Wow, Christmas is only a few days away! A crazy week ends in a calm weekend. Yay for calm weekends!
#1 S went for Xrays and Dr. check up. His arm is looking great and healing well. Yay! We still make him wear a sling when he's out and about and he still has to be EXTRA careful so he doesn't fall on it.
#2 A went to orthodontist with the dreaded message "My dog ate my retainer." Thankfully the orthodontist likes dogs and more than that, she said it wasn't too damaged, he can still wear it. We all breathed a sigh of relief as A knew how much that thing cost!
#3 I got a new phone! A real phone! It happened like this: on Thursday my son J tried to call me from school. I tried to answer his call but my cell phone wouldn't let me pick up. It just kept ringing. Finally it registered that I was receiving two calls from the same phone and I had put one of them on hold. Then it started playing random music that I'd never heard before...loudly. I finally had to take the battery out to make it stop. That was the final straw. No more of this says Kris. We spent the afternoon shopping for my Christmas gift: a smartphone! Woohoo! My phone even knows BOTH of our names (see T9 You're Killin' Me to see why this matters.) I never wanted a smartphone, but now that I have it, I like it :) Thanks Kris!
#4 A aced all his exams. Woohoo!
#5 We watched The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies today. It was great! Loved it! So thankful for a family that likes to hang out and do stuff like that together.
Now on to the weekend and 3 1/2 weeks of Christmas Break for the boys.
What was your week like?
Friday, December 19, 2014
Tuesday, December 16, 2014
FGM = Love?
Female circumcision is radical and unimaginable to most of my friends in the West. To most of my friends in North Africa, it is a normal part of life. Today I read an interesting article (FGM - An Act of Love) that sheds light on the thinking of those who circumcise their daughters.
I've written about FGM/C (Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting) in my upcoming novel Side By Side. The experiences in the book come from the true stories of young women who have undergone this practice.
As women, we should know at least a little about what more than 125 million women and girls in our world today are going through. You can read more about what FGM/C is here (this is just a fact sheet, there are no graphics, although the facts are heart-wrenching all on their own.)
It would be easy to become overwhelmed by the traumatic stories of women who have undergone FGM/C. It would be easy to become angry at those who perpetuate the practice. But I propose that the more one learns about a culture, the more difficult it is to find a black and white answer.
As mentioned in the article, "Whether we like it or not, female genital cutting is an act of love." I'm not saying that I agree that this is a healthy train of thought, I'm just saying it's worth the time to stop. Stop. Take a breath. And remember that not everyone thinks like we do.
I sat in a room in North Africa, the only white woman in a sea of dark-skinned villagers. We were attending a government-sponsored program designed to put a stop to FGM/C and tribal scarring. Most of my friends had undergone both.
The women squeeled and hid their faces when the program leaders showed us a film of a three-year-old girl being circumcised and scarred. It was gruesome and heart-breaking. But I knew that my friends who were moms would still go home and schedule an appointment for their daughters to be circumcised.
As a Westerner, I'd say it's fairly easy to form a strong opinion about FGM/C. It's well-documented as a harmful practice. I'm grateful for organizations (both local and international) that work diligently to educate and inform regarding FGM/C. It is hard for me to understand why this practice continues.
But let's bring it closer to home...
What practices do we have in our own cultures that are unhealthy or harmful, but that we guard carefully because to change it would be to go against a deeply embedded cultural norm? Perhaps you can't think of anything as huge or problematic as FGM/C, but I believe we still have unhealthy cultural norms that we do just...because. Because "that's how it's always been done," and because, "that's how everyone does it."
Some women in communities that have practiced FGM/C for centuries are taking a stand. Are you brave enough to take a stand against the unhealthy norms in your own culture? Am I?
It's worth some thought.
I've written about FGM/C (Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting) in my upcoming novel Side By Side. The experiences in the book come from the true stories of young women who have undergone this practice.
As women, we should know at least a little about what more than 125 million women and girls in our world today are going through. You can read more about what FGM/C is here (this is just a fact sheet, there are no graphics, although the facts are heart-wrenching all on their own.)
It would be easy to become overwhelmed by the traumatic stories of women who have undergone FGM/C. It would be easy to become angry at those who perpetuate the practice. But I propose that the more one learns about a culture, the more difficult it is to find a black and white answer.
As mentioned in the article, "Whether we like it or not, female genital cutting is an act of love." I'm not saying that I agree that this is a healthy train of thought, I'm just saying it's worth the time to stop. Stop. Take a breath. And remember that not everyone thinks like we do.
I sat in a room in North Africa, the only white woman in a sea of dark-skinned villagers. We were attending a government-sponsored program designed to put a stop to FGM/C and tribal scarring. Most of my friends had undergone both.
The women squeeled and hid their faces when the program leaders showed us a film of a three-year-old girl being circumcised and scarred. It was gruesome and heart-breaking. But I knew that my friends who were moms would still go home and schedule an appointment for their daughters to be circumcised.
As a Westerner, I'd say it's fairly easy to form a strong opinion about FGM/C. It's well-documented as a harmful practice. I'm grateful for organizations (both local and international) that work diligently to educate and inform regarding FGM/C. It is hard for me to understand why this practice continues.
But let's bring it closer to home...
