i'm a movie star at asbury memorial!!!

I am, I am, I am!!!

For three of the five days that I was acting in Bible stories, I was caught on film!

How do I know?

Because today was VBS Sunday, and after the song and dance routines of the kids, we were treated to a video of candid shots of them during last week... and I was up there on the silver screen right along with them!

That first view was about two minutes into the VBS movie, and it contains all five of us from Day 5, when I was Angel 2 again. 

Hooray!!!

Then, about another minute in was a shot from Day 2... and I was in the frame!!!

How 'bout that???

Even though I had not a single line, me traipsing along behind "Naomi" as her "son" was enough to get me more screen time.

Maybe I should have worn a Bible-era jacket over my Gray's Reef t-shirt, but that'll be something to keep in mind for next year.

One more extended session showed up in another minute, this time from Day 4.

The person behind the camera had recorded video for several seconds of we three Disciples being tossed on the Sea of Galilee as Jesus slept through the storm.

That was awesome!!!

If only there was sound of us yelling about "being tossed to and fro by the wind!"

I bet the audience in the church would have cracked up!

Of course, I didn't get those images until I got home and checked the recording of today's service, and it was a thrill to watch the short movie again!

Not that I watched the whole recording of the service... nope!

All I wanted was between time stamps 48:00 and 53.30, and I watched it several times!

I guess I'll watch Rev. Billy's sermon sometime, as I missed it.

Glad I was able to help him out before the kids' show today.

He wasn't sure what Nick Deffley's character was named.

I knew it... Counselor Sam.

That's hardly a name I'd ever forget, especially as his birthday will be Friday.

Perhaps Blaxstone sent the dragonfly to perch on my car antenna this morning.

I had been in a rush, but when I saw its reflection on my dash, I knew I didn't want to disturb the beast before I caught a shot.

It stayed right there for three minutes, moving around to give me a variety of poses.

Very nice... and I was calm and serene when I drove off to church.

(smile!)

trust and vbs

My odometer verified I was at the right place at the right time.

I had not yet been able to pick up my notarized Living Trust at SmithBarid, due to so many engagements this week, so my intent was to retrieve it this afternoon.

Nope!

I remembered at 11:35 AM that they closed at noon on Fridays!

Into the car I popped, hoping for light traffic!

I arrived at their office with seven minutes to spare.

Whew.

And when I returned to my Saturn, the mileage caught my eye.

* * * 2_3_5_0_0_0 ***

Yes, right place, right time.

i thank You, God.

Most excellent, and a relief, to have that task done!

Next up was Big-D "Bad Boys: Ride Or Die" with mi amiga, Barbara!

What a good action flick, with 55-year-old Will Smith and 59-year-old Martin Lawrence still teamed up and chasing bad guys!

But what made it an excellent movie was having these two men dealing with real issues of aging, like stents in the heart and panic attacks.

Wow!

Afterward, she and I went to Jason's Deli for my birthday reward.

That was my choice of dessert... so I gave her the strawberry shortcake she loves.

That's almost a $5 treat!

I had the Alamo wrap, so I'd get my chips and salsa mental date stamp.

That's the only way I can be sure it's Friday!

Right place, right time again!

I wouldn't be with my brothers today, either.

Last week, the Smiths & Kamerons Friday Fiesta was canceled, as the K family was in Orlando.

This week, I have my last stand with VBS.

No, no role, so no lines, much like on Monday.

However, I wanted one more meal with those kids and the other volunteers...

especially as I knew we were getting pizza!!!

I even brought Lactaid so I could munch out on a slice of Hawaiian, and another with pepperoni.

Right place, right time!

 

Then it was time to watch the kids, all 32 of them, as they rehearsed.

They didn't just have lines -

they had songs with dances!!!

Hooray, it's a musical!!!

I do so love those!!!

Right place, right time!

(smile!)

Ray Ellis even involved the audience, giving us 'holler back' roles, complete with lively arm motions to match those of the children.

What fabulous fun!

Nice to be a 'hollaback girl' with Barbara G, and Kay D, and new member Robin, from California!

Then a little break for the arrival of parents and friends, followed by the real performance of the "Trust God" musical by all those energetic campers there at Asbury Memorial!

