Angus called on his way home from work at 9 a.m. "I think I'm going to golf this morning."
"Oh, yeah? You goin' alone?" says me, knowing his golfing buddy is still out of town.
"Probably... unless you want to come. (pause) ....I'll get a golf cart. You can drive."

You need to understand, when Angus golfs he speed walks. For him it is not only about golf but about exercise, too. I went out with him a couple of times last year, just keeping him company, tagging along. I could not keep up, he walks so fast. I really tried to be tough and not show that my calves were on fire and I was panting as quietly as I could but finally I told him "Hey, you're killin' me." and he slowed down to a normal fast pace which was till a lot of exercise.

Today, when he offered the golf cart I knew he really did want me to come, so I went. Why not? I said I wanted to walk it, I'd been walking with the dog lately so felt up to the challenge When he saw me slip on my flip-flops he said "Are you going to wear those?" Man-speak for "Are you nuts?" "Yeah, I walk in these all the time." Woman-speak for "You can't tell me what to do."

It had rained earlier in the morning and the air was still heavy with humidity but the sky was overcast and there was a slight breeze. We begin the trek to the first hole. Before we had gone past the 2nd hole I had a blister on my left foot. Instead of being miserable for the next 6 holes I just slipped off my flips and Angus slid them wordlessly into a pocket on his cart.

Suddenly walking on a lush, thick green carpet. It was cool and slightly moist under my feet as I walked beside my husband in the peace of the late morning. I wondered if anyone else had ever walked this place barefoot and experienced the soft joy I was feeling. It occurred to me that here I was standing in a little piece of grassy heaven and no one was appreciating it in quite the way I was. By standing barefoot on it I was somehow a part of the environment I was in and I saw things differently than I'd have otherwise. I spotted a deer track near a marsh. I noticed the places where clover was trying to intrude. I felt the sun slip in and out between the clouds and I caught the breeze gently lift my hair ever so slightly. It occurred to me that a golf course is a part of nature, however manicured it may be, beauty is everywhere!

I am so glad I did not miss out on that opportunity so feel closer to Angus, nature and God.

We'd pitched our tent close to the creek and the rushing of the water over the little rapids just downstream was a soothing sound that made for peace-filled sleep. Just the night before we'd been sleeping in a dorm with a couple of dozen bunk beds occupied by others who'd come to the Appalachian Mountains to work. A week repairing houses and painting barns in the deep humidity of Kentucky, living in a community of friendly strangers had been great but we were eager to get on with our vacation and had headed to the nearby Smoky Mountains.

The contrast was surreal. The calm, quiet and solitude were more needed than we had realized. The first morning we woke to rain. Well, every morning we woke to rain. We'd planned to do a lot of hiking but with the threat of rain looming

and the incredible humidity, only managed two good hikes. Vince was so sweaty after he looked as if he'd been through a rain shower! One cloudy morning we were driving around when we came across a path to Lookout Tower. We walked up the path and up the tower to see the view and all we could see were clouds below us... but above was blue sky!

The next day, cloudy again! We took the same path up to the tower and discovered a much clearer view of our surroundings and it was beautiful! We decided it wasn't going to rain any more and trotted back down to do some hiking.

That was the day we took our long hike. The trail to Abrams Falls was closed due to "bear activity" so we missed out on that but we found another that led us up to the heights and down in the valleys. We were so deep in the woods that at one point it was almost spooky. We never saw a sign of another person all day! If felt good to be so free and wild. There were interesting things of nature all around us.

We love camp cooking and we and some wonderful meals, some of which we ate under a lean-to as we watched the rain speckle the creek. We tried out a couple of new recipe ideas I'd found on the internet and they definitely earned their way onto our camp menu in the future. On the way down the highway we had stopped at a flea market where we ended up purchasing quite a bit of local produce.

We did end up leaving a couple of days early. We saw some great views, met many nice and friendly people and discovered much to love about the region. The rain, oppressive heat and humidity finally got to us though and we were ready to head home (to much of the same, more rain, heat and humidity).

Life is good.

