Charcuterie Summer

It was a lovely spread of a summer - a delightful array of sweet and savory bites of life to enjoy over the past several months. Following is a collection of photos and words descibing some of those morsels.

The annual Martin Family Camping event, held the first weekend in June, is a weekend full of good food and fellowship with the relatives. The Saturday afternoon corn hole tournament has become a favorite tradition in recent years.  

                                                                    📷 ~ Kerra Martin

A four-generation picture, taken during Martin Camping. L to R: Ken's parents, Florence & Leighton Martin; Carlin, Eva, Kayleen and Eleanor Atkinson; Ken & Danette

                                                                      📷 ~ Keith Frey

For me, another much-anticipated annual event is a Garden Party that my friend Delphine hosts every summer. She invites this fun bunch to gather in her yard which is a gorgeous park all on its own. There's always plenty of laughter - and sometimes tears - as we catch up on each others' lives. In the photo, L to R: Karen Brubacher, Joanne Shantz, Bonnie Bauman, Elaine Brubacher, Rose Martin, Yours Truly, Delphine Frey

When Ken goes to his IGo Board meeting in Denver, Pennsylvania, I'm often privileged to accompany him. We stay in one of those dwellings that PA people refer to as a cabin, but I tend to think of as a mansion. I love hanging out with the board wives (we can hardly be bored wives with this group!), some of whom are looking after young children, which makes the event more interesting. Here some of us were on the porch inspecting and exclaiming over a nest of baby finches in a hanging planter of geraniums.

We took several trips to the Atkinson home, our favorite spot in Guys Mills, PA. Every time we are with these munchkin granddaughters and see their latest developments, I marvel at how far they've come since their birth. Here they were demonstrating their peek-a-boo playing skills with Grandpa and me.  

Hosting overnight guests is often one of our activities in the summer, and this year was no exception. It was a delight to have my cousin Gerald and Trish Schrock at our place for one night when they came into our area for a funeral. I hope they come again soon and stay longer; we could have used more time for catch-up visiting and for exploring the orchards and apple packing that goes on around here. 

                                                                                            📷 ~ Chris Guevara

For my birthday, Chris and Ruben (Ken's "brother") offered us their 5-star hospitality in a party for four on their front porch. A summer sunset that evening made a most gorgeous backdrop. 

We3@home ate strawberry shortcake out at the patio table on July 1. How fitting to have a red and white dessert on Canada Day!

This year, it was our turn to host the bi-annual Tribe of Dan Reunion, which we chose to have at a campground in orchard country near the shores of Lake Erie. My parents, all of my siblings but one (we missed you, Tom and Danae!), and most of my nieces and nephews were able to attend the four-day event. One highlight of our time together was visiting some of Martin's orchards, with Ken as bus driver and tour director. 

The meals at the ToD Reunion are always ample and delicious. In the photo, Ken is helping my bro-in-law Leroy and his daughter Kate to prepare strawberries for yogurt parfaits. Behind them, my sister Faye and her daughter Becca are furthering the breakfast preparations on the last morning the Tribe was together.

Here are Mom and Dad Schrock hanging out with their grandson Jordan (my bro Eric & Julia's youngest son) after a meal at the Reunion. This is a very typical scene depicting the interest my parents take in their grandchildren. During the time of sharing memories and blessing Mom & Dad at their birthday party*, many of the grandchildren attested to this fact! 

                                     📷 ~ Kerra Martin

It was sad that Kayleen & Carlin couldn't come to the Reunion because the twins were recovering from Hand, Foot, & Mouth disease. We were so happy that it worked out for their family to come to our house for a few days afterward, though. My parents and some of my twin's family were staying here at the same time. It was a lovely mini after-reunion. In the twins-with-twins photo, Eva is sitting in front of Great-aunt Annette, and Eleanor is in front of Grandma Danette.

We had the pleasure of hosting my mom and dad several times over the summer. They stayed with us for a time both before and after the Tribe of Dan Reunion. Mom helped me "bake up a storm" in the kitchen as we prepared reunion food, and she & Dad helped me get ready for the event in numerous other ways. Honestly, I don't know how I would've gotten ready for the reunion in time without them. (and it wouldn't have been nearly as fun!)

It was a special treat to be invited to our friends Gerald & Verna Martin's house for supper one evening while Mom and Dad were around. A bonus of the visit was having the opportunity to interact with Judy Martin (Gerald's sister) again. 

