone wanting to get an idea of what I’m pondering. https://www.sonlight.com/afterschooling/

[thewerneriis-blog]

The tex mex craving finally got the best of us. We drove an hour to the nearest On the Border and cleared our plates. The server was a little unsure of just how excited we were about queso at a chain restaurant.

Ok, craving satisfied. Back to wintering.

[thewerneriis-blog]

Drama Mama & The Mill of Mysteries

My background is in theater. I love theater. A lot. I’ll fight you on certain topics.  My kids, however, have thus far shunned all things theatrical and I have, quietly, struggled with this fun parenting addendum.

Then 4 days ago my younger kid told me they wanted to try the local youth drama club.  I was cool, collected, and casually emailed the director to let him know his $300 fee wasn’t gonna work but that my background could be useful to barter.  He granted us full scholarships for both kids. Thrilled doesn’t even come close to how I felt.

We went to the kids’ first rehearsal and there were aerial silks, kids walking along on cable spools, kids singing, taking a ride atop a piano.  See, this director is confident he’s invented “anti-theater” where the audience follows the play from scene to scene.  I haven’t had the heart to tell him about pageant plays yet - he’s so proud of himself and his lack of a theater background.

Tonight was our second rehearsal, but first in the weekday space which is a converted space inside an old mill.  From the outside, the place (pictured here) looks like it could crumble at a strong wind, abandoned, possibly haunted; but inside, the mill is partially repurposed into the owner’s apartment, the theater space, office spaces, and room after room leased to artists - and not small potatoes artists either.  A furniture craftsman who apprenticed under a true master - the master’s work is in the Smithsonian.  We met set designers and walked hallways with bricked up doorways on one wall and amazing art on the other. An open doorway suddenly filled with a vibrant, brilliant Greek man who ordered us inside and then told us to choose three of his paintings we liked.  If he liked our reason for choosing them, he said he’d give us one.  Our new acquaintance reneged on the deal when we only chose the pieces he felt most strongly about - though I suspect any piece in the room would have been one of his favorites.  He claims the Picasso in the room is on loan from a friend and he overlays his architectural drawings with photos and paint, including taking the paint over the frame and up the wall. I love his work!

We mistakenly wandered into a band rehearsal at one point and were invited to join in despite obviously not having instruments with us.  You know, the South is supposed to be excessively friendly and the North terribly frigid, but I have not found this to be true.  I have been spontaneously invited to stay with more people I just met and take part in more goings-on here than before the move.  Don’t let anyone tell you Yankees aren’t friendly.  I think the difference is the expectation of friendliness.  Rather than assuming everyone should be warm and welcoming, the expectation is that each party can give what they want to the moment and, in so doing, I have found that people are more wiling to embrace a new friend than if there was that an unspoken obligation to courtesy.

At any rate, very little has been what I thought it would be here.  There is far less seafood and far more art; fewer bears, more chipmunks; much less internet communication (because when every 3rd person is your cousin by virtue of living in a long-settled, rural area, no one needs to post online when the party is) but still the invitations are extended to me and mine to join in the fun.  Winter has not been as dreadful as I expected (thus far), but I suspect a lot of that has to do with my not having to shovel more than 5 feet of driveway. The local food is outstanding, but I am desperate for a good cheese enchilada.

Tonight was wild.  The kids bear-walking and singing while I chatted up the fudge shop owner after finally breaking free from the verbose Greek artist I am eager to hear more from. Massachusetts may go a little gray in the sky once November rolls around, but the culture and the people creating that culture are incredibly colorful. I’m so very glad we took this crazy leap.

[thewerneriis-blog]

2,019 Changes in 365 days

This year.  What a year of loss.  As exciting as snowshoeing and 200 year old cemeteries and daytime bard owls can be, this has been an incredibly hard year.

At 26 minutes into 2020, I’m mourning alongside another friend who has lost a child this year. I said goodbye to my dog, my gruncle, my grandma, my dean.  Two young souls left their mortal coils, leaving communities and families to find a way forward without them.  It’s been an absolutely crushing year for losing loved ones.

