A Time of Abundance

We transition from moving out of two locations and the seminary to Staunton Virginia and Pleasant View Evangelical Lutheran Church and it has been a time of abundance in every way. An abundance of stuff to be moved, an abundance of help to move it, an abundance of celebration and anointing in a congregational setting and an abundance of greeting, hospitality and caring from everyone in our new home.

A list of the events doesn’t do it justice but for the record we packed up Margaret’s Columbus OH student housing July 19th and then drove to Staunton VA on July 20th. Gerald had already supervised the packing and loading of the Louisville house and belongings into storage units in Staunton VA. July 21st we bought Margaret a used Honda CRV to curve around those VA country roads as we had donated one car before we left Columbus OH.

On July 22nd Margaret’s ordination was held at Muhlenberg Lutheran Church in Harrisonburg VA, about 20 mile north of Staunton. The attendance and the event were overwhelming! Pastor William Funk ‘sponsored’ Margaret which means placing the stole upon Margaret’s shoulder during the ordination. This was all too fitting for Bill who was our pastor in Louisville KY and the one who baptized Margaret. Preaching the stirring sermon was Pastor Gary Erdos from Margaret’s internship site in Yorktown VA.
Bishop James Mauney, Bishop of the Virginia Synod, presided at the installation which also included Patty Covington recently graduated from Gettysburg Seminary and for whom Muhlenberg was home congregation. A pretty packed house included people from that congregation, well wishers for us from Greenville SC, Louisville KY, Yorktown VA, Columbus OH, Lynn MA (thanks Phil and Barb) plus Helen and Bill Funk up from Alabama. The music, the preaching, the communion, and the Holy Spirit – all in abundance.

Sunday July 23rd saw the now Reverend Margaret D. Ashby performing word and sacrament at Pleasant View Evangelical Lutheran Church just north of Staunton VA. Afterwards was a giant church wide luncheon followed by and official installation service with Pastor James Pence of Zion Lutheran Dean of the Southern Valley Conference of Lutheran Pastors, delivering the sermon.

Well, all that abundant making official what the Lord called Margaret out to do was followed (in brief) by:
Monday July 24th – passed papers on our new house in Verona VA 3.5 miles from the house and loaded 3 x22’ Penske truckloads of belongings into the house with the able assistance of congregation members.
Tuesday July 25th saw a couple more truckloads into the house.
Weds-Sat we sorted, unpacked and went to the dump 3 times with assistance and Margaret’s mother Betsy Baker, staying over to help out.
Sunday July 30th– well, you guessed it, saw Reverend Margaret Ashby once again with word and sacrament at Pleasant View.

The afternoon July 30th we received a phone call telling us that Margaret’s 97 year old Great Aunt, Dr. Annette Gillette had just died in Hartford Conn. As caregiver for her Aunt, Margaret and I got on a plane Tues morning to Conn. in order to make arrangements and settle her belongings. A sad time but a time to celebrate the abundant life of a Vassar College graduate of the class of 1930 and receiving her Doctorate from Columbia University in 1936, years of teaching in the Hartford school system and a dearly beloved Aunt. A small memorial service was held in Hartford August 3rd where Dr. Gillette had been living for the last 21 years and a burial service will happen later on at the family plot in Rochester NY.
Abundance and a full life, includes abundant amounts of everything that being here on earth and leaving it, entails.