Wintering At the North Texas Airstream Community (NTAC)

We had great fun this winter with our many church friends and neighbors here at NTAC. Like in all states, the weather has not been particularly kind to Texas. We have had two measurable snowfalls, but the accumulation melted both times by noon after getting as high as three inches in early morning hours. Our backyard looked like a winter wonderland from our bedroom window as we arose. The temps dipped as low as 24 one night, but our Airstream is safely sheltered in our RV port, so we never winterized our waterlines.

We hosted a social for our church choir, of which Jerry is a member, in our newly decorated sunroom in January and attended the church Valentine’s Banquet at Central Baptist. It included an array of lively entertainment provided by staff and members. Our annual board meeting here at NTAC always begins with a big breakfast at the clubhouse, which is a busy place during the winter months. Bridge games are held twice per week, and we play Joker one evening per week. When we are not playing games, we go out to lunch as a group with as many as 40 in attendance. Almost every Tuesday night we enjoy a potluck dinner. In addition to church bus rides to meetings and socials, we participate in Senior Circle, a group sponsored by our local hospital situated just one mile away. One evening we took a 50-mile commercial bus ride to another small city to hear a country western band; the quality of the music was well worth our time. To help work off the multi-meal feasts, Gloria actively pursues her Curves workout regimen, while Jerry takes daily walks in our community and exercises with a small group three mornings per week at the clubhouse.

Just to make sure we would never get bored, we taught nine Bridge lessons via PowerPoint presentations during February and March here at NTAC. Eight beginners completed a six-week course, and 14 seasoned players completed the three-week course. Each lesson was two to three hours long. We also volunteered to serve as group facilitators for a 10-week Sunday evening course, Experiencing God, at our church. That vital study is still in progress as we write. We also have been delivering Meals on Wheels every Wednesday noon.

In case you have not read between the lines, we love our active rural Texas lifestyle. How did we ever have time to work? We have more new friends here in our Airstream park than we gained in 30 years while living in Northern Virginia. Hillsboro is a small town in every sense of the word, and if you are an urbanite, you may not like it. But we think it is special, and everyone greets us whether or not they know us. If we need to do any serious shopping we can drive to Waco located 35 miles to the south or Fort Worth situated just 50 miles north. However, it just seems that the air is a little fresher and Airstream friendships are deeper in our exclusive little gated community.