We left behind cheese enchiladas and having my kids’ grandparents close and being only a few hours from all of our immediate family. We took a major loss on our home sale, which meant we started our new life at zero.

I can’t say the “roller coaster of life” cliche applies here. On a roller coaster, you know the ride is more or less safe and that it will end quickly. If I’ve learned anything this year, it’s that these intense highs and lows aren’t predictable. There is no getting off the ride or counting on a ride tech to make sure the experience will not be more than you signed up for. Maybe this year has been more like rapids. Something you’d like to think you have under control, but it’s never really been your call if the next bend goes well or if your cooler falls out, the watch is ruined, you have a good laugh about it all over s’mores or if you fall out of the craft.

The juxtapositions this year are just mad to list off. The great joys of change and a new life, the deep pain of losing so much.  Welcoming my first niece, mourning my first dog. I miss my friends and my village and my family so deeply the hurt is physical at times; I’ve met fascinating people and connected in real ways with humans and animals too and my life is absolutely better because I know these souls.  I am eager for this next year and all the good work I hope to do in the world; I am hopeful for visits with loved ones and getting the chance to share the life we’re making here.

Here’s to a healing, renewing 2020.  I want to share good books and board games and the Rowe Center with you all.  I’d like to adopt Henry Miller into the family.  I’m still on a quest to find a decent enchilada.  I want to go to a beach in Rhode Island and show my kids New York City and sleep in a lighthouse.

Mostly, I want 2020 to be a kinder, gentler year for everyone I know.

All my love and peace to you, friends.

[thewerneriis-blog]

As a family, our current favorite game is to note the temperature at our departure point and guess what the temp will be when we get back home. Tonight, the departure temp was 18*.  It reached a low of 12* at the summit, rose all the way up to 20*, then settled at 16* in the driveway - making B the winner for tonight. 

I’m still a bit flabbergasted at that thermometer roller coaster!  This winter is going to be wild.

[thewerneriis-blog]

Our Apartment: Four humans, three cats, 500 sq ft of living space.

Storage highlights:

Living Room:

- A dropzone is a must-have when winter is a real thing.  It took us a while to figure out how to get one, but the shelving unit is basically perfect.

- The black/green/orange drawers hold school supplies, books, and our pantry items.

- The coffee table holds empty bags and board games.

- The side table holds extra blankets and any current projects.

- You can see B closing up the “attic” and basement access is behind him.

- The left side of the desk holds office and home goods; the right side holds our dishes and cooking utensils. (Yes, we cook here!)

Upstairs:

- We converted the underused window seat to a massive closet.  Second best idea we’ve had!

- The low bookcase makes a fantastic headboard for our bed and provides just a suggestion of privacy - though I love that we have a real door on our room!

- There is a sink/vanity on the other side of the tall dresser and a small closet.

[thewerneriis-blog]

Semi-Charmed, Semi-Public Life

The very first question I’m asked after I introduce myself is “What do you do here?”  You probably gathered from the last post that this is not my favorite question.  I still don’t have a good answer. Tonight, however, I got a glimpse of a role I hadn’t realized I’d need to fill. 

This semi-public lifestyle is a very new experience.  For example, we dine with our guests.  Any staff or volunteers on property can also choose to dine with the guests. This means that how we’re dressed, how the kids act (Sister threw rice in your hair at the table? I have to address that fairly but firmly, balancing all the ways my parenting choices will reflect on the Center), where we choose to sit, etc. all matter. It’s not front and center per se, but it’s something to be noticed if a guest or leader has a mind to do so.

What happens when an intern and a guest have a bad conversation, then?  Tonight’s answer is that the intern removes themself and the Me keeps the guest talking until their mood improves.  I needed to switch from private citizen into public Center representative and work damage control. This isn’t terribly different for me than soothing tensions when the Star of the show and the Conductor get into it during rehearsals.  What is different here is that I know during a rehearsal that could happen at any moment.  Needing to transition from casual conversation to damage control over dinner is new.

