Public campsites are to camping what decaf is to coffee. They might be safer, cleaner, and more conducive to sleeping, but they're favorless and boring. So when my church small group went camping last month, I was glad we were doing primitive, private-land-next-to-state-game-land type of camping, not pitching our tents at a KOA and trying to avoid eye contact with the neighbors at the next campfire. Marlin and Amy, one of the small group couples, did most of the planning. Marlin has … [Read more...] about Camping in Pennsyltucky
Community
A Day in Queens
"It's not a good idea to go up to people and ask, 'Are you homeless?'" It's mid-Saturday morning at the Ministry Training Center (MTC) in Elmhurst, a neighborhood in Queens, NYC. About two dozen Lancastrians have just gotten off the bus in the Big Apple and are getting a crash course in local demographics and street ministry. "There's about ninety thousand people per square mile here in Elmhurst. Most of them are immigrants or the children of immigrants. Many of them don't speak English." … [Read more...] about A Day in Queens
A Brighter Springtime
I remember clearly what I did on Easter 2020: I went biking alone. No church, no family dinner, no socializing. Of course, that's how the season was for most everyone. Stay home and slow the spread. I was fortunate to keep my job, but everything else pretty much halted. For good or for ill, that was spring 2020. So while I have been seriously neglecting Penny Letters in the last few months, it's because of happier days! I took a Saturday job answering phones at a mulch business, church … [Read more...] about A Brighter Springtime
New Year’s Eve and Nun-Sense
2020 is behind us! Last night I welcomed the New Year the same way I did last year, at a party with friends. This year the event was smaller and none of us went outside to shoot guns at midnight, but we made some wonderful memories that I'll share here. My friend Ada planned the party, and she asked us all to bring a different ethnic food and wear clothing from different countries. Most of us are experienced travelers who enjoy learning about other cultures, so this was a fun twist to the … [Read more...] about New Year’s Eve and Nun-Sense
An Unwelcome Guest
Keeping things running smoothly behind the scenes is their job. Mom and Dad are on the board at Martindale Mennonite Fellowship Center, which is a venue used for church services, hymnsings, meetings, funerals, and of course, weddings. Last Saturday morning, like most Saturdays, there was a wedding at the center. There's always a board member present to take care of the air conditioning and the sound system, etc. It was my parents' turn to be there, and in the late morning, Dad was … [Read more...] about An Unwelcome Guest