We had our roles, too, in the audience!

(smile!)

That sure worked up an appetite!

What a sweet treat to have an Ice Cream Social to end our time with Camp Firelight!

I'm glad I had one more Lactaid with me...

oh, yeah!

Right place, right time!

Now, to pull up the last of the spiderwort in the front yard.

What a good day this has been!

(smile!)

vbs, day 5: revenge of Angel 2!

I have been looking forward to tonight for two days.

I like to read the script the day of the show to get into character, but on Tuesday, when I returned home, I read the scripts for Day 4 and Day 5, just to get ahead a little.

That's when I realized that I would be Angel 2 again for this last day of Bible Story Telling!

Technically, I was just 'Angel', as I was flying solo...

get that little heavenly pun?...

but I was the very same character I played on Day 1.

Ah, revenge!

Revenge on the Story Teller for saying we angels had no message to share!

Revenge on the Story Teller for making us continuously walk up and down stairs!

Revenge on the Story Teller for Wanda!!!

Oops, scratch that, wrong story, I had Michael Palin in my head.

My apologies.

There's no fish - angel or otherwise - in today's tale.

If there had been any fish in a story, it would have been for yesterday's tale.

(smile!)

Now, where was I?

Oh, yes - revenge on the Day 1 Story Teller!

Fortunately, that role tonight was again played by Gail, as it had been then.

So, here it is, the start of the story tonight, and I'm first at bat.

(Yes, wrong sport, but you get my drift... which could also fit yesterday's lake trip.)

She reads my entrance...

I speak my message to Philip, giving him travel directions:"At noon, take the desert road from Jerusalem to Gaza."

Then I turn to the Story Teller, aiming my next three lines at her.

"See there? Just like that. A messenger is supposed to have lines!"

Then I'm supposed to exit the stage, but logistics didn't allow that, so I stepped out of the way of the other characters.

Hahahaha!

I intended to dress just as I had for Day 1, using the same robe, the same boa "halo", the same pair of wings attached the same way, in the hope that it would jog the memory of the at least some of the older kids so they would be in on the joke.

I think a couple of them got it, maybe.

If I had worn my glasses, that might have helped them recognize my character from Day 1, but I didn't bring them.

After all, I only had the four lines at the top of the play, so I wouldn't be reading the script.

Ah, well... at least we all had fun with it!

That assessment would include the rest of the cast, too.

Philip was played by Danny B, of course.

Barbara G and Jan were two horses pulling a chariot on which an Ethiopian rode, returning to his home country.

But, wait, who is that guy???

Why, it's Hai!

He was a little stiff around me at first, but loosened up by the second round of our little play.

That was good.

(smile!)

By the third round of our play, we were all playing a bit fast and loose with our lines, having some fun for our final time on stage.

After the last of the 'campers' at Camp Firelight had exited, we all started the task of dismantling the boards where we had trod, transforming the 'desert road to Gaza' back into an empty room on the second floor of the office spaces of Asbury Memorial Church.

I lined up all the shirts I had worn, as well as the one for tomorrow.

 

Day 1 - red - the kickstarter reward for the SeeSAW Muralcle on Habersham

 

Day 2 - orange - the memento of the 12th Annual Gray's Reef Ocean Film Festival

 

Day 3 - yellow - the Savannah Bananas shirt from when they still played baseball

 

Day 4 - green - the Savannah Sand Gnats SAL Champion shirt of 2014

 

Day 5 - blue - the kickstarter reward for getting Oskar and Klaus' second book onto ISS

 

Day 6 - purple - one of my favorites from my 25 years of teaching

 

I'll wear that last one tomorrow as I watch the 'campers' sing and dance.

I'm really looking forward to that!

What a fitting end to this stint as a volunteer!

(smile!)

vbs, day 4: i'm Disciple 3

What a change from Tuesday's tale!

This time, we were presenting an adult Jesus, 

with Danny Beam cast in the role.

Judy Wilburn joined Barbara G and me as the three stooges - 

I mean, disciples.

That's Judy in the brown over-garment.

Why did I say "three stooges"?

Because we were there for comic relief!

Disciple 1 (Judy) even told a joke!!!