Some observations about Church Camping Weekend this year: 

1. Since Ken and I are the senior couple on the Oasis Social Committee, we had some significant responsibility in hosting this event, which was our third time this summer to fill a similar role. (It had also been our turn to host Martin Camping and the Schrock Reunion; in the future, we may refer back to 2024 as the Year of Host the Most) 

2. It was sad that some of our good friends and family members were missing from our church group this year. Some had moved away, and others (including our son and his small tribe) had left Oasis in search of another church home. 

3. Games are a staple at Oasis Camping. (see the above pic)

4. Sharing "a page or a paragraph" of inspiration with others around the campfire circle is a meaningful exercise at Church Camping. 

5. Sharing a "low country boil" around the table is a tasty tradition at Church Camping.

Some of my flowers and garden produce went nuts this year! 

Over the summer, I did a number of fun mother-daughter things with Kerra, including picking blueberries in a pick-your-own patch near Lake Erie.  The patch is in the same area as Martin's orchards (near Vienna, Ontario); we met up with Ken at his work place after we were done picking berries, and he took us out for lunch - a tasty fish dinner - in nearby Port Burwell. Yum!

Ken's sister Laurel Yoder and some of her children were in our area during Music Camp Week. We enjoyed sharing an outdoor supper with them on our patio one evening.

                                     📷 ~ Steve Martin

Also, while Laurel was around, the Martin Ladies got together at my SIL Rose's house for a birthday party. We celebrated Laurel's March birthday and my June birthday at the end of July, and it worked just fine. Rose's hospitality and artful decorating, the beautiful food (all of my SILs are amazing cooks), the outdoor setting, a lovely assortment of gifts, and lively conversation all came togther to create a memorable gathering. Photo, L to R: Marge, Chris, Janet, Colleen, Sharon, Laurel, Danette, Mom, Rose

At the end of July, Ken and I traveled to Ohio to attend the memorial service of Joshua Bechtel, a young 40-something man who passed away suddenly from a heart aneurysm. Our main purpose in going to the funeral was to show our support for my twin and her husband Nolan, who is Josh's brother by adoption. We had personally known Josh, too, mainly through some interesting and meaningful interactions on social media. I felt like I got to know him a little better through the memories that people shared at his farewell service. He was unique, thought-full, and artistic; a man who left a significant impact on those in his sphere of influence. 

For our Kenites cottage time this year, we gathered for a few days at an Airbnb in the Niagara-on-the-Lake region. The house was located in the middle of a peach orchard, and we were allowed to help ourselves to the ripe fruit. We could just reach out the window (not quite true!) to pick and eat peaches any time we wanted. Which happened to be not very often, since occupying one five-year-old and five one-year-olds takes up all of the time (not quite true!) when you're at the cottage. 

We tried to follow our custom of taking the Kenites to Walker's Market for peach ice cream when we are in peach country, but it's pretty hard to keep the tradition (and not to mention, disappointing) when they don't have peach ice cream on hand. We did get other kinds of ice cream though. Which did not disappoint. 

In August, we were privileged to attend the wedding of our nephew Wyn Yoder & Erika Coblentz in Greeneville, Tennessee. It was a beautiful wedding in every way! Perhaps it included more tears than some, because of the numerous references to the memory of Verlynn (the groom's late father), but I thought that the blend of joy and sorrow brought a special richness to the day. Photos: the brand-new couple, and the groom with his mother Laurel

On our way home from the wedding in Tennessee, we made a last-minute decision to swing around by Guys Mills, PA and surprise Carlins by dropping in at their place unannounced. Our surprise worked! We spent a fun couple of hours with their little family before heading home. We would've stayed longer, but we had to be back home in decent time for VBS starting the next morning.

For our church's biking social in August, we biked on a section of an old rail trail between two Ontario cities, Cambridge and Paris. After a morning of thunderstorms, the weather broke, and we had a beautiful afternoon for our bike ride along the Grand River. 

Following the biking aspect of the social, we met at a park for a potluck picnic supper. Our pastor Richard & Corleen Bean and family joined the group for the meal and the after-fellowship. With great pleasure, we welcomed them back from Thailand, where they had been living for the last year. The photo above shows them getting reacquainted with Clint Horst, only one of the many people who are glad to have the "transplanted Beans" back home. 