They stood  there on the porch leaning into each other.  Ricky and Clarice.  They were definitely pleased that we had come to help them with repairs to their home.  They had expected the new dry wall but had gotten a solid floor, new sink cabinet and counter and a patched ceiling as well.  We had little gifts of pretty kitchen towels, oven mitt, dish cloths, slice rug, hanging flowers and a welcome mat for their front door which we had just presented to them.  They stood there together as people took  their picture, truly grateful but somewhat unsettled.  I doubt they much liked having their photos taken, obviously uncomfortable as flash after flash of our paparazzi popped in their faces.

I've been thinking lots about them and the whole mission trip and what I have learned and am taking away from it all. I've been on a few of these work-type trips and always come away feeling as if we could have done so much more, that there is so much need and we aren't doing enough.  But this trip has really thrown me a curve.  

Appalachia.  We've all heard stories about how some of the poorest people in the U.S. live there and until recent history, because of their isolation, greatly fell through the cracks in our system for helping them.  

We did see much poverty, horrible living conditions and bad health.  What I did not see was need.  When I say that I mean that they are satisfied with their lives, accepting of their condition and happy.  They help each other.  Their homes weren't much but I have never seen such fine gardens!  That is why I am feeling ambivalent.  

It made me uneasy to see our group taking photos of this sweet, loving couple whom we obviously pitied.  They knew it, too.  I could see it in Ricky's eyes.  I think we were self-righteous and judgmental of thei

r lifestyle.  Yes, we definitely improved their living conditions but I wonder if we really improved their lives.  Did we make them feel small? Were we condescending?    I pray that we were not.

Ricky had no teeth at all and his clothes were filthy. He had moved all the kitchen cabinets and appliances into the middle of the room out of the way, in anticipation of our arrival.  He was there almost always as we worked, not underfoot but ready to answer questions, eager to help in any way he could.  He got us a broom to sweep up, he found us a hammer when we needed an extra for pulling out all those nails.  "Grampa's crow bar" was indispensible.  He found us the phone number for the lumber yard when we unexpectedly needed plywood to repair the rotten floor beneath the sink and freezer areas.  

On our second work day we arrived at the house to find a hole in the corner of the  kitchen floor.  Ricky was moving the refrigerator more out of the way the night before and had actually gone through the floor!  Worried, I asked him how far he had gone through.  He replied "About half way.  But it was my bad leg."  Oh no!  But he said that was a good thing.  He was totally sincere.  He'd been hurt but it was on his already damaged leg and not his good leg, so no biggie.  The man has an attitude of gratitude that I can only dream of.  He looks for the good in life and he finds it.  Oh, how I need to learn from that man!

On day 3, an old woman called because her electricity and gone out the night before and she called Ricky.  He went over and figured out the problem for her.  He is also the church caretaker. The Settlement would have come and gotten the huge pile of old sheet rock, paneling and debris we'd hauled out of his house but Ricky's brother showed up with his pickup to haul it off.

Clarice was overweight with the dirtiest feet I have ever seen.  She has a gaping hole in her quick smile and gorgeous blue eyes surrounded by long dark lashes.  You notice their beauty in spite of her teeth. Her health is poor and there were several oxygen tanks in their living room for her.  She teaches a Bible Study for the teenagers that go to her church.  The day she went to the doctor she wore a pretty dress that I commented on.  I wish I'd taken of picture of her that day.  I wish I'd taken a picture of those eyes.  She has quick smile and a joie de vivre

 about her that can't be missed.  Do I value life that much?  

On the final day, we wouldn't let Clarice in the kitchen while we worked.  We wanted to surprise her.  We made Ricky promise to keep her out while we went back for lunch.  We painted all day and put in the new cabinet and counter.  I painted a quick border of vines and flowers.  Someone found an old wooden heart laying in their yard, cleaned it up and painted it white.  They brought it to me to "do something with" so I painted the same viney flowers and the words "God bless this happy home".  We hung it above the sink.

When we had finished it all, we led Vicki in for her surprise.  She was delighted with the border and gave me a big ol' hug.  She was thrilled with her "new" kitchen.  We gave them the gifts and a new broom which she handed right off to Ricky "I cook, you clean."  We got a good laugh out of that.  We blessed their home, gave hugs (Ricky got a little teary) and headed back to the Settlement.

