Less Than 24 Hours...

...and I'll be on my way to England and then Wales for 2 weeks!!!  No, Isabelle is not going with me - she's staying home with my aunt, who has graciously agreed to move into my house and take care of the whole brood!  I'll be taking a class on Celtic Christianity in northern Wales, but first I am spending a few days with dear friends who were members of one of my churches over there when I first got out of seminary.

I CAN'T WAIT!!!  I am looking forward to seeing them and really looking forward to having a few days of real, true vacation!  I've been on the go much of the summer, but there hasn't been much relaxing involved!  I've scouted the weather and so far it looks like it is going to cooperate for a good bit of hiking, which is how I'm hoping to spend much of my time in Ilminster.

Just to share a bit of my 'previous' life...

Here's sunrise in Ilminster just above the manse (parsonage) where I lived...

and the view of the town looking down from the same spot

along one of my favorite hikes...

and this is Ilminster Methodist, my very first appointment.  I have to admit, that my time in Ilminster will be spent with mixed emotions - I loved that little (okay, not so little) church - I still remember the day I was first handed the key.  And yes, it really was one of those big brass kinds on a ring!  Sadly, though, the inspectors came through and declared it unfit for use and condemned it.  Without warning the church lost their sanctuary.  They are meeting in the school hall, but sadly not much of a congregation remains.

Here's a view of the sanctuary.  The problem was that the buttresses towards the front were slowly sliding down the back of the hill into an ancient sewer system that had collapsed under the town.  And we think the beams at my church now have problems!

I hope to be able to post at least some while I'm gone.  I haven't been in Ilminster since the advent of wi-fi, so I have no idea what I'll find.  It was a very small, rural, picturesque little town where it is hard to imagine wi-fi having made an appearance, but I'm hoping for some changes...but not too many!

Sooo...join me on the journey as I hijack Isabelle's blog for a few weeks :)  If you don't see any updates for a few days, check back next week.  Once I'm in school I'm assuming we'll have easy internet access!

(see below for Isabelle post for the weekend!)