The first week was spent facilitating our Wilderness Camp low ropes course. This year there were approximately 280 campers and 80 little campers, about 50 counselors and 50 adult helpers. What a great ministry that brings many people together. Surely camp has many different purposes for discipleship and fellowship ~ such a good chance for all to practice unity.
Being home in mid July allowed me to experience the tastes of fresh raspberries, blueberries, sugar snap peas, swiss chard, kale, and the first green bean of the season. If you cannot tell, gardening and food preservation for the winter is an important part of the summer. I’m very thankful for the generosity of wonderful friends who share the bounty of their good land - Two weeks of being home and some industrious effort my small freezer is 3/4th full for the winter!
The second week was packed between the school renovation and window restoration at the church. Jesse Remington High School now has a GREAT ROOM! When I arrived home the room was all framed, the roof complete and the wiring done. During the two weeks home I saw much progress because of the volunteer efforts of many people. For those of you familiar with the school, there is now a nice step up into the building and the room is very well insulated. We shall see how this helps in the winter and with sound movement through out the building. It was a joy to work with many different people for the common goal of a new and better classroom experience for our new students.
With all this work there was also some time for fun! I enjoyed a lovely trip to the Sea Coast to see the tall ship in Portsmouth Harbor. The afternoon was peaceful and a good time to catch up with some good friends. 
Any one who lives in an old home knows the joys and challenges of old windows. Our church was built in the late 1700’s and I’m not sure when the windows of the church were made, but I do know that occasionally windows need to be loved. Each of the 6 large window in our church have 30 panes of glass in the lower section and 30 pains in the upper section. My challenge was to scrape, putty, and paint one of these windows. Carefully four men of the church removed the window for me and then started the work. With a small chisel the loose putty was removed and any loose paint was scraped away. Two pieces of glass had to be removed and replaced due to cracking. This can be quite challenging as it requires removing all the old putty. A heat gun was used to loosen the putty and help find the small metal piece which hold the window in place. To put in a new piece of glass takes some patience and practice. Putty is placed along the wooden frame and the piece of glass is carefully pressed into the putty creating a seal, then with an angled piece of steal and a hammer the metal triangles are carefully hammered along the glass into the wooden frame. Now it is time to putty the window. 
This job has special significance. All my life I have enjoyed and continue to enjoy relationship with people who are older than myself. Therefore, I have learned many skills that are being lost in my generation. These skills of faming, gardening, and home care are a large part of my life. Each time I work on these kind of projects many memories flood my mind of the hours of mentorship!
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