I want to post up some pics of the Fall Retreat I went to two weekends ago. It was a spontaneous opportunity and a wonderful blessing to join all of the Inter-Varsity groups from 4 campuses in CA northstate. It was another suprise to find that our conference was being held at the YWAM base up here in Chico, seeing as I plan to go with YWAM next semester. Even more amazing was the fact that our speaker, one of the Inter-Varsity directors in CA is from Taiwan!! How cool is that. I was richly blessed by my weekend there... YWAM Chico took over an old hotel that was a getaway for Celebs back in the day...isn't it grand-looking with all the flags. 
I hear the Celebs were attracted by the presence of sulfur springs here in the hills of northern Cali...imagine these baths filled with steaming water that reaks of rotten-egg! (you could still smell it) 
We had fun taking rides in the old-fashioned elevator :) 
During a break inbetween sessions, my friend and I snuck in to the LODGE where the DTS students live and interrogated them about there YWAM experience...we ended up making a couple of friends too! :) (Notice the 2 crosses at the peak in the background--I hiked up there!) 
I had a wonderful time with Naomi, an MK from Thailand and a mutual friend...although we've only met a couple of times, we found ourselves communicating almost without words...an MK thing I guess! 
I got my little "Mandarin-speaking fix" chatting it up with some girls from UC Merced & also the ESL students at the base. 
The token four of us from Shasta College were small in number, among the 120+ students at the conference, yet big in vigor as we proudly raise up our fearless staff-leader, Annie (who spent a year in China, by the way!). 
Kinda out of place, but just for kicks, my friend's cat was actually trying to nurse my white chocolate mocah, no joke! Unable to get a suction going, she found some gratification in devouring my straw! 
That's all! More comming soon from the SWITCHFOOT concert!! | 
