My Day Off

As a pastor involved in the community my "day off" is often filled with activities that are actually part of my job. Yesterday was very much like that.

It was the smoke that I first noticed as I woke up, thick and with the acrid smell of fire retardant. I closed up the windows and tried to keep the worst of the smoke out. It seemed that the cold night and an air inversion had worked to bring the smoke from the wild fires down to us.

Quickly getting ready I headed to Church for the Men's Ministry meeting where we had devotions together, breakfast and then organized some on going projects.

Leaving there I headed to the Park where the local Kiwanis were having their Annual Duck Race. For the next several hours I worked in the creek, putting up the barrier and chute for the finish line and then called out the winners as they came into the chute. And finally dragging everything back up out of the creek and putting it all away.

I wrapped a towel around me as I headed home to change my clothes. As I was getting dressed I got a call from the Fire Department asking me to report to sign some checks and to meet with the chief to talk about the local wild fire situation.

A couple of hours later the Fire Chief and I headed to an Emergency Operations meeting with the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde where we planned, strategized and shared the information that we had on the fire. From there we headed back to the Fire Station where I picked up my car, stopped at the store and I finally headed home.

I ate a quick dinner, checked on my lung function (down a hundred points, the smoke is not my friend), e-mailed some fire photos, watered the garden and at last, fell into bed.

That was my day, It was busy and involved a lot of different facets of my involvement int he church and community. But it was satisfying and filled with the knowledge that I am right where God wants me, doing the work He has called me to.

And that is a pretty good feeling ....

Just Connie