Blog Plans

So this is an informative post about the blog.  One is a change from Feedburner, who sends the emails and the other is my own effort to be consistent.

I am getting a message that Feedburner will no longer support email subscribers come July.  I am not techy but what I have concluded is after June, no longer will you get an e-mail with the post content once I have written something.  Considering my sporadic writing, that service has been extremely helpful.  So in response I am making a couple of changes.

If you are one of my loyal fans (bwahahaha) that doesn't want to miss a post, please send me a quick note with your preferred e-mail address to lkplants@gmail.com.  I will compile a list and when I write a new post, I will email you a link to the most recent post.  

The other thing I am going to do is try to be consistent.  I have created a schedule for myself.  (Thank you Todd and Kerri for that inspiration with your Wednesday Door weekly email.)  Even if it is just a few lines or a picture, I am going to try to consistently post something on Tuesday.  

In response to comments from a couple of friends and my need for accountability and consistency, I have decided to share my homiletics - pieces of it anyway through the blog on a weekly basis.  I started using homiletics, the great tool I learned as a leader in BSF in the fall to teach a little bible study.  When that ended, I continued to use homiletics as I worked through the Gospel of John.  A couple of people have asked me to teach them how to use it.  Today as I was working on homiletics for the last chapter of John, I had the thought to use this space as a place to share that process. I have decided to continue where it ends in the Gospel of John by doing Homiletics on the book of Acts, starting in the next week.  I will post homiletics (sharing the process and some thoughts from it) on Saturdays.  

Now its' out there.  I am committed.  Responsibility is a BIG motivator for me.  Since I told you I am doing it, it highly motivates me to do it.  If you are not interested, that's fine.  You can just ignore sending me your e-mail or checking in on the lookingforyonder.blogspot.com website.

Thanks for the encouragement and giving me a place to process thoughts.

Amazing Labor of Love

Here is a shout out to my friend Helen who is a pioneer woman and a master craftswoman.  She takes on some really big crafts projects (at least in my book) and creates amazing masterpieces.  One of these areas is in her quilting.  I shared her journey (via text) as she created two amazing quilts out of a deceased relative's massive tie collection for his children.  Therefore, I wasn't surprised when after my father died, she asked for some of his shirts.  From dad's shirts she made my mom this beautiful table runner.  Mom proudly has it on display where she sees it every day.  After giving her a stack of shirts, I was cleaning out and came across dad's falling apart, Airforce duffle bag and my brother's beloved Bob and Larry t-shirt.  I gave my dad (Bob) and brother (Larry) these Bob and Larry for President shirts back in 1996.  My brother wore both of them out.  I was sleeping in the last one following his death.  I got to the point it was time to part with it and the pieces of dad's duffle but couldn't just throw them away.  I sent them to Helen and said either she could make something from them or throw them away for me.  She has since said that the responsibility of that package was pretty heavy.  She also claims that the amazing one of a kind bag that she created from those 2 pieces and a couple of dad's shirts was all God.  When this gift arrived two and a half years ago, I wept.  There are just no words.

  

 

After this gift, I did not expect anything else.  So when she kept evading my question of "what you working on?" I did not suspect it would be this next treasured gem.  Upon arrival to the Sea View Inn, Helen gave me this quilt made from my dad's shirts.  It is a fringe quilt that she says will get only better with time as it is used and washed.  She used kitchen and plant themed squares as well as a cow (we originally bonded over a love of cows) and my beloved blue cat Pete.

Once again the love and workmanship that went into this gift is overwhelming.  I spent my weekend at the beach curled up in this quilt, thanks to Saturday's chilly breezes. It's warmth goes beyond the physical as the love of the maker and the reminder of my dad make this emotionally cozy.  As I write I am sitting on my front porch draped in my beloved quilt.  I am so grateful to God for a friend with such amazing creativity and talent as well as her love that prompted such a labor of love for me.

