Life Style ROYAL ATRIUM INN Chaplain’s Corner: The Great Adventure
A few weeks ago, Jeff Zylstra shared pictures and stories of his recent hiking adventures out west. I watched with great interest because Arches National Park is a favorite destination of mine. I’ve hiked twice to Delicate Arch, the most
outshines that of Arches or anything else in this amazing but broken world. Even while we enjoy the majesty of God’s creation, I can’t imagine what an adventure it must be to live in the eternal presence of God the Creator! I had retired from chaplaincy at Royal Park Place and Royal Atrium Inn in April of 2023 when Ben’s battle with cancer took a turn for the worse, and God called me to help out with his and his family’s needs. Last September 2024, a few months after Ben passed away, I felt called to return to serving as a chaplain at Royal Atrium Inn, while helping at Royal Park Place. I had missed the residents and staff tremendously and was delighted to resume chaplaincy work at this wonderful establishment. I didn’t realize how much change still lay ahead for my family. In a few days, we will be moving Ben’s wife, Kristen, and our grandsons, Lucas and Jackson, to California to be closer to her family. Our son, Adam, who now lives near Seattle, Washington, has found more success in theatre roles than we anticipated, which is fantastic. My husband, Dave, and I know we’ll be making even more trips to the West Coast in the future. Our daughter Sarah, her husband Chad, and our other two grandchildren, Lincoln and Quincy, who live in Zeeland, have undergone major job changes in the past year, and they are now contemplating some additional changes. I want to be available to help them with
widely recognizable arch in the national park. As Jeff described, Delicate Arch sits on a narrow bowl-like ridge, and it isn’t hard to envision slipping and falling on either side of that bowl! The first time I hiked to this arch, my son Ben was about 7 years old. He was wearing a t-shirt with Psalm 23 screen printed on it, and I kept my focus on those verses that reminded me to “Fear Not”! The second time, Ben, who was now age 26 and always game for an adventure, once again walked in front of me and encouraged me to go to the base of the arch, offering me his hand to steady my faltering steps. It was an amazing experience, and while I’m not sure I’ll repeat it in this lifetime, I do hope to visit Arches again, perhaps with my grandchildren, so they can experience the beauty and adventure of this beautiful park. Sadly, as many of you know, I won’t experience Arches with my son Ben again, which makes me very sad, even while I rejoice that he is healed and whole in heaven, where the beauty far
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