What practices do we have in our own cultures that are unhealthy or harmful, but that we guard carefully because to change it would be to go against a deeply embedded cultural norm? Perhaps you can't think of anything as huge or problematic as FGM/C, but I believe we still have unhealthy cultural norms that we do just...because. Because "that's how it's always been done," and because, "that's how everyone does it."
Some women in communities that have practiced FGM/C for centuries are taking a stand. Are you brave enough to take a stand against the unhealthy norms in your own culture? Am I?
It's worth some thought.
Sunday, December 14, 2014
12 Days of Tropical Christmas
I wrote this a couple of years ago to describe our first Christmas in Sumatra. No mouse in my tree this year, but I'll be honest, I cringed just a tad when I opened the box. I knew a live mouse wouldn't run out at me like before because the box was well wrapped. It was finding a dead mouse entombed in the box that I was concerned about. But my fears were unfounded. I thought you might enjoy a new twist to an old favorite!
On the first day of Christmas the tropics gave to me
A mouse in my Christmas tree!
On the second day of Christmas the tropics gave to me
Rust on the ornaments, and a mouse in my Christmas tree!
On the third day of Christmas the tropics gave to me
Rain in the evening, rust on the ornaments, and a mouse in my Christmas tree!
On the fourth day of Christmas the tropics gave to me
Leaks in my bedroom, rain in the evening, rust on the ornaments and a mouse in my Christmas tree!
On the fifth day of Christmas the tropics gave to me
Five calls to prayer!
Leaks in my bedroom, rain in the the evening, rust on the ornaments and a mouse in my Christmas tree!
Leaks in my bedroom, rain in the the evening, rust on the ornaments and a mouse in my Christmas tree!
On the sixth day of Christmas the tropics gave to me
rice and soup and noodles,
Five calls to prayer!
Leaks in my bedroom, rain in the evening, rust on the ornaments and a mouse in my Christmas tree!
On the seventh day of Christmas the tropics gave to me
Mold in the kitchen, rice and soup and noodles,
five calls to prayer!
Leaks in my bedroom, rain in the the evening, rust on the ornaments and a mouse in my Christmas tree!
five calls to prayer!
Leaks in my bedroom, rain in the the evening, rust on the ornaments and a mouse in my Christmas tree!
On the eighth day of Christmas the tropics gave to me
Masses of mosquitoes, mold in the kitchen, rice and soup and noodles,
five calls to prayer!
Leaks in my bedroom, rain in the the evening, rust on the ornaments and a mouse in my Christmas tree!
five calls to prayer!
Leaks in my bedroom, rain in the the evening, rust on the ornaments and a mouse in my Christmas tree!
On the ninth day of Christmas the tropics gave to me
Amoebas in my belly, masses of mosquitoes, mold in the kitchen, rice and soup and noodles,
five calls to prayer!
Leaks in my bedroom, rain in the the evening, rust on the ornaments and a mouse in my Christmas tree!
five calls to prayer!
Leaks in my bedroom, rain in the the evening, rust on the ornaments and a mouse in my Christmas tree!
On the tenth day of Christmas the tropics gave to me
Natalans at the church, amoebas in my belly, masses of mosquitoes, mold in the kitchen, rice and soup and noodles,
five calls to prayer!
leaks in my bedroom, rain in the the evening, rust on the ornaments and a mouse in my Christmas tree!
five calls to prayer!
leaks in my bedroom, rain in the the evening, rust on the ornaments and a mouse in my Christmas tree!
On the eleventh day of Christmas the tropics gave to me
Skype calls to family, Natalans at the church, amoebas in my belly, masses of mosquitoes, mold in the kitchen, rice and soup and noodles,
five calls to prayer!
Leaks in my bedroom, rain in the the evening, rust on the ornaments and a mouse in my Christmas tree!
five calls to prayer!
Leaks in my bedroom, rain in the the evening, rust on the ornaments and a mouse in my Christmas tree!
On the twelfth day of Christmas the tropics gave to me
Memories to cherish, Skype calls to family, Natalans at the church, amoebas in my belly, masses of mosquitoes, mold in the kitchen, rice and soup and noodles,
five calls to prayer!
Leaks in my bedroom, rain in the the evening, rust on the ornaments and a mouse in my Christmas tree!
five calls to prayer!
Leaks in my bedroom, rain in the the evening, rust on the ornaments and a mouse in my Christmas tree!
Friday, December 12, 2014
#H54F All.Most.There.
Whew, made it through a busy week that I was a little concerned about. It's Friday night and Kris and I are just relaxing in-between being taxi for the three boys who had various things going on this afternoon and evening. Here are highlights from our week:
1. Last Saturday Kris, A and I helped with a kid's program and I got to meet some of the moms. We even played frisbee together!
2. J had his first band and choir concert. He played the trombone in 6th grade band and sang in the middle school choir. Unfortunately, S couldn't play clarinet in the advance band because of his broken arm. He was a good sport about it. Here is J dressed and ready for the concert.
3. I enjoyed co-hosting a Christmas Tea for some ladies. I took pictures of all the food and then we enjoyed chatting so much that I forgot to take pictures of the ladies! Here is cream cheese with chili jelly on top. I learned that from my sister last year and wanted to make it because it reminds me of her. Love you April!
4. S finished PT for his broken arm this week. Doctor said the X-ray looks great and he can just do some exercises at home. And, the doctor says, whatever you do S, don't fall down. Praising the Lord for quick-healing bones!
