Pasadena Mission Update #1 – THURSDAY – December 29, 2016
The sky overhead was black in the very early morning.
On the far eastern horizon a faint orange glow was appearing to let us know the day would eventually dawn.
God had spun the earth, our eastern horizon was dropping and
would soon reveal the sun and flood the earth with light for all to
enjoy.
During this morning’s drive a song from long ago
days at Waldorf College came to the forefront as I drove in the darkness
towards that orange glow in the east.
It is amazing what is held in our memories!
In the digital hard drive inside our heads all kinds of information is stored and comes to the surface now and again.
Back in my Waldorf College days the concert choir sang a song, “O
Day of Grace” and how appropriate it was to flood my memory this
morning.
In order to get the sound the director wanted, he had the choir sing the word “Dee” instead of “Day.”
It made a very effective sound and from the deep reaches of my memory I could actually hear it in my head at this early hour.
It was certainly going to be “A Dee of Grace” from our God.
God’s Petal Pushers were already on the move as the sun made its appearance.
We were heading for Kansas City to catch an airplane. Southwest airlines was scheduled to take us from there to Los Angeles where we would be staying.
Great preparations had been made for our group of 35 volunteers
to journey from Los Angeles to Pasadena for the next three days to
decorate floats for the famous Rose Parade.
Petal Pushers from throughout the western half of Iowa, some from
Illinois, and even one from Missouri were converging on Kansas City to
board the airplane.
We all made it on time only to discover the plane was going to be arriving late.
But we all knew, even with the short delay, God was in charge and was giving us a “Dee of Grace” to enjoy.
As we waited for our plane, there was excitement for the adventure ahead.
It didn’t show but perhaps there was even a little apprehension on the part of some.
A few of these volunteers had been on a previous trip but most were looking ahead to a new experience.
This trip has some big changes from previous trips so it will be a new adventure for everyone.
More about those changes in future updates.
The main thing to remember is something I have heard Ellie express in one way or another many times before.
There is no need to be concerned. God is in charge.
He has already been in Pasadena and knows full well what is in store for us.
His spirit will be guiding us all the way! This morning He reminded me, today is truly “A Dee of Grace,” a gift from Him to each of us.
We finally boarded the plane and the pilot took us to our cruising altitude of 38,000 feet.
If you do the math, we were over seven miles straight up in really rare air.
We passed over two main mountain ranges, a desert, canyon lands and more than half the distance across our country.
As John Denver used to sing, “It’s a long way to L.A.”
We hung in the air for well over three hours before our descent into LAX.
Our flight was good, uneventful and smooth most of the way with just enough turbulence to keep it interesting.
The turbulence also gave the captain practice lighting up the seat belt signs.
Our flight attendant did a wonderful job serving snacks and drinks.
As she passed by collecting trash items, she asked if we needed anything.
Usually when someone asks me that question I give the same response each time that all I really need is a million dollars.
Today it was different, perhaps because of the rare air we were traveling through.
I calmly said I would like some more Sprite. She promptly brought me a whole can of it to enjoy.
However, truth be told, I would really rather have had the money.
The pilot set us down on the runway with a bounce
and he immediately came over the intercom and said he hoped the rest or
our year was better than that landing had been.
It brought much laughter from the cabin. This landing brought another question to mind.
In the movies when you see a plane land there is always puffs of smoke as the tires touch the runway.
Did our tires do that today? After
thinking about that for a while, I decided we didn’t have any smoke from
our tires because a couple of times during the flight the attendants
explained Southwest’s strict non-smoking policy.
We found our way out of the sardine packed experience and to the baggage claim area.
We had a ton of luggage to grab and the group worked together
beautifully pulling all the bags from the conveyer with bright green
ribbon on them.
Ellie had everyone take an additional suitcase filled with items to give to the homeless on Skid Row on January 3rd.
We wrestled with luggage and got it to the street and began to
load it onto the hotel shuttle only to discover the luggage would not
fit.
It required two shuttles.
We finally all made it to the hotel just a little worse for wear.
During the luggage struggle I had an idea. In
my humble opinion I think it would be much easier to go to Skid Row and
instead of handing out towel kits, underwear, socks, etc., we should
just hand each person a five dollar bill
instead. That would be so much easier than fighting with all the extra bags of luggage.
If you do the math, you will find it a lot cheaper too!
I need to talk to Ellie about this. I would even volunteer to carry all those five dollar bills in my carry-on.
We met up with the folks from Indiana, thus completing our group of 35.
We had a group meal at the hotel, played some games to get acquainted, and got instruction about tomorrow from Ellie.
We need to be up eating breakfast by 6:00 a.m., in the meeting
room by 6:40 for devotions and then head out for our first day of
decorating.
That will be our second “Dee of Grace.”
God’s Blessing – more to be included in tomorrow’s update
Lynn Menz – Petal Pusher Boy – still have not seen any petals!
To be contnued tomorrow night!!!!
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