Last summer we hosted a team of interns from a church in the Seattle area. They were young and lively, and with us for three weeks -- we had a great time with them. The team leader, now a friend of mine, planned a get-together while I'm in town. So I spent 3 hours tonight hanging out with the whole gang (minus one guy who moved to Texas...). It was a lot of fun! They were all so bummed, though, that Niel wasn't with me.

There were lots of laughs and funny stories. I was reminded of things I had completely forgotten about. Dan now eats the core along with the rest of the apple, just as Niel showed him. Justin recalled the nasty way Niel eats his mealie pap -- with cheese and ketchup! All the guys concurred that Niel is their hero because of how fast he can down liquids (he won the juice-chugging contest the guys initiated last year)!

This team practically lived on the sweets sold in our coffee bar on the base. They consumed vast amounts of Choc-kits and Fizzers. So I brought some of each from South Africa for them. The Choc-kits (cookies) were saved, to be opened on another day, but the pack of Fizzers were immediately opened as they recounted (with many laughs) about the 101 different ways they used to eat them. Fizzers are like taffy, and better when they are soft and pliable. These guys would put them by the fire, in front of the space heaters, or in their pockets to warm them up before they ate them. The guys (this time referring to the gender-group) described some other pretty funny (and gross!) ways they accomplished this task.

It was great to reconnect with all of them and hear updates on their lives. God continues to use them in a variety of ways, which is exciting. Their goofiness and vibrancy was fun to be around tonight -- a reminder that it truly does take all kinds.