5. As Christmas quickly approaches I enjoy hearing Christmas music. I hear it in the grocery store and all through the mall! Here is A's take on a favorite Christmas song. I think he did a great job. Click below to listen!
Krook - Carol of the Bells
Well, that's my week in high fives. What about yours?
2. J had his first band and choir concert. He played the trombone in 6th grade band and sang in the middle school choir. Unfortunately, S couldn't play clarinet in the advance band because of his broken arm. He was a good sport about it. Here is J dressed and ready for the concert.
3. I enjoyed co-hosting a Christmas Tea for some ladies. I took pictures of all the food and then we enjoyed chatting so much that I forgot to take pictures of the ladies! Here is cream cheese with chili jelly on top. I learned that from my sister last year and wanted to make it because it reminds me of her. Love you April!
4. S finished PT for his broken arm this week. Doctor said the X-ray looks great and he can just do some exercises at home. And, the doctor says, whatever you do S, don't fall down. Praising the Lord for quick-healing bones!
Krook - Carol of the Bells
Well, that's my week in high fives. What about yours?
Wednesday, December 3, 2014
Look What I Found!
Anyway, I went to my profile to look at something--I don't remember what--and I was surprised to see THIS! Side By Side is already available for pre-order! What? So fun--and quite surprising honestly--to find this!
So I found it on Amazon and Christian Books. Woohoo! By the way, I noticed that Christian Books has the best price.There is more information about it on New Hope Digital.
At the moment it is available for pre-order for the paperback copy. I'm guessing that it will become available for e-book (Kindle etc) in April, when the book releases. I am still new to all of this as this is my first time to work with a publisher.
I am so excited. Thanks to all of you who have encouraged me along the way. I can hardly believe this dream, that began about 9 or 10 years ago, is becoming a reality!
Monday, December 1, 2014
T9 You're Killin' Me!
So here is my glossary for all my friends out there who receive SMS messages from me. Can you please just do me a favor and post this somewhere so you can decipher my messages? I promise if we agree to do this, I'll gain about an hour or so to every day.
1. When I am talking about my husband Kris, I do NOT mean Krishna, no matter what my phone says. Seriously? Why on earth does my phone know the word Krishna?
2. "Woohoo!" is now Wmmgmm! Please just know that I am celebrating with you.
3. While I am sometimes meek, I am "Jana" not "Lamb"
4. My phone does not like to "PTL" so can we just call it "Rules"?
5. And when I think something is really gross, please just let me say "Yukon".
6. If something is "yum" let's just agree to call it "zuo".
7. And if I will get back to you quickly, I'll tell you that I'll get you the information "ARCS"
In honor of Cyber Monday, I need some friends to feel my technology woes. Seriously, does anyone else have this problem?
Friday, November 28, 2014
#H54F: #Thankful!
It's Thanksgiving Week! Our kiddos had two days off from school this week and are super pumped about that. I am glad because that's two days that our broken-armed son won't be rushing the halls of middle school with a held-together-by-screws-and-metal-plates-but-no-cast-or-outer-protection-whatsoever arm. Here are highlights from my week:
#1 Our son went back to school, metal plates and all! (see what I'm talking about here) He's a tough kid and we are SO THANKFUL for the amazing way the Lord has made our bodies to overcome trauma.
#2 The Lord has also made the body of believers to help each other overcome trauma! We are SO THANKFUL for so many friends who surrounded us with help and encouragement during our son's injury. We are SO THANKFUL for family who, while they could not be with us, prayed for us.
#3 Two of our kids participated in a service day this week. How great is that? SO THANKFUL for a school that guides our kids to think beyond themselves. S visited a home for the "infirmed and elderly". He was not able to play clarinet as was planned, but he was still able talk to some of the people and to pass out cookies. J helped clean at a soup kitchen for homeless people.
#4 This week I enjoyed meeting for prayer with an Indonesian friend. It blessed my heart to join with a fellow-believer and to come before the Lord in two languages. THANKFUL that we can approach the throne in any language and THANKFUL that, because of Jesus, we are sisters!
#5 Thanksgiving of course! We are SO THANKFUL to be able to celebrate Thanksgiving with some of our overseas family. We had all sorts of yummy food and great conversation. It was fun to see the kids all enjoying the food and fellowship as well.
What was YOUR Thanksgiving Week like?
#1 Our son went back to school, metal plates and all! (see what I'm talking about here) He's a tough kid and we are SO THANKFUL for the amazing way the Lord has made our bodies to overcome trauma.
#2 The Lord has also made the body of believers to help each other overcome trauma! We are SO THANKFUL for so many friends who surrounded us with help and encouragement during our son's injury. We are SO THANKFUL for family who, while they could not be with us, prayed for us.
#3 Two of our kids participated in a service day this week. How great is that? SO THANKFUL for a school that guides our kids to think beyond themselves. S visited a home for the "infirmed and elderly". He was not able to play clarinet as was planned, but he was still able talk to some of the people and to pass out cookies. J helped clean at a soup kitchen for homeless people.
#4 This week I enjoyed meeting for prayer with an Indonesian friend. It blessed my heart to join with a fellow-believer and to come before the Lord in two languages. THANKFUL that we can approach the throne in any language and THANKFUL that, because of Jesus, we are sisters!
#5 Thanksgiving of course! We are SO THANKFUL to be able to celebrate Thanksgiving with some of our overseas family. We had all sorts of yummy food and great conversation. It was fun to see the kids all enjoying the food and fellowship as well.