We'd had a good week of hard work and tons of sweat.  There was lots of kidding and fun.  Lots of jokes about no teeth and Mountain  Dew and how the mountain folks just "make due".  There had been lots of comments about the incredulity of the living conditions.  Smug?  

I came away thinking I had learned SO much.  If we had never come along I don't think they'd be much worse off.  They seemed satisfied with the life they live.  Yes, they accepted the things we gave them gratefully.  They were glad to have it all but did they need it?  Not really.  They were happy.  They were in love.  They appreciate the smallest things and look for the good in life, in people.  And they find it.

We were there to work, to get as much done in our 4 days as possible.  There were 17 of us and they started us off with two projects.  If we finished those they'd find something more.  There's always more to be repaired, replaced, renewed in these Appalachian communities in southeastern Kentucky and Northeastern Tennessee.

Our jobs were to sheetrock and a kitchen and put skirting and a porch roof on the house next door.  We all kind of gravitated to a job and set to work.  Ted was a retired sheet rock man who had owned his own business for many years.  We could not have done it without his expertise.  He was flat out amazing.  Seriously we hardly had to sand at all due to his incredible mudding skills!

But I've gotten ahead of myself.  We went on in to tear out the old paneling (a kind of cardboard) and sheet rock, discovering a horrible mess of mold and rot in one corner.  Ricky, the homeowner told us the creek had flooded the house in '93. 

The floor was squishy in several places so we had to be careful where we placed our feet.  There was already a patched area near the door, a piece of vinyl nailed over the hole.  We were able to tear out all the sheet rock and pull out the dozens of nails as well as vacuum up a lot of the debris.  Everything was crumbly.

 The skirting crew was making slow but steady progress.  Who knew it was such a tedious job?  The porch crew did more discussin' than workin' but that's what happens when you have too many chiefs.   They were working well together and enjoying themselves!  

                                                                                             The heat and humidity were barely tolerable for us but no one was complaining.

 
When we arrived at the house the next day to work on the house we found a big hole in the floor.  Ricky had gone right through the floor while trying to move the refrigerator!  

Fortunately, he was not badly injured but now we had floor boards to replace.  As they tore out the rotted floor boards they found more and more rot.  

A 2 foot (ish... nothing is square or level or uniform) piece of floor along the wall and the old hole by the door, as well.

The day ended with most of the insulation installed (There'd been none before!) most of the sheet rock was hung and most of the flooring in place.  

The following day was to be our day off, our site-seeing day, but we spent all morning working on getting needed items for our projects.  We traveling to a Lowe's where we could purchase a replacement sink cabinet, a counter top, some more quick-dry sheet rock mud and some odds and ends.  

Next door was a WalMart and we decided to stop in there to pick up a new broom for Ricky and Clarice. Their's was shot!


We all separated and wandered to the check out with little items to dress up their kitchen.  Towels and towel hangers, a kitchen rug, hanging flower baskets for the porches and a welcome mat for the front door.  

I picked up some paints and brushes thinking, that if there was time, I'd throw up a quick little vining   border to add a little cheer to the plain white walls.

Thursday was crunch day.  Everything had to be finished enough to get the painting done. The carpenters and mudders and skirters went back to the work site and several others of us stayed behind to work at the Settlement.

We were given the job to paint the inside of the big barn "nude Tan" (a pinky white").  The barn will soon be used for a Farmer's Market and the ladies who'll run it were thrilled to get rid of the drab gray cinderblock walls.

We worked and sweated and joked and laughed all day.  Some teens worked outside the barn hauling a huge pile of gravel to the playground area so we had their music and laughter as background in our efforts.

Friday, our final day! All work needed to be completed or left for another group to finish.  We were determined to get it all done.  Several of the most dedicated and talented had skipped lunch on Thursday to finish the mudding.  

We did some light sanding, cleaned up the dust and began a coat of primer before lunch.  The "Nude Tan" paint (again) went on easily with the many hands working while the new cabinet, sink and plumbing were installed.   The skirting was finished, complete with a "gate" so Michael (the coal miner whose family lives in the trailer) could continue to use the space underneath for storage.  The railing was completed for the porch and the flower baskets hung.

We ended with prayers and blessings for the families we had come to know.

