Arrival

After five days and over 50 hours on the road, my Dad and I arrived in Durham, Ontario.  My brave little Jetta survived the trek across country but is now letting me know she wasn't very happy about it.   She did her job well, though, and I'm thankful God allowed me to squeeze this one last (safe!) trip out before laying her to rest.

Back on day two Dad and I enjoyed coffee with friends in Calgary before heading towards Saskatchewan and two days of amazingly clear roads.  We hit Manitoba's big blue skies on our third day. 

It's a pretty big deal when you find a corner in Manitoba.  We had to laugh at the warning signs (for drivers dozing in cruise control?).

We had a great time catching up with old friends, Sam & Becky Uyaivato and family, along the way (I  graduated high school with Sam in Papua New Guinea and Dad hadn't seen him in 14 years).  

After a lot of flat, it was beautiful to see the waves and coastline of Lake Superior.   

Thank you, Ontario, for my very first speeding ticket.

42 years ago my Dad was making his way across Canada after hitchhiking through Europe when he spent a night sleeping under Sudbury's Big Nickel.  It was fun going to see it together knowing the memories it held for him.  

The day after arriving in Durham I was on the road again with Pete & Lesley Doerksen and family (Jessica, Josh, Micah and Kelsey) heading to Warsaw, Indiana, for a Thanksgiving Interface reunion with Drew & Bobbi Scholl (Gracie, Malachi, Annie and Levi).  When we all left Papua New Guinea we had no idea when we'd see each other again so this was a big blessing.  A lot of laughs, a few tears, and some new memories to add to the collection of old ones.

Our mouths were watering after we saw this mammoth BBQ gear during our tour of the Sportula factory (check out the link if you need some good Christmas gift ideas!).

A whole lotta good Thanksgiving cooking.

Bobbi's parents, Brent & Karen Wildman (Karen below left), hosted a huge Thanksgiving dinner and welcomed us outsiders.  We'd gotten to know them during their occasional visits to the Scholls in Papua New Guinea so it was like being with family.  

We got to know EJ and Peggy (below next to me) Underwood, a couple from the Scholl's home church, during their visit to PNG earlier this year. They were a gift from the Lord during our painful transition out of Interface and they hold a special place in my heart.

We also got to catch up with Drew's mom (Rose, below) and dad who'd also made a visit to PNG last year.  It was pretty special to get Rose hugs in PNG while missing my own family.  

For now I'm back in Durham and have enjoyed doing some apartment hunting in the area and catching up with more old friends from my missionary training days.  I look forward to getting back here after the holidays in British Columbia and am happy to have "settling in" as part of my vocabulary again.