Saturday 8th June Today was my last morning in Winnipeg. Both Vic and I woke and were up earlier than either of us expected. This being so Vic asked if I would like to go and be part of a men’s prayer breakfast at the other side of town – very near the airport. It sounded good, so I said, "Yes". After a bit of a scramble to get all my final packing done, we stepped out of the house, I took a photo of Vic standing on his porch and then we were driving through the center of Winnipeg to meet the group from his local church. About ten of them were already seated around a large table in a large pancake café, tucking into cooked breakfasts when we arrived. They meet once every two months and recently Vic had not been able to join them because of other commitments so there were warm greetings all round and a lot of laughter. A first glance at the menu made me wonder if I might hit a vegan brick wall, but a closer look and with a conversation and slight negotiation with the waitress all was resolved (as it almost always is) and I was able to experience vegan joy at the beginning of the day. None of my flights would offer food and airport cuisine leaves much to be desired so this was an important moment in my culinary day. The conversation around the table was good; the obvious questions about the UK and the nature of my trip and what I thought of Winnipeg – all good stuff. Several of the men had brought their sons, which was nice to see. Vic and I then headed towards the smart new airport, only a year old – I hadn’t really noticed this on my arrival, as it was so late, so dark and I was bushwhacked. Today was so different, bright, warm, with beautiful blue skies. Vic and I said our farewells. He had made my stay both enjoyable and significant, he is a lovely man I am pleased to call my friend. I went through check-in and security without a hitch – I am getting and old hand at all this! My plane to Calgary (my transit point) was on time – the first occasion on this trip. Smooth boarding and takeoff, I settled into my window seat, my computer on my lap to try and catch up on my backlog of blogs. The hour-long flight was a good time and I got quite a lot done. It was just as we were coming in to land that the man on the outside row leaned across his wife and asked me, “Are you a Mennonite?” (His wife had been reading my blog!!). Rather startled I said, “No, but I am part of the Anabaptist Network UK”. “Oh”, he replied, “Do you know Stuart Murray Williams and his book, ‘The Naked Anabaptist’?” When I told them that Stuart and I had been friends for over 20 years and that I had come up with the book title they were stunned! It was a fun few minutes! He was a church-planting consultant for one of the large Mennonite conference and was eager to talk, but that couldn’t last long as we were by now disembarking. I disembarked into Calgary airport though Gate 46 only to discover that was the gate I would be leaving by – what joy not to have to negotiate the usual terminal labyrinth (with the word ‘terminal’ being understood in all its senses). I found a seat, assembled my luggage and then looked around for some refreshment. I wanted to avoid ‘carbohydrate death’, which is usually the only fare available at airports and discovered a fruit and veg drinks making stand (what joy!). I ordered a large ‘full veg’ drink, which they made in front of you, filled with more carrots, celery, beetroot, and assorted fruit than you could shake a stick at. Sitting back in my seat the elderly woman next to me gave my drink a quizzical look and muttered, “Very healthy” in a rather condescending tone – but she was not wrong! Great joy, the second leg of my flight to Abbotsford was on time! It was a very full flight. I had a middle of the row seat overlooking the wing – not an ideal seat, but gratitude proved greater than convenience. We were in the air and I got talking to the man at the window seat who just happened to be British! Twenty years in Canada working in the forestry service doing surveying for the timber industry. I got chatting about the Rockies and if we would see them. He then says, “Why, you must change seats with me, you might get something with your camera” – we did, the kindness of strangers is a beautiful thing. Alas, the Rockies were shrouded in cloud but as we approached the British Columbia sea line where the costal mountains that fringe the Pacific Ocean came into view. Still snow-capped they create the environment for the Frazer River, with its fertile valley, in which Abbotsford nestles, running t the sea (Vancouver is situated at the Frazer River delta). We swept down into the city of Abbotsford with spectacular views of its setting. This is all a huge learning curve for me, I have to confess when I first hear about Abbotsford I imagined a moderately sized town isolated from Vancouver – it is in fact a city (that term is not interpreted in the UK manner, but still significant) of considerable size and influence. Stan and Marijke Olson, from the Emmanuel Mennonite Church, who were to be my hosts for my time in the city, met me at the airport. Stan comes form Norwegian and British background while Marijke is Dutch. They were generous, kind and welcoming beyond expectation. Nothing was too much trouble; I loved being with them in their home. Marijke is a deacon in the church with a great love for people and pastoral care, Stan is very active in A’Rocha, the now global Christian ecological network. He was disappointed I was not staying longer so he could take me to meet the folk at the A’Roche center. That would have been great but it just could not be. I settled into my room. Went for a good walk with Stan, arriving back Justin time for a delicious meal served by Marijke. After the meal I was so tired from my travelling I excused myself, had a shower and went to bed; aware that the next day would be very busy. (I am sorry that there are no photos to accompany this blog. I have some but for some reason my computer is refusing to load them on to my FB page. But I only have a small window to send this tonight as I sit in Seattle airport waiting to board my flight)
Posted on: Thu, 13 Jun 2013 04:39:51 +0000
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