Sunday Salon: Pentecost Sunday

Weather: Beautiful. Don is out cleaning the deck, getting ready for next weekend.

Pentecost Sunday: The day in the church calendar when Christians celebrate the in-filling of the Holy Spirit. Our church members all dress in red and today our sanctuary was decked out in red, too. We are reminded on this day that Go'd spirit lives within us and that means his power is available to us.

Two funny events related to Jane Austen:

1. Two weeks ago the Bethel School Board recognized and honored the district employees who are retiring this year, with me among them. Nice things were said about each person by his/her principal or supervisor, then they were given a plaque of recognition. When it was my turn, my principal, Matt Yarkosky, had very nice things to say about me and about the programs I started in my library, like Jane Austen Week (that was the example he used, among others.) Next the district employee handed me my plaque and whispered in my ear, "Give it back after the program and we'll make sure your name is spelled correctly next time." I looked down and my name was misspelled:  ANNE BENNET. I couldn't help myself. I announced to the audience that though my name was misspelled it was an appropriate mistake since my favorite author is Jane Austen and her most famous character is Elizabeth Bennet, with one t, not two t's like my name. Everyone laughed.
2. Today in church the responsive reading had a phrase that went something like this, "Lord forgive us for the pride and prejudice we feel toward others..." At that point Don elbowed me in the ribs. I leaned over to tell Carly, who was standing on my other side, what her father did and before a word was uttered, she elbowed me, too. Ha!

Matt Yarkosky (current Principal), Lee Ozmun (first Principal), Jennifer Bethman (10th Principal). In my 37 years in education I served under 13 principals.

Retirement Party: This week I hosted my own retirement party after school. Over 70 people came including three of my principals, several coworkers I haven't seen in years, lots of friends from my book club and church, and, of course, folks from my current school. I decided years ago that when I retire I wanted to do it up right, with a party and giving everyone a chance to say goodbye.  A lot of teachers seem to just slip away during summer vacation so we never get a chance to say goodbye. I had a lot of fun. Thanks for coming, everyone!

Hail and Farewell: This past week I also said goodbye to my Honor Society students and co-advisor in an event we call Hail and Farewell, where we send off the seniors and welcome in the new club officers. This year the club surprised me with a video show of the the seniors saying goodbye with an explanation of which of the four pillars of NHS I best represented. Tears were flowing freely. Thank you to Brad and everyone who participated.

Memorial Day at the Oregon Coast: I spent last weekend at Seaside, Oregon with my best college friend, AnneMarie. We nearly talked non-stop we had so much catching up to do! We stayed in the best Air B-n-B...we had the third floor to ourselves and spent a good deal of the time in the turret (they called it the wine bar) looking out over the Pacific Ocean. You see the house in the background but just a portion of the turret. We also took lots of silly pictures wearing our noses for Red Nose Week in support programs to eliminate childhood hunger.

Getting ready for next weekend: When Don will be retiring from the National Guard with a ceremony at Camp Murray; when we will lost a reception afterward; and then a party that evening. The next day we will have everyone in the family back for a baby shower for Baby Adams. Should be quite a weekend. We've spent this weekend doing chores in preparation: changing sheets and cleaning the guest rooms; hosing off the deck and the deck furniture; ordering catering, and shopping for paper products. Whew.

Books completed the past two weeks:

• We Are Okay by Nina LaCour...a YA novel about a young coed who is trying to outrun her life and her memories which she can't escape. LGBT-themed. Audio.
• City of Saints and Thieves by Natalie C. Anderson...set in Kenya and the Congo. Tina's mother was murdered and Tina wants revenge. She is 99% sure she knows who did it. But that 1% makes her pause. A good, international mystery. Audio. 

Currently reading:

• Wolf by Wolf by Ryan Graudin...an alternative history novel. The AXIS powers won WWII and now Yael wants to take down Hitler to end the regime. Print. 55%.
• Allegedly by Tiffany Jackson...Mary was accused on killing an infant when she was nine years old. Now she is 16 and after spening seven years in jail and a halfway house she is ready to tell the truth. Audio. 75%
• The Little Book of Hygge: The Danish Way to Live Well by Meik Wiking...Hygge (pronounced Hoo-ga) is a state of well-being and Danes say it is why they are the happiest place in Europe. Print. 25%.

Old Turtle: An old turtle is called a mossback. I just learned this fact this weekend, just in time to rename our old truck. Our old truck has sat outside all winter and it was covered with dirt and moss like an old turtle. I was so grossed out about it, I forced my husband to run it through the car wash, which didn't get much if any of the moss of it so we had to wash the old guy by hand. Ha!

Have a wonderful week!