Day 31: Retreat!

During March Break, our Ward Relief Society had an overnight retreat at a nearby lodge.

I thought it would be a good way for me to get acquainted with the ladies in my new Ward. It was at quite a nice facility in a place called the Apps Mill Park.

A lady on the Activities committee was kind enough to give me a ride,  along with a member of the Relief Society Presidency. On the ride there, one of the ladies asked me how I feel about pranks. 

I replied  "I'm fine with them, as long as I am not the one being pranked."  I ended up bunking with them.
I figured it's best to be chummy with the ones playing the tricks.

The funny thing was that a very innocent looking older lady was the one who stole their thunder and played the best pranks.

(13th Ward friends think Evelyn Robbins)

This lovely woman plays the organ in Sacrament meeting.  She has all the great qualities of a proper grandma; bobbed gray hair, pearls, cardigan, skirt worn up to her bust, and bless her heart she plays "Called to Serve" at the tempo of a funeral march. 

This lady tripped and fell as she was carrying her things into the lodge and unbeknownst to us all, she broke her hand in the fall. She insisted she was fine and carried on - performing a tap-dance routine, showing a slide show of her trip to Paris, lurking around at night in a creepy mask, putting fake mice in the microwave, and short-sheeting someone's bed. (this was never proven, but she was a prime suspect.) 

The weather was gorgeous and we took some lovely nature walks.

 

I heard childhood stories and beautiful testimonies from beautiful women. 

We played games, ate too much good food, stayed up too late and in the morning did some yoga and meditation exercises.

I ended the retreat with an open invitation to a lady's house for lunch, a potential job opportunity, and a visiting teaching companion - a lady who reminds me of my mom.

And who put ice in my pants to wake me up in the morning.

Oh and Tim Horton was there too.