Hotel Hot Tub
Friday morning in the hotel hot tub things got weird.
Not as weird as things could get in a hotel hot tub. But for a Friday morning in Vancouver, Wa. I think it was a little weird. In a good way.
My back and neck were sore from sharing a pretty uncomfortable hotel bed with Gabe the night before so while the kids were jumping in the hotel pool Friday morning, I decided to hit the hot tub.
I like to keep to myself in the tub. The whole idea of sitting in a hot bath with strangers is a little creepy. I like to pretend I'm alone, unless I'm with a friend and then I pretend me and said friend are alone in the tub. But now that sounds a little weird too.
Anyway back in the tub with three strangers.
Two women started small talk about kids and where they were from. The one woman, I'll call Arkansas, said she lived in Olympia and was planning to visit Portland for the weekend. She came to the hotel because they have an indoor pool.
Next thing I know, the guy in the tub asks Arkansas what part of Olympia she lives in because he too lives in Olympia. What do ya know? Arkansas and Guy are practically neighbors. Arkansas's husband works at the bank on the corner by where Guy's daughter works, but really they didn't move from Arkansas to Olympia for him to work at a bank and they obviously didn't come for the weather, they are planting a church on the West Side of Olympia.
Exit neighborhood talk. Enter church talk.
What church? Where? Yada yada yada... and next thing you know Guy tells Arkansas that he goes to Evergreen Christian.
What? Suddenly, I'm no longer "alone" in the hot tub.
Hey this is a creepy small world. I go to Evergreen as well!
And over the coarse of the next 30 minutes or so, we find out Arkansas' story about moving across the country to start a church plant, Guy's story about how his wife was critically injured in an accident 10 years ago and their family struggles that surrounded that and the adoption of four kiddos, and they got to hear how my family ended up in Olympia too.
Meanwhile over at the pool, we introduced my boys to Guy's son and they instantly became good pals.
We all were able to provide each other with some encouragement about something that was shared in that hot tub. Encouragement through words, promises of prayers, and hope that each of us, though on entirely different roads were indeed moving along the right path.
Then it got really hot in the hot tub and I had to get out before I passed out! Arkansas headed out to explore Portland and Guy and his son were off to visit a sick family member.
You really never know who you are going to meet in the hotel hot tub. It could just be two other people from your town, that also just happened to be at a hotel 1.5 hours from home, because it had an indoor pool.
*Update. Gabe and Guy's son ran into each other in church on Sunday and Gabe declared him to be his "friend".
Not as weird as things could get in a hotel hot tub. But for a Friday morning in Vancouver, Wa. I think it was a little weird. In a good way.
My back and neck were sore from sharing a pretty uncomfortable hotel bed with Gabe the night before so while the kids were jumping in the hotel pool Friday morning, I decided to hit the hot tub.
I like to keep to myself in the tub. The whole idea of sitting in a hot bath with strangers is a little creepy. I like to pretend I'm alone, unless I'm with a friend and then I pretend me and said friend are alone in the tub. But now that sounds a little weird too.
Anyway back in the tub with three strangers.
Two women started small talk about kids and where they were from. The one woman, I'll call Arkansas, said she lived in Olympia and was planning to visit Portland for the weekend. She came to the hotel because they have an indoor pool.
Next thing I know, the guy in the tub asks Arkansas what part of Olympia she lives in because he too lives in Olympia. What do ya know? Arkansas and Guy are practically neighbors. Arkansas's husband works at the bank on the corner by where Guy's daughter works, but really they didn't move from Arkansas to Olympia for him to work at a bank and they obviously didn't come for the weather, they are planting a church on the West Side of Olympia.
Exit neighborhood talk. Enter church talk.
What church? Where? Yada yada yada... and next thing you know Guy tells Arkansas that he goes to Evergreen Christian.
What? Suddenly, I'm no longer "alone" in the hot tub.
Hey this is a creepy small world. I go to Evergreen as well!
And over the coarse of the next 30 minutes or so, we find out Arkansas' story about moving across the country to start a church plant, Guy's story about how his wife was critically injured in an accident 10 years ago and their family struggles that surrounded that and the adoption of four kiddos, and they got to hear how my family ended up in Olympia too.
Meanwhile over at the pool, we introduced my boys to Guy's son and they instantly became good pals.
We all were able to provide each other with some encouragement about something that was shared in that hot tub. Encouragement through words, promises of prayers, and hope that each of us, though on entirely different roads were indeed moving along the right path.
Then it got really hot in the hot tub and I had to get out before I passed out! Arkansas headed out to explore Portland and Guy and his son were off to visit a sick family member.
You really never know who you are going to meet in the hotel hot tub. It could just be two other people from your town, that also just happened to be at a hotel 1.5 hours from home, because it had an indoor pool.
*Update. Gabe and Guy's son ran into each other in church on Sunday and Gabe declared him to be his "friend".
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