It's More Than a Yard Sale

This weekend our church is hosting a yard sale.  We're in the thick of it right now—sorting, pricing, and trying on hats (just me).  Yard sales are not for the faint of heart, but it remains one of my favorite events.  The church bands together, we talk and laugh, we share the table, we get rid of stuff we don't need, we meet the community, we give to missions, etc.  I love it.

Last night I snapped this picture.

Houston and Dorothy

A picture is worth 1000 words.  Here are a few of mine:

I love the yard sale best for moments like this one.  A little one and a Baby Boomer are happily chatting, and there are at least five other children out of this frame running all over my yard—mostly rolling down the hill in a very tall box.  People in their 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, and 70s are sorting, pricing, and organizing.  It's a big bunch of intergenerational fellowship, which makes a pastor's heart go thump, thump, thump.

More words:  Dorothy's posture toward Houston reminds me of her mother, Katherine, who even in her 90s would speak to children at eye level.  Dorothy told me she's enjoyed getting to know the children while serving in the nursery.  This moment is the result of a Baby Boomer who continues to actively serve our children.  Today Houston's mom said "Katherine is smiling at this picture."  Indeed.

I love the yard sale because it's more than a yard sale.