"Why did the Disciples cross the lake?"

To which the other two Disciples, rather resignedly, 

chimed in, "To get to the other side."

We did a lot of that speaking in unison stuff.

We were accompanying Jesus in a boat 

across the Sea of Galilee, letting him catch a nap.

Then a fierce storm rattled our cages!

Hahahaha!

None of the kids bought our "We're terrified!" line.

None of them believed our "We're being tossed by the waves!"

And certainly not a single one believed us when we shouted "The boat is filling with water!"

Hahahaha!

The Pre-K and Kindergartners kept their derision to themselves, but not so for the older kids.

The 4th and 5th graders almost unanimously denied us when we said we were terrified.

At least only a couple of the 1st to 3rd graders said, "No, you're not" when we gave them that line.

Honestly, I played it lightly, as did Judy.

We knew we weren't getting a "Fool Us!" trophy for this show!

(smile!)

And who's that sitting by the campfire, serving as Story Teller?

Jan!

Our erstwhile stage manager!

I'm so glad Gail took a break and gave that role to her!

(smile!)

Just one more night... then it'll be the kids' turn to entertain us!

Bwah ha ha!!

vbs, day 3: i'm a rabbi?

Yes, dearie, I certainly was.

Don't I look the part, with my hair tied - yes, I said "tied" - in long "curls" to either side of my face?

That worked pretty well, too, with the knots staying in place for the hour and 10 minutes needed.

That's 20 minutes of Bible Story Telling for each of three groups, with a five minute break for us between their visits.

Fortunately, I had dinner to grant me energy.

I needed that, as I had seven lines to deliver!!!

Even better, dinner was exactly what I had hoped for:

hotdog with sauerkraut and mustard, plus potato chips.

The rest of that on the plate was just gravy, so to speak.

That's what I told the kitchen helpers, too.

"Thanks, y'all, for reading my mind! I sure did want a hotdog for dinner, and here it was!"

(The photo only shows about half that crew.)

They sure appreciated my gratitude!

(smile!)

So, why did the story call for a rabbi in the house?

Joseph (Danny B) and Mary (Barbara G) had come to Jerusalem for a few days with their 12-year-old son, Jesus (Danny's nephew, Caleb Deffley), and managed to lose him.

Neither of the two other travelers (Alex and Linda) had seen him that day, though they did vouch for him being a good boy.

Nice, right?

And where was the tween when they found him?

In the synagogue, at the foot of the rabbi, listening to the story of Naomi and Ruth and Boaz, who was Naomi's son and Ruth's husband.

So, I guess it was Boaz that I played last night!

Wait, that's not right.

Boaz was Ruth's second husband, after Mahlon - that was me - died and Ruth accompanied Naomi to Bethlehem.

Yeah, I had to stop and look that up.

Neither of Naomi's sons, Mahlon and Chilion, nor her husband, were given names last night.

Just window dressing, that's what Danny and I were for 'Naomi'! (smile!)

I had to say farewell to Alex and Linda after our three shows were done tonight.

That's Alex heading out in the photo, going to the dressing room.

Both she and Linda have other engagements the rest of the week.

Nice to have gotten to know them a bit!

vbs, day 2: i'm Naomi's son!

I pulled my hair back into a low ponytail, making sure to part the top in boy-style.

Know what I mean?

I don't know that any of the "campers" believed I was a guy, though.

Every since I put my hair in that style this morning, the words of one of the other Cryptologic Technicians, Maintenance, kept telling me, "No one would ever look at your face and think that you're a man."

My hair was super-short at the time and I'd asked if I looked "butch".

Nice to know my features are too girly for that!

(smile!)

I didn't have a costume or even lines tonight, so Gail had told me I didn't have to come.

Miss a night of VBS at Asbury Memorial?

That meant I would miss dinner with the "campers", and tonight it was barbeque!

(smile!)

Danny came, too, though he didn't have lines, either.

We both died early in the story, just there to serve as Naomi's son and husband until the good part of the story got going.

That happened fairly early on, with Naomi (played by Alex Swanger) being comforted after their deaths.

Her two daughters-in-law, Orpah (played by Linda) and Ruth (played by Judy Wilburn), both widowed like her, told her that she was their family and they would stay with her.

