Abilene, Waco to Buda, Texas

We arrived at the Abilene State Park on March 1 coming in from the west on back country roads labeled FM (Farm to Market). I really like these back roads. Beautiful country views and little or no traffic to deal with along the route. The park is located some 16 miles south of the town across from Lake Abilene and was a great location for the two days we planned on staying in the area.

After setting up camp we headed into Abilene for a date night. We had dinner at a local Texas barbecue joint and went to see the movie Jesus Revolution. The film brought back a flood of memories of my coming to be a disciple of Jesus Christ around my high school years.

The second day we ran some errands then returned early so Karen could work online. Got back just in time to batten down for some serious thunderstorms. I thought the rig would get a good wash down but the trees around us were full of accumulated dust so in the end we got raindrop shaped dirt spots all over everything.

March 3 we departed for Riesel, Texas just south of Waco for two days. We had planned a get-together with Karen's cousins Nina, Frank, Doug, Melissa and her Aunt Annie on Saturday, March 4. We stayed at the Brazos Trail RV Park and discovered it is right next to a very active railway line. Trains go by about every two hours so sleeping during the night was difficult. Not a do over location.

Had a great brunch and visit with Karen's family then later we contacted a friend of Karen's she met on a mission trip to Brazil. Lisa Stary lives in Waco and we also met her parents at their beautiful home renovated by Magnolia Homes. Karen had some extended girl time and I went to look for a new toilet seat at Home Depot. Later I met them at Magnolia Press where they had gone to chat and have coffee.

We returned to the RV park to do some needed laundry before hitting the road again the next morning. Our goal was to meet up with the team leader of our RVICS project that we missed because of the tank repair delay. Gary and Margaret Jardee kept in contact with us throughout the ordeal and we wanted to meet these wonderful people. They had moved on to their next project at the Twin Oaks Ranch Retreat Center in Buda, just south of Austin, Texas. We were headed to San Antonio and Buda was on the way so we called them up. They were thrilled we called and invited us to overnight that Sunday at the retreat center and meet the team.

It was great to finally meet Gary, Margaret and the rest of their crew. Karen and I sat in on a meeting with the camp director and we later played a card game with all of them that night. On Monday morning, March 6 we attended their devotional time before getting ready to leave for San Antonio. It was great to get a flavor of the RVICS community, the type of projects they work on and their fellowship together. We felt so welcomed; Karen and I would have loved to stay and help out. Gary jokingly threatened to let the air out of our tires so we would have to stay. I hope our paths with RVICS cross again, he and Margaret would be great to work with and get to know even better.