 |
| You can click to enlarge the photo |
Our September leadership retreat officially came to an end with breakfast this morning, but the Scottish group, who were only flying back to Edinburgh in the evening, pulled out all the stops to be a huge blessing to everyone on the last day. Two of the men were working on Anja's motorbike to repair it, while several of the women were spring cleaning the house (Villa Eden) and washing multiple loads of bedding so that we, the retreat centre staff, won't need to do a lot of cleaning and laundry tomorrow in preparation for the arrival of our next group. What a blessing!!
They also organised a big barbecue - buying chicken, hamburgers, sausages and salads, and inviting the whole seminar group to join them in a relaxed time and a delicious meal by the pool. Then it was time for a final dip in the pool before heading back to the colder climate of Scotland. What a lot of fun and laughter there was as around a dozen people (mostly in their fifties and sixties) played volleyball together, before launching into a vigorous session of aqua-aerobics.
But soon it was time to load the suitcases in the van and to start heading for the airport...... but not without first stopping at their favourite ice cream parlour in Alhaurin, which is not far from the street where I live. Even as I write this, their plane is probably taking off and starting to head northwards. It was fun to have a visit from church friends, and they all said that they enjoyed the retreat and found it beneficial too.
The week ahead will involve more coaching for me and more computer based work (teaching preparation and curriculum writing) before the next group of people arrives on Saturday, this time for our Western Europe leadership team meetings. Thanks for your prayers.
