Just an update for those who follow from a distance. The girls and I are now living in Hoople, ND where I have been serving as pastor of Zion Lutheran in Rural Hoople since mid-August of last year. The time has flown by. It doesn't seem like we should be approaching a year coming up this summer."The girls" now consist of the ponies, Shiney and Zoe, now 21 and 12 years, respectively. Kitty, Madelaine ManyToes Hemingway, just turned 6 a week ago. Geraldine (Boadicea Geraldine), an Australian Shepherd pup joined us in July of last summer, and is now 11 months old. So the five of us have been tootling around North Eastern North Dakota, exploring and finding what there is to find in this new state and the occasional trek up to Canada.
The congregation of Rural Hoople--yes, one must differentiate between rural and urban Hoople, as there is another ELCA congregation in Urban Hoople. You know, because the little Tater Town has a population of 240. Anyway, Zion is about 4 miles south of Hoople, 10 miles northwest of Grafton, and 6 miles northeast of Park River. An hour from Grand Forks. An hour from Canada. Two hours from Winnipeg. My closest neighbor is just over a mile away.
It's all a new adventure for us, which is not new, for adventure is what we do. All 5 of us. This is Geraldine's first adventure. The rest of us have years of experience at this calling to adventure. And speaking of callings, I have always been drawn to the care of the elderly. From early in life I've had some amazing friends who were in their last years of life, human and animal. Between years of college I found myself fulfilled by my 3rd shift job at an assisted living home in Concord, Ohio. And now, we have welcomed an older pup into our family. Her name is Dandelion and she found herself in an animal shelter in Fargo. Who wants to take a 9 year old yellow lab with hip dysplasia, among other things? I do. I saw her picture and my heart melted me to tears.
It's scary. I'm afraid. Not of caring for another being, but of falling in love with her and having such a short time with her, a few years at best. And yet, this is something I can do for her. She deserves a loving family in which to live out her days. I can provide that. The heartbreak will be worth it.
Pax.
