Mietzke's Holden Adventure

Yesterday was blitz day which is the day where we prepare the village for summer. We began the day with a few inches of snowfall to add to the three feet or so that we have left on the ground. Normally by now most of the snow has melted and green grass is starting to come up all over the place. Not this year. We spend time taking off the window grates that keep the snow from breaking the windows during roof-a-launches in the winter. We cleaned out the dining hall and brought in the long tables to accommodate larger groups of people. We did a deep clean of the dining hall and moved the games tables back into the Village center. For some people it was an emotional letting go of the winter village, but for me it just feels like another unknown step in our Holden journey. We had a work crew of about forty people aside from the staff working in the village, and it was fun to see the camaraderie between all of the people working together to make the transition go smoothly.
We had a feast to celebrate the transition with steak, fish, and veggie kabobs and brown rice, plates of cheese and rolls and salad, and a really yummy desert of pastries with whipped cream topping. Everyone dressed up and we had a wonderful vespers in the dining hall surrounding the meal. The kitchen staff really went all out and made the evening memorable!
We have continued to have pretty cold weather and do not have enough power yet to heat the Village Center building and the lodges, so we are really hoping for a heat wave before the first of the May Youth Weekends, where we have 80 some odd teenagers and their counselors coming for camp.
Dave and I ended the day with a movie and snuggling on the couch. Nyrie played games at her friend Ellie’s house while Jordyn was out playing in the snow with a big group of kids. This is a pretty amazing community and I am so glad to be a part of it. I often wish that I could share this place with my community in Tacoma, and our families. We get lonely for you all and at the same time we know we are exactly where we are supposed to be.