I knew the intern, who I count as Friend at this point, got their feelings hurt and I could see that the guest was offended too.  I had to make a call in that moment. I couldn’t take sides because I’m not a private citizen here.  I’m The Wife and my reaction absolutely has an impact on the public image of the Center. 

I assume (I hope?) guest and intern will have little to nothing to do with one another for the remainder of the weekend but I’m hopeful that I was able to redirect Guest to a more pleasant mindspace; I checked in with Intern afterwards to be sure they were okay.  I am glad I was at the table to give Intern/Friend the out and to keep Guest chatting and get them laughing again before the next session.

Every part of my past really has helped bring me to this place. We have such an incredible diversity of experience and lifestyles that come through the door that conflict is bound to come up. Frankly, I’m impressed it doesn’t crop up more often than it does. 

Maybe I won’t ever have a clean answer as to what I do here, but if I can hold that space for hurt feelings to calm down and the people in the room to regain their focus on the work they want to do, maybe I don’t need to worry too much about how to name my function here.

[thewerneriis-blog]

TL;DR A valid whine post.

It’s been forever since I updated because I forgot my password and then I forgot the password to the recovery email. I chanced upon the password today and none too soon.  I need to do some truth telling.

I love it here.  Absolutely, no question.  We finally had lobster for the first time last night and, while I won’t do it a lot because I felt terrible for all the sea creatures that died for our dinner, I’m glad we did.  That immortal sea bug was outstanding.  The restaurant happened to have live music last night too.  Just awesome. 

But.  (Isn’t there always one?)

I’ve been struggling - a lot.  I hit a really dark place a couple times in the last week and had to do some very fast talking to keep me out of an even darker one. I’m proud of the tools I’ve gotten into my toolbox over the years that kept me working at the problem instead of giving in to some very bad ideas.

When we interviewed and accepted this job, when we moved here, we were under the apparently mistaken impression that the talents I bring to the center were valued and welcomed.  I’m in a very unique position of not being staff and not being a volunteer, but being present around both.  It’s hard to define what I do besides “sleep with the Director” - a line that’s good for a laugh but seems to be the only position (ha! phrasing.) I’m allowed to claim.

If I’m being politically incorrect (don’t tell anyone), a lot of this can be traced to one person who doesn’t like that I don’t answer to them.  I could handle that if this person didn’t have most of the people working here so scared of their own shadows they panic if I start asking anything more substantial than “How is your day?”  I’m not blaming this person for my own feelings on the matter, but I’m not blind to the realities either.

I’ve struggled with being “tolerated” as everyone else gets work done. And pushed out if I try to help.  If I push too hard, consequences come down on my spouse. I’ve struggled when I feel like my presence and efforts are a “nice to have”.  I want to matter and feel like it matters that I’m here and contributing.

I’m starting to wiggle my way into a Morale Officer function, and it feels great to build community and bring smiles into the world, but I’m so much more than good board games.  I’m smart and clever and capable and a bad ass at logistics and organization.  I never wanted to be in the role of “Director’s Wife”.

I know time will show me the place I need to be and I know that the smiles and community that happen around my work matter and, frankly, they’re something this place needed for our “backstage crew”. And, now that I’m thinking about it, guests have stopped me almost every weekend and told me how great it is that I’m here and my kids are here.  I have to trust guests are taking that feeling out into the world and that my presence does matter - just in ways I don’t see everyday.

This isn’t an easy time for me because I like to know I’m valued.  I’m going to decide the Universe wants me to start trusting that I have inherent value. And that one person who doesn’t want me running rogue can go love themselves elsewhere.  I’m awesome.

Thanks for reading and letting me talk this out. 

[thewerneriis-blog]

As of today, we have been here one month.  I’ve lost about 10 pounds and my pants size is 4 numbers smaller than it was when we arrived.  I can also walk up the mountain without having the Grim Reaper flickering into view. Who knew walking 1/3 of a mile each way for every meal would make such a difference?