What was YOUR Thanksgiving Week like?
Wednesday, November 26, 2014
10 Life Hacks for Third-World Livin' (from Back in the Day)
Life Hacks would have meant a serial killer holding a machete back when my husband and I first went overseas. Nowadays it means: cool tricks to make life easier.
I didn't have Google or Pinterest or blogs to read back then. I had a Lonely Planet book about our new country in one hand and a copy of Where There Is No Doctor in the other. The rest we just had to figure out along the way.
Because there was nowhere to share my tricks of the trade, most of them have faded into the "I Don't Need That Anymore" corners of my memory. So before I lose every one of them, I thought I'd write them down. And since nowadays I have a blog (we went overseas before internet y'all!) I can share my Life Hacks with you! Now, keep in mind these may be old school...but sometimes old school is cool, right?
1. If you don't have running water, drain your laundry water (from hand-washing or hand-filling your washing machine) into a container (tub, bucket, etc) and use it to flush your toilet. Saves on water and your toilet gets washed with laundry detergent!
2. If your electricity goes out all the time and you want cold water to drink during the day: Buy a large water thermos. Buy a bowl that is big, but small enough to fit into the thermos. Every evening fill the bowl with water and freeze (if you have electricity at night). In the morning, dump the ice into your thermos and fill it with water. Don't forget to refill your bowl and put it back in the freezer for tomorrow. All day long you'll have cold water to drink without opening your fridge and losing the precious cold. We did this for years in Africa.
3. Toothpaste works to ease itchy mosquito bites. Just dab it on every one of them. You can easily count them as you go so that you know how many there are for your next blog or Facebook status. You smell minty fresh, but lint also sticks to your skin. Up to you.
4. If you don't know what you are doing for dinner, but it's time and your hubby and kids are getting hungry, saute some onions. Makes the kitchen smell like you know what you are doing and buys you a little time. (I got this idea from my mom!)
5. If you live in a super hot and dry climate, do these things to keep relatively cool:
*Get your head and hair wet and don't dry off. I know people who just left their clothes on and got fully wet and then walked around the house like that. The water cooled them off and since we lived in the desert, it didn't actually take very long to dry!
*Get towels wet and lay them on your floor at night. If you don't have AC but you do have a ceiling fan, the wet towels will cool the room off a bit.
*Wear cotton undershirts or tank tops under your clothes. If you are living in a country where you have to dress conservatively, this seems counter-intuitive. But my friends and I discovered that tank tops collect your sweat and #1 keep your outer clothes from stinking and #2 used your sweat to cool you off.
6. Keep a container in your freezer and put the "final" leftovers in it, no matter how small. When the container is full you can make soup. Dump the frozen stuff into a pot and add whatever you feel might be missing (water, stock, a can of veggies (or fresh ones if you don't have cans), a taco mix, some spices, some pasta, rice, etc.) My family doesn't realize that's what I do and almost every time they say, "Wow, this soup is really good!" It's better if it cooks a long time in the crockpot. Honestly, my family usually likes it even better the second time around. I call it "Hearty Soup" like my mom does!
7. Here's a truly old-school tip. Back in the day our only communication back home was through letters. It did not cost any more in postage to add one Koolaide packet or one ziploc bag. Since both were hard (uh...impossible) to come by, we had our friends and family stick one or the other in every letter. It was like getting a double treat every time!
8. Learn how to breathe through your mouth and not your nose. If you live in a Third-World country, chances are you are gonna smell pee, poop, blood, sewer, fish, carcasses, spoiled garbage, and durian. It's nicer for those in whose country you are a guest if you don't wrinkle your nose and pass out or gag every time your nose is offended. I also try not to think about the fact that my mouth is still taking in all those smelly germs without the advantage of nose hair filters. So breathe through your mouth and distract your mind and you'll be fine!
9. If you happen to stay at a nice hotel that supplies shower caps, save them. They are handy for covering food dishes, like plastic wrap...only free. I wash and reuse until they are kind of gross and then throw them away.
10. Weavels and unsavory critters like that will leave your flour, cereals, rice, and other grains if you spread it out in the sun (on a woven mat or large tray). Stale cereal and chips crisp back up in an oven set at low. Don't through away that stuff!
If you live in a third-world country, in the boonies, or if you live somewhere else, what tips have you learned for every day life?
I didn't have Google or Pinterest or blogs to read back then. I had a Lonely Planet book about our new country in one hand and a copy of Where There Is No Doctor in the other. The rest we just had to figure out along the way.
Because there was nowhere to share my tricks of the trade, most of them have faded into the "I Don't Need That Anymore" corners of my memory. So before I lose every one of them, I thought I'd write them down. And since nowadays I have a blog (we went overseas before internet y'all!) I can share my Life Hacks with you! Now, keep in mind these may be old school...but sometimes old school is cool, right?
*Get your head and hair wet and don't dry off. I know people who just left their clothes on and got fully wet and then walked around the house like that. The water cooled them off and since we lived in the desert, it didn't actually take very long to dry!
*Get towels wet and lay them on your floor at night. If you don't have AC but you do have a ceiling fan, the wet towels will cool the room off a bit.
*Wear cotton undershirts or tank tops under your clothes. If you are living in a country where you have to dress conservatively, this seems counter-intuitive. But my friends and I discovered that tank tops collect your sweat and #1 keep your outer clothes from stinking and #2 used your sweat to cool you off.
