I was up getting ready for morning church when I got a text from the Childrens Ministry director, Brittany. We had planned on discussing my helping out with Vacation Bible School this month. We were going to work out details after the morning service. She texted me that she was sick and would not be at church. I told her just to call me whenever she felt up to it. She wants me to be a team leader for the 4th and 5th graders. I would be responsible for keeping them in line, behavior-wise, and getting them to their stations on time. Since I don't know thing one about Vacation Bible School, I don't know what stations she is talking about. This is the kind of detail we were going to talk about Sunday morning. I am happy to help out, especially since the car situation is over. It is 5 nights in a row 6-8 pm. My concern is that I don't feel experienced or qualified to do any kind of teaching. I need to know what exactly is expected of me as a team leader. I would like to help out however I can.
I arrived at church about 5 minutes late. I like to go in the front entrance because you enter in at the back of the sanctuary. If I am late, I can go in through the double glass doors and can take a seat without disturbing anything too much. I also like it because I like to say hello to a certain man who is often stationed at this entrance as a greeter. He was there this morning. He was wearing a nice pink shirt which looked very nice against his dark skin. He greeted me as he normally does, with a big friendly hug. He handed me a bulletin. I commented that he looked very nice in the pink shirt. He was walking toward the entrance to the sanctuary with me. We were looking at each other while we talked and walked. I sailed through the right side doorway no trouble. But he ran right into the other door, the one on the left, which was unopened. He was not hurt thankfully. It made kind of a loud noise though and some people turned around to see. So much for my quietly sneaking in at the back.
After the sermon, the pastor always stands at the front of the church and invites anyone who needs a prayer or needs to talk to him to come forward, while the rest of the congregation sings the final song for that service. After that song, he asks one of the deacons or ministry leaders to do the closing prayer. We stand for this last song and last prayer. This morning, right after the prayer, I lifted my head and turned around in the pew to grab my purse. When I turned back to walk into the aisle, there was an older gentleman standing right in front of me, blocking my exit from the pew. He looked to be in his 70s. I had not seen him at church before. He introduced himself to me as Guy and asked me why he had never seen me at church before. Old men ask me this question a lot it seems but they are just making small talk. He then asked if I ever go to eat lunch with anyone from church after the service. I told him no, not really. He continued.
Man: What is your favorite restaurant and don't say McDonalds or Burger King.
ME: I don't really have a favorite restaurant. I don't go out to eat all that often.
Man: Well sometimes my son and his wife and me we go out to eat after church. Ever been to (don't remember the name) up on Ulmerton?
ME: No, never been there.
Man: When my wife was alive, we would go to Bradenton to eat a lot Ever been to (don't remember what place he said)? It's in Bradenton.
He seemed perfectly normal and seemed to have all his wits about him. I figured he was being real church-friendly and wanting to have lunch with some fellows members. But really, I had no intention of going to lunch with strangers, much less going all the way to Bradenton to eat lunch with strangers.
Man: So do you eat breakfast out? Ever been to the (don't remember the name he said)? It's in Safety Harbor.
ME: No, don't get up to Safety Harbor. On occasion, I have met my friend and her kids at Perkins.
Man: (scrunching up his face in disapproval) Perkins? Ohhhh.
ME: (trying to be lighthearted) Oh come on now, you don't like Perkins?
Man: No.
ME: Sometimes my friend and I eat at E&E Stakeout in Belleair Bluffs. That's our favorite restaurant, but it's kind of pricey.
Man: Well what do you consider pricey?
ME: Well, a good entree can run you about $25. To me that's fancy.
Then he proceeded to tell me a story about this waitress he knew who went out to eat one time and it costs her and her date $300. I replied to him that that was indeed pricey. The way he talked about the waitress gave me the impression that she was more than just a server to him or he would like her to be anyway. I was getting a bit uncomfortable now, as he was standing very close and still blocking my exit from the pew into the aisle. He asked me what my last name was and then we discussed how German I possibly am. He kept talking about different restaurants. Now, I was getting the impression that he was not talking about going to a restaurant in a grandfatherly or Christian platonic kind of way. He ended the conversation by asking me to sleep on the idea of going out to eat with him. No more mention of his son or other family or other church members joining us. Then, just as quick as he had shown up, he abruptly turned and walked away. No goodbye. No see ya next week. Okaaay.
Finally I was able to leave the pew. I walked up to the front of the sanctuary and asked a particular member of the church who I trust if he had a minute. I had already wanted to talk to him about something else, but I had to start off by asking him if he knew an older man named Guy. He replied he did. I told him a bit of the conversation I had just had with Guy.
Me: What I want to know is this. Was he...asking me out on a...
date?
Trusted church member: (smiling) Yea he probably was asking you out on a date. I think he has asked some other ladies out before.
Me: Oh, okay. I wasn't sure. He seemed at first like it was a fatherly gesture but after a while I thought, hmmmm? At least now I know how to answer him.
Trusted church member: Yea, yea, he probably meant it as a date.
Me: (laughing) Well I haven't been asked on a date in about 10 years so I wasn't sure. I'm out of practice!
I drove home from church and waited for the cable guy. He arrived around 3:45 pm. He was supposed to downgrade my cable, take the digital box with him, and replace my modem for one that is for internet only. Mine is for internet and phone. He stated he knew nothing about my needing a new modem. He asked me to just unplug the phone. He said he put a stopper on the line which will limit my channels and he left quickly. I am supposed to have only 23 channels of cable now and slightly slower internet service. Well my TVs in the bedroom still have 71 channels and the TV in the living room doesn't get any channels at all. Sigh. Brighthouse.
I had to leave for church at 4:30 to get there for a 5 pm meeting on the Guatemala trip. As I was turning my corner to head to Gulf Blvd, I saw my cable guy in the middle of the street, gathering up small silver objects from the road. Apparently the back of his truck opened up while he was driving and several things feel out, including two large buckets of nuts, bolts, and other metallic objects. They were scattered all over the road like broken glass. Cars were trying to turn onto the street from Gulf Blvd but they couldn't. I pulled over and got out and asked him if he needed any help. He laughed and said no. He commented that today was not turning out to be a good day. I left and went on to church.
After the meeting for the mission trip, I was working in the nursery during the pm service. There have to be 2 people there but no one else showed up but me. They made an announcement in the service and my friend Sherry came in to help me. Once the parents had all left, I could relax and have a good time. I hate having to watch kids when their parents are there. I don't feel like I can take control of the room, which is necessary when dealing with five 3 and 4 year olds. Everything went well except for a slightly questionable trip to the bathroom with one of the girls where she took off her shoes and underwear and wanted to play with the maxipads in the bathroom. I told her to put her shoes and underwear back on, as she ran around the bathroom bottomless. She picked them up and handed them to me with a look like, "I have no idea what to do with these." I had to put them back on her, which always makes me a little nervous. You can't tell what a kid is going to say to her parents. Oh, Miss Kelly touched my underwear today. I had no witness on that one because Sherry was back in the classroom with the rest of the kids. One boy put a plastic spider down the back of his diaper today and I had to retrieve that delicately also. That time I had a witness. All in all I like working in the nursery, even though it means missing church. Today was a busy day and a little weird also.