There have been harder days - especially for the person learning the new job - and I really, really miss Killian. Overall, though, we’re all ridiculously happy. We love seeing the wildlife.  Our creature bingo includes black bears, otters, beavers, chipmunks, deer, porcupine, and so many types of birds I can’t even begin to name them all.

I can feel how old this area is.  There’s no where I go without having a sense of the centuries of settled human activity. This, of course, means I’m wicked excited for Halloween season to get here so I can scare the bejeesus out of myself.

The NE accent isn’t giving me too much trouble where I live.  As I drive East, it gets harder and there is one volunteer here that keeps me on my toes.  I have no idea what I’ve nodded along to at times.

Lastly,  I’ve started organizing the art supplies.  GISH is delaying that project for a bit, but I’m feeling so accomplished as I see these supplies organized and out in the light for campers to use.

The lack of internet is my biggest thorn still, but we finally have an install date so I can see the light at the end of the long, archaic wagon tunnel.  I’m so ready to be back in the 21st century!

I miss my village, so please come visit us!  We can’t wait to share this place with you!

[thewerneriis-blog]

Today is a week since we moved in and it has been a long, wonderful, frustrating, magical week!

The lack of internet + cell service is about to make me lose my mind, but we finally opted to drag the desktop across the street so I could update stuff.  I’m feeling much, much calmer now that I’ve worked through our budget.

The town, and towns nearby, are amazing.  I get lost almost everyday, but I don’t mind because I am learning my way around. 

What amazes me most is how quickly we’ve fallen into a rhythm here.  Community breakfast, chores, free time, community lunch, out-and-about somewhere, free/nap/quiet time, community dinner, family time, showers, book, bed.  We never discussed this pattern, but it’s working really well for us.

I’m terrified of the kids getting ticks (probably me getting ticks, too), but we are gearing up to be good at the NE outdoors. We’ll need to start purchasing for winter soon, including the mysterious things called snow tires, but for this week anyway we are just enjoying the mid-70′s temperatures, the open windows at night, and learning all about this new home that really does feel like exactly where we are supposed to be.

[thewerneriis-blog]

Last Night

I’m about to head off to sleep in this house for the last time.  The kids were out late with their friends and a kid-neighbor dropped off candy and his address so they can keep in touch.  All the loose ends are starting to tie off nicely. 

Tomorrow, the kids and B are off to camp, but I’ll be home doing final prep for move out and the drive.  My hope is that a relatively organized truck load will lead to an easier last day.  I want to be able to focus on the human element of this transition and not be worried over who lost a water bottle or whether the driving directions made it into the glove box.

Goodnight; tomorrow’s going to be a weird one!

[thewerneriis-blog]

Goodbyes and Mashed Potatoes.

I’ve never been a parent outside of this metroplex.  I’ve never parented my younger kid without my UU.  I’ve never sumfun’d without some of the families I said goodbye to tonight.  I met this kiddo when they were 6 weeks old; that one came into being after I was already super fond of the family; this person was married when we met and is happily partnered instead now; this family I’ve known less than a year and I’m not all that excited to spend the next year without them because they’ve come to mean so much to us so quickly.

Our village has loved us through pregnancies and mental issues and marriage issues and family deaths and great days and crappy ones and the mediocre ones, too - and we’ve loved them through their everything right back.  The only way this Rowe life feels possible is because we are starting from this foundation built of love and support and community - and that is absolutely everything.

I’d love to bury all this gooeyness in a joke - and there will be Stories in the next few weeks, you can be sure - but right now I’m feeling deep connection.  We wouldn’t want to take this next step if it weren’t for how incredibly...blessed? honored?...we’ve been by the people we have in our lives.  The world should have more of that; so, off we go into the wild, green thattaway to build up community, sound off for social justice, and love the absolute hell out of every person we can.

If any one visitor feels half as loved after their stay as we do right now, we can count ourselves wildly successful.

Thank you from the top, middle, and bottom of my heart.  There’s always a place for you wherever we are - and if you want to get a camp or conference in at the same time, I know a guy who can help make that happen!