Terry and I had a bucket list dream
of attending the Tiona reunion in Australia. This year it became a
reality. December 12 we landed in Sydney, cruised the east coast,
snorkeled on the Gold Coast, saw a performance at the Sydney Opera house, hand
fed kangaroos and pet a Koala. All of that was amazing but none of that
compared with the beauty and warm hospitality of the Tiona reunion.
When I told one of the Saints at the
reunion how lovely the people were to us he laughed, “Of course, we are at
reunion!” I stopped counting the number of times someone told me, “My
grandparents came to Tiona every year and my parents didn’t miss a reunion and
I wanted my children to be able to have this Tiona experience too.” Tiona
has Lake Wallis on one side and the Ocean on the other. The beaches on
each are treasures. The long lake beach is only one half to a foot deep
for over a hundred meters – lovely for the children to play freely. The
ocean beach carnival is a favorite each year. I began to wonder if people
worshiped Tiona instead of God! By the week’s end I saw it was both.
Creative fun, lots of laughter, rich
fellowship, reverent worship, many good classes taught by gifted mid lifers and
the sacraments of baptism, communion and laying on of hands. Our favorite time
of each day was sitting together in the outdoor “Green Cathedral” next to the
lake, worshiping as we watched the sunset. It was magnificent and unique
each evening.
It was hard to leave Tiona and those
lovely, hospitable people. Like all of our reunions, the Love of God
bound us together in a rich peace beyond our understanding.
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