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Show lIt-ltL v-i"i.. (1.11. _. _ ~ ~ iov'Z ~ r: Of c.u ....... ,h.. ~ look -i'c-r-..,...o.~~ -re 8r~.~i ~)<"-1.lha.L '·I'Y\.f'lov£ - M~""S - pCH"ch, 9l'-'~'i.n , -r ... ~:1s,. t'1' . ~tJ' n,jh'- t\.cnA \.~~ l~ 'i.Y JIASC rl. .... ~~ u- i's <J...h~ I't-X E. ~"L-~I~ ~Ic~' tor 0"""'-- ''\.'£N'I "ornE S • Message #28 May, 1980 from Canon H.B. Liebler, D.D. Helen H. Sturges Brother Juniper, O.S.F. Joan E. Liebler at HAT ROCK VALLEY RETREAT CENTER P.O. Box 5, Monument Valley, Utah 84536 _________ I~l~ __ ~Ql:Z~Z:~~2l ___________ _ Messages Nos. 1-27 available on request. Once more we greet you. And once more we are late! But we waste no space on apologies or explanations - we bring you news: we have moved! Yes, really. The group of four who lived on a hill in Hat Rock Valley now lives several hundred yards farther to the north, and in place of the two-storey house we erected there fourteen years ago, we are 1n a handsome "modular" home, plus a fine trailer, both supplied for us to retire in,leaving the Big House for the use of the new, young, able, devoted, etc., priest who is to take over the pastoral duties so sorely needed. His name has not yet been revealed, alas. It may be that by the time you read this Bishop Putnam may have had some good news to communicate to us, but in the meantime if you know of any qualified priest who might feel called to the Lord's service in Navajoland, do ask him to communicate with The Rt. Rev. Frederick W. Putnam, Box 720, Farmington, NM 87401 - and SOON! If any of you who receive this are interested in learning more of the other missions in the Navajo Area Mission, by all means send for, and read, the news sheet called NAVAJOLAND, published at the above address in Farmington. No sUbscription price is named, but I suspect that a love-offering would be accepted without noticeable complaint! I have a way of knowing that you haven't all sent for NAVAJOLAND -- I surely would have heard about it if over 2,000 names had been added to their subscriber list! Sheep-shearing is now over in these parts. The traditional time for it is "when the cottonwood trees turn green, shearing begins" - only they say "blue", as there is no Navajo word for "green". The cottonwoods take on a delightful fuzzy look when the leaves start opening. The junipers look on unconcernedly =- they've been green for many years, summer and winter. Unhappily, after the shearing the weather turned colder and we had some snow. But the people, who are nothing if not ingenious, have been collecting warm clothing and fabrics from the various missions in the area to provide "coats" for the sheared sheep and lambs. Even including plastic trash bags! As one Navajo friend observed, "now the sheep have raincoats!" A heart-warming ~gn of local good-will towards us came out in the unexpected arrival one day of two young girls, Bessie and Priscilla Holiday, and their cousin, Ray Begay, who stayed in the Big House several days and did a splendid job of cleaning up, indoors and out. Also, Father Stephen Plummer and his wife, Kathy, brought a group of young people from Montezuma Creek to help with the same work. Our grateful thanks to all of them. One of my minor delights in life is to watch birds as they pick up, grain by grain, the feed I place out for them in the cute little house which some kind anonymous friend sent me. The house is set upon a piece of a beam erected a few feet from my window. It took the birds some time to find out that the little house had come here after it left the Big House. But once they found it they're around every day for a snack. If you know who sent me the house, please tell me - if you did, 'fess up! In the past we have som~times made appeals for special projects we wanted to carry outi if the response camel the p;roject went thJ;:"ough; if not 1 it was abandoned , Never, in our 37 years in Navajoland have we bought anything we didn't have the money to pay for. In consequence, our credit rating has been A-I, and we have held our own. A situation has arisen which is quite different - the new house given us had to be put in place, the trailer had to be hauled over 100 miles, ground had to be prepared, cement foundation strips made, and getting electricity into the all-electric trailer involved special equipment - the cost of that alone came to well over $1200, to our horror. Result, a sadly depleted bank balance, plus a $2000 bank loan due in November. Our only hope is that the Lord will continue to move the hearts of the dear friends who have for so many years loved us and watched our work and want to share our responsibilities. Your previous gifts have been most deeply appreciated, and we thank you most heartily for them, and pray God's blessing upon you all. |