7. Here's a truly old-school tip. Back in the day our only communication back home was through letters. It did not cost any more in postage to add one Koolaide packet or one ziploc bag. Since both were hard (uh...impossible) to come by, we had our friends and family stick one or the other in every letter. It was like getting a double treat every time!
If you live in a third-world country, in the boonies, or if you live somewhere else, what tips have you learned for every day life?
Monday, November 24, 2014
#H54F: High Fives on Monday
You know how you have those days that don't play out the way you imagined they would? That's what happened to us last Friday. Who knew we'd be spending the weekend in the hospital? Well, the Lord did, and that's a good thing! So here's my Friday Highlights...on Monday:
#1 Our oldest son hosted Bible Study at our house last week and it is such a joy to see teenagers gathering on their own to study the Word. I made a lot of ice tea, a lot of popcorn, and a lot of meatball sandwiches. It was a lot of fun.
#2 I'm stopping my Neighborhood Narrative story. Sorry. I hate to stop things unfinished. But, you may have guessed, it is a true story and it just got crazier than it already was. I will still write it and perhaps one day I'll get to post it. For now, you can pray for the characters. The names are different but the people are real.
#3 Thanks to friends, I figured out how to buy pork! (shhhhhhh #nothalal) It is no longer chunks of meat hanging on hooks to me. I now know which chunk can be used as a pot roast and which chunk can be cut into pork chops. Watch out Pinterest...I'll be searching for pork recipes pretty soon.
#4 I am super excited to have received final confirmation from the publisher on book title and cover for my debut novel. Woohoo! Post coming soon about that.
#5 And the biggest news from last week happened on Friday, although I am not sure it is in the "highlight" category! Our middle son broke his arm pretty badly while running a race at Field Day. He broke the ulna and radius and had to have surgery to put plates and screws in each bone. The Lord was so faithful in providing excellent medical care and a great community around us. Surgery was on Friday and our son was free to go home from the hospital by Sunday afternoon! And get this, he's back at school today. What a tough guy!
I am hoping that #5 for this week will be super boring.
Have a great #Thanksgiving Week!
#1 Our oldest son hosted Bible Study at our house last week and it is such a joy to see teenagers gathering on their own to study the Word. I made a lot of ice tea, a lot of popcorn, and a lot of meatball sandwiches. It was a lot of fun.
#2 I'm stopping my Neighborhood Narrative story. Sorry. I hate to stop things unfinished. But, you may have guessed, it is a true story and it just got crazier than it already was. I will still write it and perhaps one day I'll get to post it. For now, you can pray for the characters. The names are different but the people are real.
#3 Thanks to friends, I figured out how to buy pork! (shhhhhhh #nothalal) It is no longer chunks of meat hanging on hooks to me. I now know which chunk can be used as a pot roast and which chunk can be cut into pork chops. Watch out Pinterest...I'll be searching for pork recipes pretty soon.
#4 I am super excited to have received final confirmation from the publisher on book title and cover for my debut novel. Woohoo! Post coming soon about that.
#5 And the biggest news from last week happened on Friday, although I am not sure it is in the "highlight" category! Our middle son broke his arm pretty badly while running a race at Field Day. He broke the ulna and radius and had to have surgery to put plates and screws in each bone. The Lord was so faithful in providing excellent medical care and a great community around us. Surgery was on Friday and our son was free to go home from the hospital by Sunday afternoon! And get this, he's back at school today. What a tough guy!
I am hoping that #5 for this week will be super boring.
Have a great #Thanksgiving Week!
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
The Sad Story
This is a serial story that I started a few weeks ago. To read the full story, click HERE
Jackie never planned on getting hit in the face. But that's what happened.
She and her friend Liya were visiting in the neighborhood again. Time to practice more language skills.
"Halo!" Jackie said, turning her attention to a little boy who appeared beside her. Sitting on the floor, she was eye-level with his cute little face.
POW! He punched her in the face.
OK, this one is gonna be a little hard to play with. I'll just sort of hold him at arms length like this so he can't hit me. Oh, yes, there we go, he's behind me now. And...pulling my ponytail now. Awesome.
Two other little boys charged into the house with a little cardboard game and some game pieces. They played quietly to the side. Jackie thought that was very sweet. Maybe she could bring a game for them to play next time. Then they jumped up, tore the game to pieces and threw it into the air. Bits of cardboard fluttered to the ground like falling leaves.
Nice. No games.
Screams came from a bedroom as an unhappy little boy wailed his protest over who-knew-what. Rohiza grabbed a long stick and walked about the room herding, hitting kids, and hollering.
Well, they are not worrying about being on their best behavior anymore. As much as I hate the hollering and hitting, I guess it means we are in the inner circle!
Jackie eyed Liya. She obviously did not enjoy watching the adults holler and hit the kids either, but really, what could they do at this point? LOVE them. That's what.
Rohiza put her stick down and sat on the floor so Jackie tried to join the conversation at hand across the room. Scootch, scootch. Rohiza was talking to Liya. To her delight, Jackie realized she could understand some of it. Rohiza's mumbled words were finally making sense to her. Rohiza told how the blind son used to be married but his wife ran away.
"Thank goodness they didn't have any kids," she said. "Or I'd have to take care of them too."
Jackie looked over at the blind man who sat next to his mother. Why do they talk about him like he's not even there?
