February 15th marked the date of the first retreat that our little community has embarked upon under the banner "Spare Key". The retreats is a valuable instrument in every sojourner's tool bag. A brisk walk about your block can offer a view not afforded by a computer screen. A leisurely hike through wooded hills will clear the mind, open the lungs, and lend clarity to murky crossroads. We have, in the past, taken group retreats with an individual focus, each of us seeking guidance, order, or insight to shape our own personal goals. At a cabin outside of Eureka Springs, AR, we spent the day in silence spread about the property. In Mountain Grove, MO we had ample time to read and reflect between meals and group activities. This latest retreat, however, brought us together in communal reflection and discussion. Amber prepared for each of us a table to fill out on our own during our morning session. After a large breakfast together, we spent time alone at the Watershed Center on Valley Water Mill Lake north of Springfield. Some hiked, some ran, some laid out in hammocks crisscrossed between columns like the sleepiest of spiderwebs as we all worked quietly to evaluate and prioritize our personal benchmarks. When we gathered for lunch, each of us had completed a list of goals, short-term and long-term. In turn, we each presented our dreams and ambitions to the group, making notes on huge sticky pads and hanging our finished works on the wall. After each of us had a turn, we examined one-another's plans and made note of where one member could help another. We offered support in varied forms; lending time and tools, joining together in like missions, and extending words of encouragement and accountability. Upon the activity's conclusion, the community's vision and future took on finer detail, moving gently into focus from the amorphous blur and giving us confidence in our plans together. We have a great deal ahead of us, and we are not necessarily closer to any hard resolution, but we were certainly able to shed more light on each other's plans for the next few years. Mission accomplished.

Our next task was to construct the blog together. Bethany lead us through the website and we developed the content framework of our page. Schedules were made (I am only a week late in posting this!) and the bones of the blog gained some meat. There are many great things to come, so stay tuned.

There are few things that can bring a group together like laser tag. After putting the dogs to bed and changing into our most stealthy clothing, we pulled into the laser tag arcade and sat at a table together, decades older than most of the regulars. As we were called up to our first game, hearts raced with anticipation and boasts fell upon deaf ears; so full of ire and strategic plots, our minds were fully occupied. The vests were emblazoned with food names (Travis was Hot Dog, as could be expected) and lit up with a rainbow of colors. We played as individuals, chasing the lead, blasting bases, and trying to obey the rules like a child who is "not running" to get to the other side of the swimming pool. It seemed that just as we began ducking in and out of narrow fluorescent passages in this labyrinth that smelled of sweaty socks and bad smoke machines, we were called to the exit and given our score sheets. Hot Dog killed us. Not by a little, either. Like a real-life first-person-shooter computer foe, Travis expertly fired off twice as many shots as most of us and put his finely honed skills to use blowing us all away. The next game we decided to join forces. The Spare Key team of just six took on eight offenders in a red vs blue war of attrition. We were Spartans at Thermopylae, the last standing at the Alamo, David in the shadow of Goliath. We emerged victorious.

After a quick DQ and debrief, we headed our separate ways to rest after the day's lively activities. It is a joy to be linked to people like this, and I am certainly glad to spend the whole weekend walking, talking, and phaser-ing together.

-Rob Hunt