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Open Letter to the Church in Staunton, Virginia:
Dear Third Presbyterian Church,
Since the move, we are slowly getting settled into our new lives in Kentucky. Most of the boxes are unpacked. We still have a few left. Rob is getting used to the routine of writing a sermon every week. We are learning more and more about small, friendly, cozy community called Canada. I am becoming comfortable with this new role: an itinerant teacher. A lot of driving, I must say. But I love the kids I’m working with.
As the season of thanksgiving is coming upon us, we would like to take the time to thank you for all you have done for us for the past six years. Without your loving open hand and guidance, we would not be where we are today. As Jack said in his sermon on the last Sunday we were there, you opened your hands and hearts, not knowing what the journey would be like and not knowing all the answers. You did it anyway. You gave us a home for us to go through the ups and downs of our journey. You gave us opportunities to use our talents to do ministry, especially for Rob as an elder. You gave us a place for us to get married and supported us in the early years of marriage. You put up with Rob’s tenor in the choir and Rob’s long hair. You picked on us and made sure that we are being taken care of. Most of all, you were family.
There are pictures of Rob’s ordination posted on here. You can also read about it, too. Feel free to read other entries. We plan to update it as often as we can.
May God Bless,
Love, Beth and Rob
This picture is a little crooked, and this was taken at the time of our wedding. We didn’t own a digital camera then. When we come back and visit, we’ll take a better one. Or someone can email us with a better picture.
As I was cleaning up the camera’s memory, I came across pictures that I hadn’t uploaded onto the computer. When we left Staunton, I took the last pictures of our apartment because I realized we didn’t take any pictures of the place. It’s really not much to take a picture of.
Our Old Place
This is the old apartment where we lived for 5 years. It was nice while it lasted. On a side note: I haven’t seen my car that clean since the move. That is shiny! Because of all the driving I do, my car gets dirty quickly, thanks to the coal trucks.
View from Our Front Porch at the Old Place
You can see the Blue Ridge Mountains through the trees. Directly across from our old apartment is a small patch of trees. Buffy and Diana used to spend their time in the woods.
Here are the pictures of our new place.
The Manse
Buffy at the Manse
_
Rob became an ordained Minister of Word and Sacrament of Highland Presbyterian Church on August 17, 2008. It was a special day for him (and for me). As his wife, this was one of the exceptional moments in my life. I have known him since the first day of college. We became friends, and we didn’t date until our senior year. I have watched him struggle in seminary. Mind you, seminary is tough. Hebrew, Greek, theology… are not a walk in the park. Since graduating from seminary with a Master’s in Divinity, it took him six years to become ordained. Why? He had to take ordination exams before he could start seeking a call. There are four ordination exams: Sacraments, Theology, Polity, and Exegetical Work. They’re all written exams. Because of his dyslexia, the church allowed him to take these exams using alternative means (after he showed proof that he couldn’t pass the written exams). He then passed them, and it took him a year to find this special place in this “holler” of Kentucky mountains — Highland Presbyterian Church.
The ordination service was moving and beautiful. The commission for ordination coordinated the service. The commission included the moderator of the presbytery, the former pastor of Highland, our pastor of Third Presbyterian Church in Staunton, the pastor of two local Presbyterian churches, the elder of Highland, and the elder of the presbytery. The moderator delivered a sermon on being neighbors based on the parable of the Samaritian and Amos 8. It was an interesting perspective. Jesus wanted us to love the Samaritans (people we hate) and how we need to show our love being neighbors. Then the pastor from Third delivered a charge to Rob; he told Rob to be himself. Then the former pastor of Highland delivered a charge to the congregation telling them to accept Rob as who he is, that he will make mistakes and will do good things, and that both will give each other the grace to forgive each other. During the ordination service, he received the stole as the symbol of the office of a pastor. The stole was a gift from Third Presbyterian Church in Staunton. The stole is called Joseph’s Coat of Many Colors. It’s gorgeous, hand-woven and made in Guatemala.
Both of our families came. It was nice to see all of them together supporting Rob in his call. We are glad that we were able to spend some time with our families as well.
If you can zoom to the picture, you can see the church sign saying “Welcome Rob and Beth Hamilton”, which was up on the day we moved to the new manse.
Highland Presbyterian Church
Today, I went to get more boxes, peanuts, and bubble wrap for more packing. After today, I will need to get more peanuts. Does anyone have peanuts? I feel like I’m at the baseball game when I say that. We just finished packing our media stuff, our wardrobe, pictures, camping stuff, and more. We’re getting there. But I’m starting to get a little worn out, because I’m not getting that much sleep. Too much on my mind and too much excitement.
The movers are arriving here on Wednesday afternoon. Shortly after the movers move our stuff, we will be cleaning with the help of our friends. Then, we’ll leave for Kentucky on Thursday.
For the past few weeks, we have been saying good-bye to our dear friends here in Staunton and saying good-bye to all our favorite places. Our friends have certainly became one big family. Third Presbyterian Church has been there for us through all the trials. VSDB friends have supported me through ups and downs. Barnes & Noble in Harrisonburg have been so understanding with Rob’s situation. Our old neighbors have helped us and vice versa. They demonstrated what neighbors are supposed to do… sadly not enough people do that anymore. Thank you so much for all you have done.
Last weekend, we took Buffy, our dog, one last walk in Gypsy Hill Park. Hopefully, we will find a park just as good.
Gypsy Hill Park at sunset
Ducks on the pond
Gypsy Hill Park Train
Koi fish in the pond
Creek at the Park
Bandstand at the Park (where Statler Brothers used to sing)
The Duckies
Packing, Packing, Packing… So far, we’ve packed 90 boxes of books. I believe we only have about 30 books (mostly cookbooks) left lying around unpacked. We have about 1800 volumes; we kept track of these books in a database to easily locate them. Many thanks to our dear friend, Debbie, Rob received about 800 books from her husband’s collection. Her husband, John, was a pastor, and he passed away from cancer. Several of these books are commentaries and ministry books. Commentaries became very useful in his sermon writings and Bible study preparation. But… “Where are we going to put them?” is the problem. When we first got these books, we put them in our living room packed. I believe Rob only unpacked two boxes out of 16 boxes. The rest of them stayed in the boxes. Now two years later, these books were repacked into smaller and stronger boxes. These books are moving into Rob’s new office at the church.
Last week, my mother in law came to help to pack half of the kitchen stuff. She’s a real trooper. Then, Rob and I packed our office and our closets. Now, we only have clothes, bathroom & laundry supplies, 1/2 of kitchen, and of course, more books, left to pack.
The movers are coming on Wednesday, and we will move into our new manse on Thursday. These past few months have gone by so fast. I have to keep reminding myself to stop and smell the coffee and take a deep breath. When I was a kid, my dad always thought that I “go too fast”. Guess what? He’s right. I see him signing to me “Slow! Slow!” So, I’m enjoying every moment I have left here in Staunton, Virginia, which will always have a special place in my heart.
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