And we keep on going..... never on a straight road!

As we were driving to Pittsburgh, Ken asked about an old friend of mine, who lives in Pittsburgh.  I first met Jade a very long time ago (think around 19 or 20 years).  She was just out of college, recently married and had been hired to be the youth director at the church where I was the church secretary.  Jade and I had so many great conversations, so many fun lunches and just really connected.  It was so wonderful to get to know Jade and her husband, Dane.  She left her position when she had her first daughter.  And shortly after that, she relocated to her home, Pittsburgh.  I have stayed connected with her, thanks to Facebook.  It has been so amazing to watch her grow into an amazing singer, worship leader, wife and mother.

Since we were in Pittsburgh on a Sunday, we decided to visit their church, Hill City Church. Ken and I certainly had a good chuckle at this sign in the parking lot of the church...

It was so good to get a hug from an old friend and to actually get to be with her in worship.  I was flashing back to the many times that Jade and I, along with our friend Lynn (who was the Parish Nurse) would go into the sanctuary and worship together as Jade played piano.  

This was such a great service.  I love the church family that she has joined.  The message and their mission are so in step with my heart!  We didn't really get to spend any time together, outside of worship, but it was so good to be with an old friend.

After church, Ken and I went to downtown Pittsburgh,  We visited Point Park, and walked all around the river front.  Later we took an "incline" ride to the top of the "hill" so that Ken could take some night shots of the city lights.  It was a fun ride up and down the incline.  And it was free for Senior Citizens! The sunset was amazing from the overlook and Ken got lots of pictures of the city.  The best part was the little ice cream shop near the incline station!

We left Pittsburgh this morning and decided to make a detour to see the Flight 93 9/11 memorial.  We choose to take all none interstate roads which only added 10 minutes to the trip.  I decided that there are no straight roads in Pennsylvania!  So many tight turns and so much road construction.  I posted some pictures on my Facebook page of the actual memorial.  The entire area is now a National Monument (Park) and the entire 2 mile drive into the actual memorial was covered with these beautiful wild flowers. 

It truly is in the middle of nowhere.  What a miracle that those passengers were able to bring that plane down in such a remote area.  Because of that, only the passengers and pilots on the plane were lost and no one on the ground was injured or killed.  Walking around the memorial there was a hushed silence, similar to what I experienced at the memorial in New York City.  They have begun construction of a "Tower of Voices" that will eventually have wind chimes that sound as you come into the memorial. It is a sacred place of remembrance.  I am so thankful that we made this detour.  

Our original plans for today had to be scrapped.  We were going to go tubing in the Cook Forest State Park, however the temperatures have been in the 40's (yes 40's) and the river is very shallow.  So we went to the Flight 93 Memorial and then just drove through Cook Forest.  Ken's extended family had a cabin near this forest and he has fond memories of visiting with Uncle Charlie and Aunt Alva there.  

It was a beautiful drive and a cold, blustery kind of day where you needed a sweatshirt.  We were glad that we did NOT go tubing.  We are now safely at our hotel, glad to be taking a breather from driving!

Although it seems like we cram a lot of stuff into our vacations, Ken and I really spend many hours of down time.  We took several walks around our hotel and just enjoyed the river view.  Not driving on the interstate lets you really see the country.  Today we had lunch in Punxsutawney but did not see any ground hogs!  We know better than to look around for something from the movie "Groundhog Day" since that was filled in Woodstock, Illinois (not far from home).  It was fun to go through all the small towns.   Tomorrow we are off on another adventure.  

Jade shared a bit about me with her Pastor as she was introducing us.  It was humbling to hear her say that I had such a huge impact on her during that time so long ago.  I have been thinking about how often we downplay those common, ordinary times that sometimes make such a big difference to those around us.  Even when we are just in our day to day life, we can make a difference.  It doesn't have to be something earth shaking.  Just being a friend and sharing is all that is necessary.  I am so thankful for Facebook that keeps me in touch with old friends.  Without that connection I would have missed seeing Jade.  And I would have missed this very important lesson that you just never know how much of a difference you have made to someone else.   And a good reminder to keep on just being a friend to those around you.  It is amazing how Jesus can use us, even when we are not trying!  

Jesus, thank you so much for the time and ability to travel.  Thank you for keeping us close to old friends through technology.  Holy Spirit, continue to use all of us to spread your love and compassion to those we know at work or in our neighborhood.  Thank you for memorials that help us to remember events that have shaped our world.  Thank you for loving us all!  Amen