Grateful

I spent last week at a conference at Regent. Marva Dawn, Darrell Johnson, and Bruce Hindmarsh were the speakers. It was such a rich week. The content was abundant--my notes filled pages and pages of my journal. The speakers were passionate and knowledgeable. The worship was like drinking from a deep and refreshing well.

And I was struck by how right it felt to be back there--this is a place and a people who have profoundly shaped me, and it felt so good to be in that space again. I reconnected with people who were part of my journey for those four years.

And I got to spend the entire week with my sister-in-law, who basically rocks. On Saturday morning, she had already left, and I spent some time alone--and I realized that we had basically talked non-stop from the time we both got there until we said goodbye. The last two mornings, we'd bus only the part of the way to Regent, get a coffee (or a tea), and walk through the endowment lands the rest of the way.

I was reminded of my love for Vancouver, with its mountains and water, green trees and flowers, active life styles, ethic food, funky shops and restaurants, produce markets, and the diversity of people. It made coming home a little...well...depressing. But, the grass is beginning to turn green here. And I was able to ride my bike to work today. So I will try to embrace the next few months of sun before darkness and snow cover the city yet again.