Summer is just around the corner and I am looking forward to it! I'm looking forward to warm weather, thunderstorms, the Farmers Market, picnics, reading books, and traveling. I am especially excited about a trip that Ken and I are taking to South Africa with PSU professor, Dr. Tony Leach and the Essence of Joy Choir, June 6-21.

I have always wanted to travel to Africa. My mother in-law lived in Botswana for two years as a Peace Corps volunteer and my childhood pastor served on the mission field in Nigeria for sixteen years. Both of them have shared powerful stories with me about the beauty of the land, about the people, and about the struggles of these countries.

In South Africa the choir will sing in several universities. In the meantime I am practicing with my rehearsal CD and reading about South Africa, Nelson Mandela and the long struggle to overcome the apartheid government. Our trip will feature several stops to places that have historical significance in this struggle - a tour of Soweto, a visit to Nelson Mandela's house and to Robben Island where he and others were brutally imprisoned. I suspect that one of the highlights of this trip will be a homestay and the opportunity to talk with a South Africans about their lives and the challenges their country faces today. I hope to share some initial reflections from this trip when I'm back in the pulpit, Sunday, June 26.

Now for that summertime reading list…..I'm hoping to tackle some of the new titles I've collected this year. They've been sitting on my desk just waiting to have their pages turned.

And one more book recently loaned to me, A Stone Bridge North by Kate Maloy

There you have it, news about my upcoming travels in South Africa and in literature.
I expect that all of these adventures will provide food for my body and soul. And I pray that you too are making summer plans to feed your spirit.

Reading and traveling this summer,

Bonnie