Friends in far places -early July









Sarah Taylor is a midwife, an anthropologist, an educator who started a school in Portland, Oregon, an environmental justice advocate, and a long-term volunteer with Midwives For Haiti.  Sarah has done much to shape our curriculum in the Nadene Brunk Eads school in Hinche, Haiti. She helped start the Carrie Wortham Birth Center in Cabestor, oriented the Haitian midwives well enough they run it themselves, and designed the Community Assessment module for our students. She lives in Portland and we were blessed to spend two days with her seeing the parts of Portland she loves best. She took us to The Rose Garden, Vista House, and a Catholic sanctuary called The Grotto. 



Can't you almost smell them?

So many many roses!

We had lunch with Sarah in downtown Portland and had tea with Emily Davis. Emily was the Brethren Volunteer Service volunteer with us in Haiti for two years before starting her education as a social worker. It was really good to see her thriving. 




Views in The Grotto, a meditative place to walk.

More of The Grotto

View of the Columbia River from the Vista house

Another midwife we learned to know in Haiti is Dr. Barbara O'Malley Floyd. She lives in Portland also and we had a lovely brunch with her and her husband on her Haiti tablecloth!


They told us about Powell's, a large bookstore downtown that covers a city block. We went one day and spent a heap of money. There were old books, new books, slightly used books, out-of-print books, and hard-to-find books. Two days later we thought of some more books we would like to find and went back and spent more time and money there. 
Having books in an RV is ok but its smart to have only a few. Where to put all these books has been a challenge. Some we keep even after we read them. Some we turn in at the community book exchanges found in most RV parks. Some we will give to grandkids. Some will travel under the table and bed for many many miles until we get them all read. But we both believe life is especially good if there are more books to read than time to read them!

Oregon has many beautiful water falls. We were able to see several of them within driving distance of Portland.
Multnomah Falls


Latourell Falls

Walking to Latourell Falls


On July the 1st we went with Sarah to a fish hatchery with lovely gardens.
Steve at the fish hatchery.

The gardens at the hatchery were my favorite part of the day.

 A few days later we drove to Mt. Hood where people were still skiing on snow - on the 4th of July! 

 "Timberline Lodge is a mountain lodge on the south side of Mount Hood in Clackamas County, Oregon, about 60 miles (97 km) east of Portland. Constructed from 1936 to 1938 by the Works Progress Administration, it was built and furnished by local artisans during the Great Depression. Timberline was dedicated September 28, 1937, by President Franklin D. Roosevelt." ....The Works Progress Administration (WPA; renamed in 1939 as the Work Projects Administration) was an American New Deal agency, employing millions of job-seekers (mostly unskilled men) to carry out public works projects, including the construction of public buildings and roads. (From Wikipedia). When people fear democratic socialism these days I wish they would remember the New Deal and how it kept thousands of families from starving. 

 Sarah's family had had Christmas at this lodge one year and she had fond memories of family times there. We enjoyed seeing the solid wood construction, the furniture that has survived since the depression and the large fireplace that serves a huge lounge area. We sat outside and enjoyed the view of Mt. Hood. 

We enjoyed the still sturdy 1936 construction of the Lodge.


The dining room at the Lodge

The furniture was built during the Depression making it almost 90 years old and only the upholstery has changed.

The view of Mt. Hood from inside Timberline Lodge

More views of the lodge


Everything was made of wood and steel.
Mt. Hood can be seen from Portland on clear days but it seemed to elude us behind clouds and mist most of the time we were there. Visiting it seemed a fitting ending to our time in Oregon. 

 Lesson learned: If you are going to Portland, or any city, you will see the best of it if you get to tour with someone who knows it well. We were grateful for Sarah's company and guidance. 

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