                                                    📷 ~ Ken Martin

On August 22, Ken reached the half-way point, our antipode, in his walk around the world. A location's antipode is its very opposite place on the globe. Ours is somewhere southwest of Australia, deep in the Indian Ocean. (no, that is not the ocean behind Ken in the photo, it is the waters of Lake Erie) He is planning to walk the distance equivalent to walking around the world (24,901 miles/40,075 kilometers) in ten years, and now he has gone half the distance in a little over five years. I'm proud of my man's accomplishment of keeping on track with his walking goals. 

We traveled to the States for another wedding, only two weeks after Wyn & Erika's. This time, we were privileged to attend Kenton Shantz & Callie Shenk's wedding in Harrison, Arkansas. Kenton is a fine young man from our church, and we are delighted that he and his lovely bride are making their home in this area. 

Ken & I and Kerra loved having church friends to travel with and hang out with in Arkansas. Rich and Cor Bean and Jacie Horst went with us to Kenton & Callie's wedding. We stayed at a very nice cabin and had lots of great conversations - during our watermelon party, and otherwise.

                                                                    📷 ~ Jacie Horst

We had time to do a bit of hiking in the Harrison, Arkansas area before attending the wedding. Since I taught school in Mountain View, Arkansas, back in the '80's, it was very nostalgic for me to visit Ozark country again, after all these years. 

I never tire of viewing harvest scenes around here this time of year!

* Dad is turning 80 and Mom is turning 70 in December, so we celebrated their birthdays early while the family was together for the ToD Reunion. At the celebration, everyone had a chance to share a memory, words of appreciation, and/or a blessing for Mom and Dad. We gave them a gift of money to use for purchasing outdoor plants and flowerbed accessories. My sister-in-law Margie did the party decorations with the most gorgeous flower arrangements. For the refreshments, my sister Faye had the splendid idea to do a charcuterie board, to which we would all contribute. The end result of this plan was the largest, most diverse charcuterie spread I've ever laid eyes or mouth upon. It was amazing! (as you may have noticed in the very first photo of the lineup) Remembering the fun of helping to plan, assemble, and partake of the charcuterie spread is what gave me the idea for this blog post.

What's the tastiest item from your summer charcuterie board? 

A Georgian House of Feasting

In my last blog post, I referenced an excerpt from Ecclesiastes about a house of mourning and a house of feasting. It is better to enter the former, says the writer of chapter 7, verse 2, because you learn more there than in the latter. We can learn much wisdom in the house of mourning, to be sure, but I don't think that means we should shy away from entering the house of feasting sometimes, or from really enjoying it while we're there. 

Several weeks ago, we entered a house of feasting in Georgia when we attended the wedding of my nephew Tyler & his lovely bride Louisa (aka Wesa). It was a time of great delight, and I learned a number of things that weekend, as well.  

I learned that...

...the beginning of March is a great time to visit a southern state such as Georgia, if you wish to go straight from freezing cold to summer warm, from gloom to bloom, from drab and bare to vivid and abundant. Of course, Georgia wasn't fully leafed and flowered out yet, but contrasted to southern Ontario, it was deliciously weathered.

...visiting a little "Mennonite fabric store" is a fun thing for the Schrock ladies to do while the Schrock men are visiting Outfitters.

...rubber coin purses still have the same clown-nose appeal to the youngsters nowadays that they had back when I was a schoolgirl. 

...Wesa's dad, Steve Overholt, is an eager, thorough tour guide. After we Schrock ladies and the men were finished browsing our respective shopping centers, we met again at the Overholt's farm, Wesa's home place, for a tour of their large dairy operation. Steve met us out front and invited us in his hospitable southern drawl to join him in "fixin' to go over yonder" for touring their carousel milking parlor. He was a great dispenser of fascinating info regarding the goings-on of their 500-cow dairy farm. Their industriousness and efficiency were impressive. At one point, Wesa's mom Kaylene came out and joined her husband in guiding the tour. I couldn't believe how relaxed they both were in graciously entertaining us "tourists" on the day before their daughter's wedding!

...Wesa's special charm captures little people.

...we can fit a lot of Schrocks into one tiny house, if we need to. We'd made last minute arrangements to host a pizza supper for any of the Tribe of Dan who weren't involved in the rehearsal on Friday night, and we all needed a place to gather. My bro-in-law Nolan, had who booked the Airbnb accommodations for him & Annette and Ken & me, asked the hostess for permission to have family over for the evening, and she promptly gave him the gracious go-ahead. I really wonder what the lady pictured - a handful of guests in her cottage-type house? Meanwhile, it was close to 30 of us that we crammed in!