"Oh," commented Liya, "what about your daughter's father-in-law who is in the hospital? How is he doing this week?"
"Oh, he died," said Rohiza.
"What?"
"He only lasted two days," Intan chimed in.
Oh Lord, does the bad luck never stop with this poor family?
More talking revealed that Rohiza had been married twice. In both cases her husband died. So when relatives urged her to marry again, she said no way. Now she lived with her daughters and blind son. Her own sons didn't care for her.
"The one that was here last time," she said, "they one laying over there who said he couldn't work, he took drugs,"
"Yes," said the blind man. "He used to be different, but drugs messed up his mind."
Jackie's heart was heavy. There was no end to the sadness in their life.
"Rohiza, I pray for you all the time. What specifically can I pray for?" asked Liya.
"Life is so hard."
"Do you pray Rohiza?"
"I can't. I have high blood pressure from all the stress. If I bow to do the necessary ablutions for prayer, I will faint."
"Can't you just pray in your heart?"
"It's too hard." The old woman turned and began to bounce Fardus in the bouncy seat. Her quite action said loudly that she was done talking about God and prayer.
Intan and the blind man, Jackie noticed, perked up. The blind man smiled, as if to say, "Finally,we are talking about something interesting!"
Later, when Jackie and Liya said goodbye, Intan walked them to the door. "Come back soon," she said. "I'm not patient waiting for your return!"
The two ladies departed with heavy hearts. They had not shared a Bible story, but they had let Rohiza share her story. Hers was a sad one. Jackie wanted with all of her heart for their story to include Jesus. He could redeem this family, so tangled in the devil's hold.
Later that night, when she was in her own home, Jackie prayed for the family. Her heart felt heavy. No joy, only heartache filled her thoughts. Reading in the Gospel of John, she ran across John 16:24 "Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete."
What? Where did that verse come from? Jackie reread it. This verse had everything all wrapped up in one. Was she taking it out of context? Was this a sign? Was this what she was supposed to do? She repeated the words to herself...
Until now, Jackie, you have not asked anything in Jesus Name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.
Jackie never planned on getting hit in the face. But that's what happened.
She and her friend Liya were visiting in the neighborhood again. Time to practice more language skills.
"Halo!" Jackie said, turning her attention to a little boy who appeared beside her. Sitting on the floor, she was eye-level with his cute little face.
POW! He punched her in the face.
OK, this one is gonna be a little hard to play with. I'll just sort of hold him at arms length like this so he can't hit me. Oh, yes, there we go, he's behind me now. And...pulling my ponytail now. Awesome.
Two other little boys charged into the house with a little cardboard game and some game pieces. They played quietly to the side. Jackie thought that was very sweet. Maybe she could bring a game for them to play next time. Then they jumped up, tore the game to pieces and threw it into the air. Bits of cardboard fluttered to the ground like falling leaves.
Nice. No games.
Screams came from a bedroom as an unhappy little boy wailed his protest over who-knew-what. Rohiza grabbed a long stick and walked about the room herding, hitting kids, and hollering.
Well, they are not worrying about being on their best behavior anymore. As much as I hate the hollering and hitting, I guess it means we are in the inner circle!
Jackie eyed Liya. She obviously did not enjoy watching the adults holler and hit the kids either, but really, what could they do at this point? LOVE them. That's what.
Rohiza put her stick down and sat on the floor so Jackie tried to join the conversation at hand across the room. Scootch, scootch. Rohiza was talking to Liya. To her delight, Jackie realized she could understand some of it. Rohiza's mumbled words were finally making sense to her. Rohiza told how the blind son used to be married but his wife ran away.
"Thank goodness they didn't have any kids," she said. "Or I'd have to take care of them too."
Jackie looked over at the blind man who sat next to his mother. Why do they talk about him like he's not even there?
"Oh," commented Liya, "what about your daughter's father-in-law who is in the hospital? How is he doing this week?"
"Oh, he died," said Rohiza.
"What?"
"He only lasted two days," Intan chimed in.
Oh Lord, does the bad luck never stop with this poor family?
More talking revealed that Rohiza had been married twice. In both cases her husband died. So when relatives urged her to marry again, she said no way. Now she lived with her daughters and blind son. Her own sons didn't care for her.
"The one that was here last time," she said, "they one laying over there who said he couldn't work, he took drugs,"
"Yes," said the blind man. "He used to be different, but drugs messed up his mind."
Jackie's heart was heavy. There was no end to the sadness in their life.
"Rohiza, I pray for you all the time. What specifically can I pray for?" asked Liya.
"Life is so hard."
"Do you pray Rohiza?"
"I can't. I have high blood pressure from all the stress. If I bow to do the necessary ablutions for prayer, I will faint."
"Can't you just pray in your heart?"
"It's too hard." The old woman turned and began to bounce Fardus in the bouncy seat. Her quite action said loudly that she was done talking about God and prayer.
Intan and the blind man, Jackie noticed, perked up. The blind man smiled, as if to say, "Finally,we are talking about something interesting!"
Later, when Jackie and Liya said goodbye, Intan walked them to the door. "Come back soon," she said. "I'm not patient waiting for your return!"
The two ladies departed with heavy hearts. They had not shared a Bible story, but they had let Rohiza share her story. Hers was a sad one. Jackie wanted with all of her heart for their story to include Jesus. He could redeem this family, so tangled in the devil's hold.
