It’s Canada Day – celebrate our wonderful country and be glad you aren’t going to have to vote in the USA elections upcoming!

This is July, the 7th month of the year and as such a reminder that Christmas is now some 5 months away so get your list together and start collecting those gifts. You’re welcome. And since it is July 2024 that means this is our 4th summer. Four years ago we had just arrived to walk into our lovely home we bought in Edmonton for retirement, which was delayed. But here we are.

This week my Mom will come to visit to see our home for the first time along with Catherine, or as she prefers to be called, Cathy with an eye.

We’re looking forward to their visit but of course we’ve been busy getting things ready so they have a nice visit with us. It even looks like the weather is going to cooperate!

My mother, in case you didn’t know, use to go by the name of Mrs. Clean. We were encouraged as children to drink from the toilet bowl, it was that clean. (no, not really, just kidding…about drinking from the toilet bowl). We drank from the garden house like all our friends. Whoever heard of “bottled water”??! So of course we’re doing our best to make sure the place is clean. Here I am tending the outdoors! Next will be washing and waxing the driveway.

In other news I had the lovely opportunity yesterday to be at Crossroads Community Church to lead the service and preach. I really love those people and once we got the keyboard to operate (phew!) all went well.

This sits in a most interesting neighbourhood and you can see how it is beginning to be regentrified.

I love the city streets with the big canopy from the more mature trees. That’s something that the suburbs seem to lack.

Bless you my friends, and may you be able to say “I have learned in all things to be content”. That was the theme of my service yesterday. Emphasis is on learned !