Sea View Inn or Bust

 A couple of years ago I met a man who made me promises then broke my heart.  Ok so that is the Hallmark version of what really happened. I highly exaggerate.  But there was a man who did tell me about this place at the beach, showed me the website and told me he wanted to take me there someday.  When this very short lived relationship busted up, I thought I was heartbroken.  Turns out I was just disappointed.  One of the things I was disappointed about was not going to the Sea View Inn at Pawley's Island.  So when a gift of money came my way, I decided I would take myself.  I would show him!!!  Ha!  So I made a reservation for April 2020 and invited one of my besties over in NC (whom I rarely get to see) to meet me there.  Did you catch the part about 2020?  Right it didn't happen last year but this past weekend my dream was realized and I got my weekend at the Sea View Inn.  And it was all I had hoped for and more. 

I bought I t-shirt with a list of  Top 10 Reasons to Stay at Sea View Inn.  I have modified the last three items on my list to reflect my own thoughts.

 1) Showering with your neighbors.  Though the rooms have a toilet and a sink, taking a shower means going down the hall or to the showers below the house.  I took one really cold shower at the end of the hall. 

2) No cell phones or television.  (phone and computer usage are discouraged not prohibited.)  However I turned my phone on airplane mode when I got there midday Friday and did not turn it back on until time to leave Sunday morning. Funny how the world didn't fall apart when I was unavailable by phone.

3) Dinner bells and Tuesday Fried Chicken.  I wasn't there for Tuesday's chicken but I had a lot of other yummy food. Since Covid, the Inn has gone from providing 3 meals a day to serving breakfast and lunch.  Each party has an assigned table and when the bell rings, no one wants to be late. Dinner options are available from nearby restaurants just across the causeway but we found on Saturday that breakfast, lunch, happy hour snacks and our own supply of snacks was more than plenty.

4) Bare Feet on worn wood floors.  Shoes are never required even for meals.  And the weathered wood paneling expanded from floor to ceiling providing a comforting backdrop.

5) It's not in Myrtle Beach.  Pawleys Island has been preserved from commercial expansion and is a delightful quiet place.

6) Happy Hour on the Front Porch.  People bring their own alcohol and stash it in the community fridge. The Inn provides crackers, dips, fruit and veggies for a little snack to be enjoyed in the evening.  It feels like something mom would put out when the family is all in town.

7) Pancakes for dessert at breakfast.  Breakfast was eggs cooked to order with grits, sausage and toast.  There are other cold breakfast items available. THEN they come around with pancakes.  I avoid processed wheat but that did not stop me from having my daily breakfast dessert of pancake and Nutella!

8) The view from the front porch rockers.  I would guess at least 50% of my waking time was spent sitting in a rocker overlooking the ocean.  Pure Bliss!

9) The Daily Quiet Time  The rules are few (and different from most establishments) but my favorite is the quiet time from 2:30 to 4:30 every afternoon. The request is during this time you reframe from making loud noises. I had a great nap Friday on my bed in our coveted (so we learned) corner room with the cross breeze and ocean sounds.

10) Sharing the experience with a like minded best friend. The Sea View Inn does not appeal to all. As one long time visitor said, "people tend to love it or hate it."  With no keys to your room, AC or Wifi, it is certainly not for everyone.  It is akin to sharing your great grandmothers less than modern beach house with a bunch of strangers (who mind you soon become friends.)  When I decided to make this journey, I carefully considered who to invite.  Helen was the perfect person to share it with! She appreciated the environment as well as refreshed my soul with deep conversation and great laughter.

I know it looks like I picked this friend up off a rack for the photo but honestly she's been my friend for close to 30 years and that hanger belongs to the flowers behind!  Not a very well planned selfie but the only one I have!!!

11) (I decided to add another one) Sunrises over the ocean.  My April challenge was to get up at 5:30 AM.  This trained my body to be awake before 6 Am just as the light was appearing on the horizon.  Thanks to great staff, there was coffee in the dining room and I could head out with my camera, coffee and quilt to watch the sun rise.  One day I viewed if from the porch and the other while walking on the beach.  Can't imagine ever tiring of sunrise over the ocean! I loved quietly enjoying this sight each morning.

There are many more great things as well as pictures that tell about my weekend at the Sea View Inn but I figure that this is enough for now. Perhaps there will be more pictures and stories later. I  have  booked a room for next April to make it an annual trip with Helen and started my Sea View Inn Retreat fund.\ Already looking forward to it.

I am so grateful to the "Ex" who told me about this place. I am grateful to the giver of the monetary gift that allowed me to go.   Most of all, I am especially grateful to God for refreshing my soul with this delightful place and time to simply be still.