Heavenly

Here’s an update on Te Anau.

The cold weather came upon us with a burst.  Bam!  Now it’s cold.  This happened during the week last week so I froze on my way to work early in the morning in the dark.  Because it got so cold I started contemplating what I would need to buy to keep warm as winter started creeping up on us.  This is still autumn by the way, but it feels like winter.  We had some snow in the mountains too.  I bought some gloves and that helped keep my hands reasonably warm.

I started feeling crumby on Wednesday and much worse on Thursday.  By Friday I had aches and chills.  Fortunately Friday was the worse day and I worked the morning shift.  I finished around 2:30 and went home and stayed in bed for most of the day except for a short walk to the store for some Nutella.  I slept in a pair of tights, socks, sweatpants, pajama pants, pajama top, sweatshirt and snuggie with a hot water bottle.

I woke up on Saturday feeling so much better!  No more aches and chills.  Still a sore throat, but overall I felt much better.  It was warmer outside too. After going to the library I went to my favorite cafe the Sandfly Cafe.  I ordered their soup of the day which comes with bread and amazing herb butter.  I also had a chai tea latte.  They make a really really good one!

I finally bought the Icebreaker jacket I’d been drooling over since Queenstown.  Icebreakers are awesome sports and outdoor clothes made from Merino wool.  The first one I tried on in Queenstown I fell in love with. A light purple pullover with thumb hooks and really long sleeves, plus incredibly flattering.  But I didn’t purchase it because it was pretty expensive.  Well, I did buy it on Saturday.  I love it.  I couldn’t pass it up.  And I figure I can use it for skiing, snowshoeing, hiking, and just staying warm here in Southland, New Zealand!  Plus it can last me for years.  Of course lasting for years means that I must not lose it or outgrow it.  More on that later.

I spent the rest of the afternoon by the lake reading and watching the sailboats from the sailing club float up and down the end of the lake.  

In the evening I went for a late walk.  Because day light savings time has finally ended it gets dark really early now.  Saturday was such a beautiful day that there wasn’t a could in the sky!  The evening sunset with a bit of peach-tinted light peaking out through the mountains and shining across the lake--well, it was just breathtaking.  The close-by mountains were silhouetted while the mountains in the distance glowed with the late sunlight.  The moon was already out--all slivery and shining above the mountains. 

 I felt like I was in a theater and God had put this scene together for us to enjoy.  Everything seemed to shout and sing and praise him.  I got to be a part of that.  It was magical.  I reminded myself that this was just a little preview of heaven--only heaven is going to be so much more amazing.

Sunday I went to church where the pastor (surprise, surprise) talked about heaven.  It was such a good reminder that no matter how beautiful or how difficult this life is this isn’t it.  There’s more than this!

In the afternoon I went to the small theater in town and saw Tangled.  What a cute movie.  I loved sitting in the huge red seat and just relaxing and being comfortable. I enjoyed that the movie promoted following your dreams and when you reach that dream find a new dream!  That’s never a problem for me.  I’ve always got new dreams cropping up all over the place.

In the last couple of days I noticed that my pants are starting to tug a bit around the hips and thighs.  Uh oh. It might be all the Nutella, cookies, and chips I’ve been eating.

So I decided since I’m feeling better I would go on a run this morning.  Nothing makes you feel better when you have a cold than sweating out the toxins right?  It actually felt really good.  I only ran for fifteen minutes but it was enough to get  sweat going.  I wore my new Icebreaker jacket and it felt really good.  It was also a source of inspiration.  New clothes are always a great excuse to get outside and show them off!

The arch of a rainbow glowed for most of the walk.  It started out just as a little piece on one side and then the opposite side appeared.  But there was blue sky between the two sides so there was no center.  Then a cloud moved into position and I could see the whole complete arch.  

Rainbows always remind me that God keeps his promises.  The promise of heaven came to my mind and I thought about our family friend Jay Sutherland who just passed away.  It’s good to know that God welcomed him right in.  One of the things the pastor said about heaven is that there’s no waiting line to get in.  When we pass away we are welcomed right in.  There’s no wait.  This rainbow seemed like a portal right to God and to his presence, to heaven.  I can just imagine Jay walking right on in and being welcomed with open arms.

OK. Phew! Now you’re all updated!