Happy Memorial Day, Everyone!

I hope you are enjoying a day of relaxation as we start the summer season.  Many of you may be having picnics, barbeques, or just enjoying a day off work.  It’s funny how a holiday like this reminds us of simpler times.  Times when we played ball until dark and caught fireflies and put them in a jar with holes in the lid.  I’ll admit that life gets too busy for me sometimes and I long for the simplicity of those days.  This weekend we had a reminder of those times.  We were in Shipshewana, Indiana at the Blue Gate Restaurant.  Many of the groups in gospel music have performed there and it’s always a fun time.  The food at the Blue Gate is incredible! Amish fare is the specialty, but they have a large menu including about 30 homemade pies, homemade bread with homemade apple butter and homemade noodles!  Is your mouth watering yet?

Shipshewana is one of those places that has the feeling of stepping back in time.  There is a large Amish and Mennonite community there.  Horse and buggies and bicycles co-exsist with cars, trucks, and motorcycles.  Saturday morning I walked around town, looking in the shops and buying things like homemade jam and noodles.  I enjoyed looking at the handcrafted furniture and even had time to sit on the expansive porch of the beautiful Blue Gate Restaurant.  Sitting on the porch in a glider, rocking with the  breeze in my face, watching the buggies go by, and just listening to the sounds of a slower pace, I realized how much my soul needed that.  I needed the rest, but I needed the reminder even more.  Today is a day to relax and reflect.  Take time today to just relax and not worry about the stuff of life too much.  Remember our fallen heroes and the heroes that now serve our country protecting and defending our freedom. Listen to the sounds of a slower pace, it’s good for the soul.  Oh yeah, eat a hot dog for me! (I love hot dogs!)

Thanks to Mel Reigsecker and all the staff of the Blue Gate for their hospitality.