Church and Baroney Beach on the same day

Sunday school at Church of the Palms. If we were here for several weeks I’d want to try each age level.  The children and youth are not here in great numbers, as this is very much a retirement area but they are here, and they are neat! A youth who reminds me so much of Megan Jolivette at Hope Church is leading them this month to collect clothing for underprivileged elementary school kids.

We went to a class of oldsters like us who are using the Teaching Company videos to support their discussion of Christian history.  Today we learned that morality is taught in several ways by different kinds of Christians, and that United Methodists are taught to offer the love of Christ as our primary moral goal regardless of the consequence.  It didn’t take long to be talking about war and politics, and separation of church and state. Serious discussion, but not much time in a SS class to discuss.

"Look Mona!  You can see our house from here!"

Church followed in a traditional style with lovely music by the very gifted pianist, choir, and, honestly, the church itself.  No band here. No screens either, except in the lobby. But its not old timey worship. Pastor Pete keeps things moving and I find he has a professional, yet sensitive, style of worship leading that really appeals to me, and apparently, to his crowd. He is loved here.

The message was on his own love for this church and the text out of First Thessalonians was perfectly chosen to illustrate that love. “If Paul were here he’d say this about you, but he is not, so I must.”

After church Mona and I were invited out to lunch by two of the many couples and singles we have gotten to know already in our several days here.  John and Carol Baxter & Al and Elaine Beynon took us to the Okatie Inn.  When we arrived we recognized it as a great place our friends, the Nearhoofs, took us to a couple of years ago when they were showing us Sun City.  This was a great encore!

John and Al are teachers in a seniors education program through the local college.  I believe John is an administrator of the program and Al teachers his favorite subject, OPERA Appreciation.  He is a professional tenor who performed often with the Youngstown Ohio Opera in the 1980’s.  The stories they could tell!

As we left the restaurant they invited us to John and Carol’s for dinner on a night soon after we return from North Carolina. They are both Sun City residents so we’ll get to see their homes and neighborhoods ‘after dark’ and up close.  Someday maybe we will be also.

The Beynon’s took us home after lunch so we could pack TOAD and unpack FROG for our next two weeks on the road. They graciously took TOM, our cherry tomato plant (entire garden), with them till we return.  They said neither has a green thumb but we said if Tom gives up his vegetarian ghost while with them no problem.  We’ve enjoyed him for all of his four months with us thus far and he was producing at least two more sweet treats for them now.

Mona defrosted the fridge so it will be all set to restart on our return.  We are NOT going to have any more refrigerator problems with FROG.  We have made that promise to ourselves.  We hope we can keep it!

We packed up Toad and drove Frog to a nearby campground to drain all three tanks so she would be ready for the shop and short time storage afterward.  We dropped her at the Cummin’s shop for some basic diesel maintenance today and we move her to Boats N RV in Ridgeland on Wednesday. Then back to the church to be parked as we trek NC.

We headed north up I-95 then east past Bluffton and onto Hilton Head Island, checked in to Marriott Baroney Beach, our home resort, and settled in.  Having bought a pound of just caught shrimp at a stand on the way in Mona steamed that up and we just peeled and 

                                               plopped them into our tummies.

  

Sea spiders are SO GOOD Theresa Philby!

-Ken