Tag: margaret

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Rocks make a great gift


Margaret appeared uphill calling “Rocks for sale!”

“I’m buying” was my response.

Turns out she wasn’t selling rocks. She found lots of good ones as she was hunting just one for her garden. So she brought some for me.

She had trucked all the way to the northwest corner where she said there are completely untapped piles of rocks. I made a note to scout that spot next.

Here are some notes from the SG Sketchbook:

I moved four loads of topsoil from the meditation space to the new center bed, shoveled by hand. …. IDEA: Get a pull wagon! For rocking. With real tires.

https://drive.google.com/uc?export=view&id=1j-qtUaCV8PBt7_EAwvREFtMVTTr9nL8C
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Snow at Cedar Cross

A moment to pause
Glistening branches, reflected sunlight, and fresh snow are are among the many reasons to pause and reflect while walking on any of the four miles of trails at Cedar Cross Retreat Center. This scene shows the area near the North Pond.
 

Thank you for the paths and the signs and the love you’ve lavished on all of it. I felt so held by this space. Blessings! (from a recent retreatant)

Join us for A Guided Day Apart on Tuesday, March 10
Once a month, we provide a guided opportunity for folks to devote time in nature for rest, reflection, and renewal. The gathering for March is next Tuesday, the 10th. 

You are invited to come as an individual, or you may bring a friend or several friends. Of the 16 spaces, we have four that are still available. 

We’ll gather at 9:30 a.m. in the Lodge’s Community Room. We’ll begin with silence, introduce quotes of a spiritual writer, and then have quiet time to find a favorite chair or walk the trails. We’ll also have time to share our reflections, if we choose to do so. We conclude at 3 p.m. with Communion. 

Jimmy Allen is leading this session. The writer whose work we’ll use is Ronald Rolheiser, the author of “The Holy Longing: The Search for A Christian Spirituality.” Advanced reading is not necessary.

If you would like to participate, please contact Jimmy, the coordinator, at 919-729-2586 or cedarcrossregistrar@gmail.com. The suggested donation is $20. Please bring a lunch. Drinks will be provided. 

A Guided Day Apart is typically, but not always, on the second Tuesday of the month. The gathering for next month is April 14.
The intricate lines of a beech-tree leaf show in a gentle, winter rain. Beech trees, like other marcescent trees, hold on to their leaves until spring. Arborists have several theories why this is so. One of those theories is that the leaves will actually be used as mulch when needed instead of being blown by winter winds. Cedar Cross has several beech trees of various sizes throughout the 52 acres.
Meet the People of Cedar Cross – Margaret Hilpert

I grew up in a small town on a dead-end street bordered with woods, and playing in those woods was a cherished part of my childhood.
The wagon path at the end of the street was easy to follow, the soft pine straw was easy to gather up to make pretend walls for my make-believe house, and swinging on a braided wire “rope” over the creek at the bottom of what seemed then like a deep ravine was exciting.
Taking my dolls in an old baby carriage for graham cracker picnics, finding old cobalt blue Milk of Magnesia bottles half-buried in old trash, the freedom to explore coupled with the safety of being within hearing distance of my mother’s summons to dinner, somehow all this contributed to the immediate joy I felt when John first brought me up to what was then called “the land.”
I had no idea then that this bit of wooded countryside would become my home, and that I would get to name it Cedar Cross. Now I have the joy of exploring and cherishing, playing and sharing here within the freedom and hearing distance of God’s love and beauty.
— Margaret Hilpert


Mission of Cedar Cross: Rest, Reflection, and Renewal

We provide overnight and day-retreat space for small groups (up to 16 participants) and individual retreatants. Individuals, couples, and friends are invited to stay in Heron’s Nest, which is a two-bedroom cottage, or in one of the three suites of the Lodge. For more information, please contact the coordinator, Jimmy Allen, at 919-729-2586, or at cedarcrossregistrar@gmail.com. More information is available on our web site: cedarcrossretreat.org. We look forward to hosting you.
 Mission Group members who oversee the ministry of Cedar Cross
Butch Grove, Vickie Grove, Mac Hulslander, Margaret Hilpert, John Hilpert, Lillie Jones, Ginger Allen, and Jimmy Allen

Specific roles at Cedar Cross
John Hilpert and Margaret Hilpert, founders and back-up hosts
Jimmy Allen, coordinator
Lillie Jones, gleaner
Rachel Allen, caretaker for indoor spaces
David Jerose, caretaker for outdoor spaces
Boomer Alston, caretaker for outdoor spaces
Lori Litton, bookkeeper
Linda Lamb, caterer

Covenant Community Church supports this retreat center through the Cedar Cross Mission Group.  We are a small ecumenical church offering a participatory form of worship that invites lively involvement by all members. We worship Sunday afternoons in Raleigh at the Community United Church of Christ (corner of Wade Avenue and Dixie Trail).

The mission group, which is a subset of the Covenant Community membership, meets monthly at the retreat center for a day of work, prayer, play, planning, and being with friends.

Giving
We are grateful to all who support the ministry of Cedar Cross Retreat Center. If you believe in providing a place for people to experience rest, reflection, and renewal, please consider giving a donation.

You can give online at www.cedarcrossretreat.info/donate/ or send a check to Cedar Cross Retreat Center, 150 Cedar Cross Way, Louisburg, NC 27549.