Kentucky.  Tennessee.  Angus had two weeks vacation and we would spend the first week of it working on homes in Appalachia  with a group from Missouri, then head on for some camping and hiking in the Smoky Mountains.  We were excited and we were on our way!  The rented van held 8 and Angus and I were in our car heading to Evansville, Indiana where we would meet up with folks from Nixa, Missouri who were also going to the Henderson Settlement.  We stayed the night, sleeping on the gym floor of a church there and then caravanned on, heading east.  We were silly with our walkie-talkies and having fun along the way.  

We stopped for lunch in Somerset, Kentucky.  That's when I discovered it.  My purse was missing... my purse with pretty much all of our cash for the trip.  I remembered putting up on the towel holder in a gas station restroom at our last stop.  We had the receipt and called information to get the phone number.  The rest of the group went on in to order at Smokey's BBQ.  We called and they looked.  No purse.  A hundred thoughts were running through my head.  We don't use credit cards anymore so the loss of the cash was big.  Angus had his debit card but mine was in my purse, so was our check book, of course.  If we canceled mine would he still be able to get money with his card or did it put a hold on the account?  It was Sunday,the bank was closed.   

We live in a small town and so we know our banker and we called him at home.  He told us to call the bank first thing in the morning, any charges would be covered.  Not very comforted by that information, we went back to the table.  We discussed it all.  I told them that for me, the worst of it was knowing people do stuff like that.  I kind of shakes your faith in humanity.  That sounds dumb, I know, but I want to believe, I do believe that most folks do the right thing when they can.  Jenita told us that when her purse was stolen, they had grabbed all the cash out of it and tossed it in the nearest dumpster.  Perhaps we could call the police in that town and they could find the purse, maybe the debit card and check book would still be within.  

That sounded promising so we went back outside to make the call.  Angus had his new early Father's Day gift, a Garmin, and it gave us the local Police number for Morgantown, Kentucky.  The officer who answered was efficient and polite with his deep southern drawl.  He  didn't make me feel like an idiot (okay, not any more of an idiot than I already did).  He took our phone number and said would send someone out to check on it.

My head was still spinning.  I kept thinking of more and more things that had been in that bag.  My digital camera. My school keys.  Angus was quiet and calm, he's used to me doing dumb stuff.  We headed back in and sat down with the rest of the crew.  There, laying on the table between us was a stack of bills.  I didn't know what to say when I saw it.  I looked searchingly at Angus who hadn't  seen it yet.  They'd taken up a little collection for us, these people... most of whom we barely knew.  They had collected $300 in those few minutes we were out.  Tears welled in my eyes.  I had been pretty careful about how I was feeling, nothing seemed real until then.  Their generosity moved me back to my faith in humanity again.  Yes, I know there are bad people, lots of them.  But I still think that they are outnumbered by normal people who do the right thing.  It just doesn't get the attention.

As we were finishing up our meal Angus got the call back.  The purse had been found.  It appeared that everything was intact he said.  We decided to go back the 88 miles to retrieve it.  The rest of the group would go on and we'd, hopefully, meet them at the Henderson Settlement before dark.

In all the excitement we almost forgot to pay for our meal but when we went back to check on it one of the people from Nixa had paid already paid for it.

We called the police when we got into the tiny town and he met us in the parking lot of the local Dollar Store.  He was a big ol' boy and pulled up in his big black SUV.  He didn't even get out of the vehicle, just reached his arm out and handed it out the window, telling me again, he thought it hadn't been messed with but he didn't know what it had looked like before.  Sure enough, everything was there.  Everything.  I was thrilled.  He told us there are two of that gas station in town and we'd probably been given the phone number of the wrong one.  I said I'd sure like to give him a big hug.  He laughed and told us that "Oh, no.  This is a small town and everyone'll hear about it."  Laughed again and was on his way.  

That's it.  We returned all the money given us but we kept the love that had come with it.  Our hearts were filled with such gratitude that every one of those 15 people felt like kin.  The couple who'd bought  our meal refused to be reimbursed.  We missed the evening devotions but arrived at our destination just as it was growing dark.  Heard our names called out from a porch swing as we drove slowly through the peaceful Settlement in the foggy dusk of the surrounding hills.  We were greeted and hugged and settled in quickly. It was peace And we felt ready for whatever adventures lay ahead.