That tied in with tonight's lesson on family composition being a flexible thing that even allowed people who weren't related by blood to form a "family".

That makes perfect sense: almost all parents are people who are not blood-kin, right?

I wonder what they would think if I brought that up?

(smile!)

vbs, day 1: i'm Angel 2!

See?

 

Christina said, "You make a beautiful angel."

I responded, "Thanks! I had help."

 

How very true!

Jan, the wardrobe mistress and stage manager for the "Bible Story Telling" this year, was a big help with that sparkly boa cum "halo".

 

She and Barbara Gooby, aka "Angel 1", also helped get that heavy cloak to cooperate with the wings.

 

Barbara, by the way, was the only one of us angels to actually have a halo.

Linda, aka "Angel 3", also had a boa "halo".

The photo doesn't show it, but hers lit up!

One of the benefits of arriving early is definitely getting first dibs on the props!

 

That's okay, I wanted to have dinner downstairs with all the "campers" at VBS Camp Firelight at Asbury Memorial Church.

Spaghetti was the entree, but I chose two of the side salads instead and a fabulous, seedy, roll.

 

And who is that dressed as a camp counselor?

That's Gail Thomas, narrator and organizer this year.

 

Danny Beam was there, too, as "Jacob", but he managed to elude the camera.

Funny guy!

I bet Amy Jenkins got him with hers!

She's one of the official photographers, as she was last year, and mostly captures the kids.

 

There are thirty-two this week, broken into three groups by grade, with the oldest ones destined for 4th grade in the fall.

All three groups saw our skit this year!

That was really nice!

 

This sign will be up every night:

"Whenever I'm afraid, I put my trust in You".

 

That's the Camp Call Out.

 

This is going to be fun!

I'm so glad I volunteered!!!

bday65 with Bonnie and Batman!

"Did you say Bonnie? As in your stepmom Bonnie?"

 

I did!!! She has been visiting her brother and several friends in Beaufort for most of last week, while I've been ACTING with VBS. Today, she picked me up and away we went!

 

"Say what??? Have you up and gone back to Alabama with her?"

 

No, not quite.

Conner was the only one who came with her, as both Merritt is working this summer break, as he wants to get a car.

Conner wanted to spend part of the summer with his maternal grandparents, down in Blackshear, so Bonnie had arranged to meet Boyd in Hinesville.

Somehow, that was deemed as halfway between Beaufort and Blackshear.

All I know is this: I've made that trek multiple enough times that I don't need my GPS any more for it, so I was deemed her guide to get them there!

That gave me almost four hours of being in her good company!!!

 

"And you got to visit with Conner, too!"

 

Well, so to speak.

Teens tend to be wrapped up in headphones and mesmerized by the glowing screen between their hands, meaning he was in the car on the way down, but not vocal.

Even when we got out at the Wendy's and had a nosh, he declined to join us. 

"What?! A teenaged boy who turned down food???"

 

Unheard of, I know.

He had plenty of snacks in the car, so, no worries.

And he was thrilled when his grandpa showed up, with several of his little cousins in tow.

That was good to see!

Bonnie and Boyd make sure he gets to see them twice a year, during school breaks, by meeting in the middle between their respective homes.

He is so fortunate!

And so am I, blessed to have had this time with Bonnie!

I really do need to start planning some trips.

(smile!)

"Yo! Hold on! Sounds like you're about to bug out. What about Batman?"

Oh, yeah.

He showed up at the tail end of the VBS portion of this Sunday's service at Asbury!

I even waited my turn in line and had my photo taken with him!

Yes, I know he was Rev. Billy, but... he was Batman!!!

For real!!!

"He is such a fabulous minister! And whatcha got there on that little plate?"

A bit of heaven, that's what, reminding me that Blaxstone, aka SamJ, has a birthday coming!

Nothing like pineapple upside-down cake to bring his sweet smiling face in view.

I was dining outside, and one of the women leaving church spoke of how pretty the day was.

I replied with this poem from the embroidery sampler Mama had made, so very many years ago.

 

The kiss of the sun for pardon,

the song of the birds for mirth,

one is nearer God's heart in a garden

than any place else on Earth.