...couples these days have unique guest books at their wedding. Signing the guest board here is my twin Annette, and the guest book attendant seated at the table is my niece Julianna (bro Tim & Margie's daughter, hence a sister to the groom).

...surprisingly, the art of macrame can show up in a wedding sermon, and even be the focal point of it! The preacher likened marriage to "macrame" work in the biblical Tabernacle, where loops were coupled together to "make into one". In his sermon points, he told the bride and groom to "couple the coupling", and offered them some "Do nots" as well as "Do knots". Besides the general admonitions for a Do not (don't end the day angry with each other ) and a Do knot (Give thanks for your spouse) there were very specific instructions for Tyler: a Do not (avoid climbing trees*) and a Do knot (Bring Wesa back home to visit).                  

*last summer, Tyler fell 20-some feet out of a tree he was climbing and broke his back. He has since fully recovered, PTL

...a young niece can pose an example of a person being cheerful even if she's feeling impatient. My bro Tom & Danae's family sat on the bench just ahead of us during the wedding ceremony. After the service, while we were sitting there waiting our turn to be ushered out, their daughter Paige turned around to face those of us behind her and generously offered her trademark smiles.

...a white raspberry cupcake paired with ice cream and trio-ed with an Andes mint makes an excellent dessert at a wedding reception. Other excellent features at this wedding reception were the white and lights and drapery making up the decor, the name cards (both at the bridal table under the pergola and at the guest tables surrounding the pergola), and the main course of the meal: mashed potatoes, poor man's steak, mixed vegetables, Rita's salad (I have no idea who Rita is, but I'm pretty sure she can make a mean salad), and dinner rolls with cinnamon butter. 

Another thing I learned about weddings there in the Montezuma area of Georgia is that folks go about them in a big way. They have spacious church buildings, large families and congregations, huge guest lists (the wedding reception hall was set up for 570 guests!), vast tables of good food and gallons of sweet iced tea, and hearts that are big on connection and hospitality. Speaking of which, we were amazed at all the friendly waves we received from people in cars we met while we were driving to church on Sunday morning. For me, it was very reminiscent of the time I taught school in Arkansas and one of my students explained the waving culture as You wave at everybody you meet on the road; if you don't know the person, you just lift a few fingers off the steering wheel in a wave, but if you do know the person, you get your whole hand off the wheel and wave like you mean it.

...weddings are such great places for visiting with the relatives, adoring the babies, and meeting new people while seeing how many connections we can make with mutual acquaintances. (are mennos the only ones to do this?) In the photos above, my sisters are talking with my niece Kristy (bro Todd and Sharon's daughter), my niece Sofia (sis Faye & Leroy's daughter) is enjoying her built-in soother, my SIL Margaret (bro Tim's wife, as well as mother of the groom) is watching her granddaughter Chloe, and my twin Annette & bro-in-law Nolan are entertaining Jameson (bro Tom & Danae's son) who is the newest member of the Tribe of Dan. Anni & Nolan have a special knack for engaging children. They are also great people with whom to stay up until midnight yakking and solving the world's problems - just sayin'.

...it's possible to take a bunch of pictures at a wedding and not get even one of the bride and groom in which they know you are taking the shot and they are looking right into the camera. I think T&L look so sweet in the pose above where, during the reception program they are waiting on the Mountain View crew to gather round them and help them sing a song, but I did also want a straight-on view of their faces. So I posted their wedding invitation pic here. As a side note: People say that in a fascinating marriage phenomenon, a couple starts looking alike after living together for years. Seems to me that it's only taken months of serving together at Mountain View for this to happen to Tyler and Wesa! What do you think?

...it's nice when the locals plan a meal and gathering time for the leftover company in the evening after the wedding. This provided more time for catch-up chats with my brothers and in-laws across from me at the supper table, for watching my curly-top niece Hope (sis Faye & LeRoy's daughter) mother her doll baby, and for lining up with Anni & Faye and trying to get a decent sister pose. Not talking about my sisters - they're decent already - I mean the pose we were trying for, where none of us had our eyes too closed or our laughter too open. Which was kind of hard when my brother was running the camera and making funny remarks, and taking pictures of Nolan taking pictures of us with his phone. Anyway, credit for the above photo goes to bro Todd. 

...even a glorious wedding day comes to a close. As I watched the sunset's glow spread over a graveyard next to the church, I marveled at the beauty of both life and death. 

The house of mourning and the house of feasting, I ponder. Yes, I can learn from both.