Later that night, when she was in her own home, Jackie prayed for the family. Her heart felt heavy. No joy, only heartache filled her thoughts. Reading in the Gospel of John, she ran across John 16:24 "Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete."
What? Where did that verse come from? Jackie reread it. This verse had everything all wrapped up in one. Was she taking it out of context? Was this a sign? Was this what she was supposed to do? She repeated the words to herself...
Until now, Jackie, you have not asked anything in Jesus Name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.
Monday, November 17, 2014
Four Years of Blogging
I started blogging four years ago today! I was looking back through my posts, trying to find something and I ended up back at the beginning. When I glanced at the date, I noticed my very first blog post was published on November 17, 2010. Cool!
Since I began blogging, we've lived on three islands in Southeast Asia. We are island hoppers. We used to be desert dwellers. That's really neither here nor there, but "desert dwellers" was fun to say and it matched "island hoppers" and also, this is a blog which means I get to say whatever I want without worrying about if it makes sense or should be edited out or whatever.
This blog has 168 posts that range from serious to ludicrous, from LOTS of text to LOTS of pictures. It's been fun. I hope I'm getting better at it.
We'll see what happens in the next four years...
Since I began blogging, we've lived on three islands in Southeast Asia. We are island hoppers. We used to be desert dwellers. That's really neither here nor there, but "desert dwellers" was fun to say and it matched "island hoppers" and also, this is a blog which means I get to say whatever I want without worrying about if it makes sense or should be edited out or whatever.
This blog has 168 posts that range from serious to ludicrous, from LOTS of text to LOTS of pictures. It's been fun. I hope I'm getting better at it.
We'll see what happens in the next four years...
Sunday, November 16, 2014
The Fear
To read the full story click HERE
Jackie most certainly did NOT want to give up Fardus, especially when she knew he'd end up right back in the bouncy seat. But it was his mom, for goodness sake, so she did. She smiled and carefully lifted the small body to his mother's arms.
Wouldn't it be wonderful if Jesus healed Fardus?
Jackie's thoughts wandered to an earlier conversation with Liya as they walked to the neighborhood that afternoon.
"You know the story," said Jackie. "Jesus and his disciples are in a boat and out of nowhere comes a huge storm. The boat is getting flooded with water and the disciples are starting to panic. They realize that Jesus is taking a nap in the bottom of the boat. How can one sleep at a time like this? They wake him up and in their fear they say, 'We are going to die!' and what does Jesus do?"
"He calms the storm," replied Liya.
"Yes, He calms the storm. But even before he does that, he turns to his disciples and says, 'You of little faith, why are you so afraid?' Then, when he calmed the storm, his disciples are so amazed. What sort of man is this that even the winds and waves obey him? We serve a mighty God, Liya."
"Yes."
"He has power over everything."
"Yes, He does."
Jackie stopped walking and looked at her friend, "I know He can do a miracle for this family. And He's asking me, 'Jackie, why are you so afraid?'"
"And what do you say?"
"I say, yes, why am I so afraid? Am I afraid to pray for healing and it not happen? Am I afraid to share Jesus and watch Him get rejected? Am I afraid I will put Jesus' Name on the line? And if that is the case, am I afraid Jesus is not big enough to defend His own Name? What am I afraid of? And why?"
Jackie most certainly did NOT want to give up Fardus, especially when she knew he'd end up right back in the bouncy seat. But it was his mom, for goodness sake, so she did. She smiled and carefully lifted the small body to his mother's arms.
Wouldn't it be wonderful if Jesus healed Fardus?
"You know the story," said Jackie. "Jesus and his disciples are in a boat and out of nowhere comes a huge storm. The boat is getting flooded with water and the disciples are starting to panic. They realize that Jesus is taking a nap in the bottom of the boat. How can one sleep at a time like this? They wake him up and in their fear they say, 'We are going to die!' and what does Jesus do?"
"He calms the storm," replied Liya.
"Yes, He calms the storm. But even before he does that, he turns to his disciples and says, 'You of little faith, why are you so afraid?' Then, when he calmed the storm, his disciples are so amazed. What sort of man is this that even the winds and waves obey him? We serve a mighty God, Liya."
"Yes."
"He has power over everything."
"Yes, He does."
Jackie stopped walking and looked at her friend, "I know He can do a miracle for this family. And He's asking me, 'Jackie, why are you so afraid?'"
"And what do you say?"
"I say, yes, why am I so afraid? Am I afraid to pray for healing and it not happen? Am I afraid to share Jesus and watch Him get rejected? Am I afraid I will put Jesus' Name on the line? And if that is the case, am I afraid Jesus is not big enough to defend His own Name? What am I afraid of? And why?"
Friday, November 14, 2014
#H54F: High 5 for Friday
I got this idea from my fellow blogger and friend who will laugh with me, Tracey. We had a great afternoon together LAST week and I've been visiting her blog lately because she's got great stuff on there :)
So it's Friday! For those of us in Asia anyway. You folks in that other hemisphere will have to wait a few more hours unless you wake up REALLY early. Here are the highlights from my week:
>> 1 Kris traveled AGAIN. But not to worry, we are all 5 at home for the following few weeks. Woohoo! So here's to the end of a busy travel season.
>> 2 I went to Georgetown with a couple of friends to check out a business we heard was run by believers. We got to encourage them and also eat some yummy food in the process. More reasons to love Georgetown.