 

The woman liked it so much she had me repeat it, so she could memorize it.

(smile!)

"How very nice! Sounds like you made her day earlier."

How very nice of Bonnie and Batman and Blaxstone to make mine!

i thank You, God!

vbs hero hotline: show grace

When we rehearsed this yesterday before breaking for home, Tom had planned it as a straight "readers' theatre", with us sitting in a line of chairs and perhaps rising for our dialogue.

That changed.

We all started in the chairs, but as our character came into the story, we stood and even moved around in the small space of half the Story Station.

That was fine, and certainly more engaging for the children!

I was initially cast as Disciple 1; however, as we were an actor short for the scene, both Disciple roles were merged, giving me more lines.

Good thing I knew about that last night, so I could do a bit of rewriting of the script from the  Cokesbury VBS resource site.

And what's up with my hair???

Well, I thought I'd change things up for the kids, for a look more fitting for a roaming around person.

Today's shirt color was blue, so... I gave the black one a rest, finding a sleeveless tunic as a costume.

Nice, right?

(smile!)

The story tonight was about Saul's transition from a blind evil guy into sighted Paul, a changed man (played by Rhonda Reed) who followed the examples of Jesus, with the help of Ananais (Tom) and me.

Not everyone liked, or believed, this change, so Cheri and Natalya got to have fun as Plotter 1 and Plotter 2, who hatched a plan to kill him off.

The Disciple alerted Saul/Paul and hatched a "helpful plan" to save his life, engaging Ananais to help lower the threatened man, via a basket, into the river.

So... what to use as the basket?

Just pantomime it?

How about using a hula hoop!!!

I meant to send that thought to Tom, but it all worked out: he had the same thought!

Plus, as we were able to have two hoops, our "basket" had a top and bottom, with a cloth attached as the sides to mask the escapee.

The kids loved it!

Me, too!!!

(smile!)

 

The lesson tonight was: Heroes are called to SHOW GRACE.

What a lovely message!

The kids even saw what happened when people chose to not forgive other's past actions, but to hold those acts against them and plot bad actions of their own.

My jukebox had a nice trio of tunes with the theme of forgiveness!

Of course "Amazing Grace" was at the top, as old as it is.

Plus, it was Grandma's favorite and Elvis sang it, too.

(smile!)

Then, up popped up The Beatles' "We Can Work It Out", an encouragement of others to forgive and let live with a bright beat!

Yep, I still love that 1965 hit!

And for the third one, think about what was on the airwaves in that time frame.

Specifically, think of all the folk songs, like Bob Dylan's "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right".

I'm sure I heard that one quite a bit from its first spin in 1963 on radio.

Good songs!

Thank you, Mama and Daddy, for instilling a love of singing in me! 

(smile!)

vbs hero hotline: listen to God

"Let's work together,

come on, come on,

let's work together,

for together we can stand,

every boy, girl, woman, and man."

 

That song, which I first heard by Canned Heat in the late 1960's, popped into rotation on my mental jukebox on the way home from VBS on Tuesday night.

What an excellent choice, right?

 

Tonight, an even older tune from my childhood came alive, one that Elvis Presley had turned into a hit in 1967, fifty years after it was written.

"In The Garden" is all about never being alone, for "He walks with me, and He talks with me, and He tells me I am His own."

That's why it's important to LISTEN TO GOD.

Amen to that.

 

And just how was this message delivered to these youngsters?

With a skit about the Magi, that's how.

This time, we all wore costumes, and I had already given thought to mine!

The costume room had just what I needed, too: a crown made from four headbands, turned sideways and covered with a white cloth that trailed down the back; plus, a gorgeous purple robe with "fur" trim.

Totally befitting my Magi 1, isn't it?

(smile!)

 

Cheri Hester and Judy Wilburn were the other two who tromped behind me, as The Star - Natalya! - led us toward Bethlehem and past the palace of King Herod (played with evil glee by Steve Reed!).

Tom was the storyteller, with Lauren providing sound effects (footsteps for the Magi, a chime for the Star, "bwah ha ha" every time Herod was mentioned).

The kids all got a kick out of those sounds!

(smile!) 

When we had our dinner break, the kids starting practicing their part, and so did Professor Danny and Super Meerkat (i.e., Cheri).

I took advantage of the lull for us by catching a still life of their set.

I was careful to not catch the faces of other people's children, though I did get Amy Jenkins and Beth Harn in the sides of the frame.

They had kids in the program, so they had volunteered.

I'm not sure what Beth did, but Amy was bouncing in and out of rooms snapping official candids of the goings on.

I look forward to seeing those on Sunday in the wrap up before Billy gives his sermon!

(smile!)

vbs hero hotline: work together

Well, that particular lesson came up pretty quickly for me!

Today was Session 3 for the children, though, and I was one of the new faces in Tom and Lauren's Bible Story Station upstairs!

We fortunately had a rehearsal before any kids were to arrive.

I had thought I'd be called upon to act, but... nope!

I was to be a puppeteer!

I haven't worked with puppets since I was going through part of  my electronics schooling at the naval station in Great Lakes, IL.

There was a group of us who would go to the children's ward at the local hospital and entertain them with the hand-operated dolls, as well as marionette birds.

That had been lots of fun for all of us and for the kids... and so was this!

Best of all?

I was doing this with Natalya, the teen daughter of the storyteller (Lauren), and we worked very well off each other's cues!

We each had two roles.

First, we were Moses' sons, Gershom (the above puppet) and Eliezer (another large puppet with mouth to move).

In that part of the story, we were arguing, as siblings do, about whether the animal seen was a camel or a donkey, and the kids watching were asked to take sides in our quarrel.

Then, a little later, Moses was officiating as arbiter for quarrelsome Israelites, with me waving the arms of this huge-mouthed puppet and her having a smaller puppet with moving arms.

And just what were the two citizens having a beef over?

Whether the one had closed their eyes for the blessing or did not!

The kids were all relieved to learn that the important thing was to bless the food, and the eyes could be open or closed for that.

And what was the lesson overall?

"Heroes are called to WORK TOGETHER."

Amen to that!

vbs hero hotline: making it official

I hadn't realized when I went to church today that I would be getting sworn in, but that's exactly what happened.

Have I mentioned yet that I've volunteered to be part of the Vacation Bible School?

That's right, I threw that into the ether earlier in the month.

As I recall, last year was the first time we've had the program since 2019, due to the pandemic and widespread COVID.

This year was the first time ever that a widespread call went out by email for folks to help with the skits...

so, with my little touch of theatre back in my blood, I'd volunteered myself...

with my request met with great enthusiasm by the man (Tom Lewis) who'd volunteered to co-chair the VBS Storytelling portion of the program.

Like me, this was his first year of being involved with VBS in any capacity.

Like me, he doesn't have any children in any of the youth programs at Asbury.

 

And, like me and all those who had volunteered to take part in helping with some aspect of the VBS program, he took the oath during today's service.

That's me, in Mother Pat's Hawaiian, hibiscus-pink, dress, stepping up to get the oath from Kathy Hodges.

So, just what is this oath all about?

It's a pledge to serve, in the capacity I had chosen, and to do so fully and completely, for the benefit of the children entrusted to us by their parents.

"God who has called us, teach us to follow Jesus as we learn to answer your call."

I fully agree with that, as I continue to strive to follow the example set by Jesus' treatment of others.

 

"God who has called us, help us share your love to all of our neighbors when they need help."

 

I fully agree with that, as I continue to strive to help others now, as i have throughout most of my life.

 

"God who has called us, give us people to work alongside, and give us courage, strength, and sometimes patience to work with them."

 

I fully agree with this, too, even though it made me smile, wondering how others - especially the man in the black mask - was going to do with that one.

"God who has called us, help us learn to hear your voice, and to discern the things you seek to tell us."

 

I fully agree with this, and love those sweet coincidences that pop up to cheer me on those occasions when I fully listen.

 

"God who has called us, thank you for the grace you show us, and help us show that grace to others."

 

This is another prayer I fully agree with and strive toward -

though the swipe at Hai shows I still have a ways to go to master that second part.

 

Yes, I think this volunteer opportunity will be a challenge, but also valuable to me.

I thank You, God.