>> 3 Rain in the afternoons. I love it. The cool breeze, the dark clouds, the fresh smell, the pitter patter. After so many years in the desert, I just don't know if I'll ever get tired of rain.
>> 4 I was disappointed not to make a visit I'd been looking forward to this week. My visiting buddy had something else she needed to do. But I quickly saw God's hand in it as I was able to make connections with some other moms in town and that was good.
>> 5 My car battery died today. Like: it D-I-E-D. Today. In front of a coffee shop (the latte was yummy and would be #6 if this was High 6 For Friday, which it's not). But thanks to some HELPFUL friends, we got a new battery and I was on my way in about an hour. High five for friends who dropped everything to come rescue me.
What was your week like?
So it's Friday! For those of us in Asia anyway. You folks in that other hemisphere will have to wait a few more hours unless you wake up REALLY early. Here are the highlights from my week:
>> 1 Kris traveled AGAIN. But not to worry, we are all 5 at home for the following few weeks. Woohoo! So here's to the end of a busy travel season.
>> 2 I went to Georgetown with a couple of friends to check out a business we heard was run by believers. We got to encourage them and also eat some yummy food in the process. More reasons to love Georgetown.
>> 3 Rain in the afternoons. I love it. The cool breeze, the dark clouds, the fresh smell, the pitter patter. After so many years in the desert, I just don't know if I'll ever get tired of rain.
>> 4 I was disappointed not to make a visit I'd been looking forward to this week. My visiting buddy had something else she needed to do. But I quickly saw God's hand in it as I was able to make connections with some other moms in town and that was good.
>> 5 My car battery died today. Like: it D-I-E-D. Today. In front of a coffee shop (the latte was yummy and would be #6 if this was High 6 For Friday, which it's not). But thanks to some HELPFUL friends, we got a new battery and I was on my way in about an hour. High five for friends who dropped everything to come rescue me.
What was your week like?
Wednesday, November 12, 2014
The Baby
To read the full story, click HERE.
For two weeks, all Jackie could think about was that baby boy. That sweet baby boy with the cleft lip. Why didn't the mom hold him? Why was he always in the bouncy seat? Was he just too hard to hold? His little body twisted and turned and didn't ever relax.
When visiting day arrived, Jackie was unprepared. She'd hoped to have a Bible story ready to share, or some game for the kids. Nothing. Sorry, Lord. I just am not prepared. Can You work through me anyway? This time I'm not going to be concerned with practicing language. I'm going to love on that baby and maybe another kid or two while I'm at it. Love. That's what we're doing today.
And that was the theme, even if that's not exactly what Liya and Jackie would have liked. They would have liked to tell more Bible stories. They would have liked a big response from the family..."We all believe in Jesus!" But Jackie knew they still didn't quite "get" it. Did the family even comprehend the gospel message?
It doesn't matter. Love them. That's what we're doing.
Jackie noticed the family always bounced the baby boy in a bouncy seat. They bounced him vigorously. No wonder he doesn't cry, he's trying not to puke. Jackie wondered if his little brain was getting jostled. But as soon as the mother stopped for a few minutes to get something in another room, the little baby started to whine. Jackie took the chance to scootch across the floor to the bouncy set.
"Hi there little guy!" Jackie bounced the seat softly. The little baby gazed in her eyes. His hand flew up and she held her finger against his palm. His tiny fingers closed into a hold on her finger. His back twisted and her looked at her upside-down. His leg flew up. He cooed. A tube was taped to his lip, to be used for feeding at some point. He sucked at it. Lord, please be with this precious little baby. When he gets older, help him learn about You.
Jackie looked up a Rohiza who was watching and smiling. "What is his name?"
"Fardus."
"How old is he?"
"One year and three months."
Jackie tried to hide her surprise. Little Fardus looked like a skinny six-month old.
"May I hold him?"
"Yes."
Jackie carefully supported Fardus's head and lifted his little body. She cradled him close to her and sang softly. Before she was ready, the mother returned to take him.
Fardus. I know your name now. I'll be praying for you by name.
For two weeks, all Jackie could think about was that baby boy. That sweet baby boy with the cleft lip. Why didn't the mom hold him? Why was he always in the bouncy seat? Was he just too hard to hold? His little body twisted and turned and didn't ever relax.
When visiting day arrived, Jackie was unprepared. She'd hoped to have a Bible story ready to share, or some game for the kids. Nothing. Sorry, Lord. I just am not prepared. Can You work through me anyway? This time I'm not going to be concerned with practicing language. I'm going to love on that baby and maybe another kid or two while I'm at it. Love. That's what we're doing today.
And that was the theme, even if that's not exactly what Liya and Jackie would have liked. They would have liked to tell more Bible stories. They would have liked a big response from the family..."We all believe in Jesus!" But Jackie knew they still didn't quite "get" it. Did the family even comprehend the gospel message?
It doesn't matter. Love them. That's what we're doing.
Jackie noticed the family always bounced the baby boy in a bouncy seat. They bounced him vigorously. No wonder he doesn't cry, he's trying not to puke. Jackie wondered if his little brain was getting jostled. But as soon as the mother stopped for a few minutes to get something in another room, the little baby started to whine. Jackie took the chance to scootch across the floor to the bouncy set.
"Hi there little guy!" Jackie bounced the seat softly. The little baby gazed in her eyes. His hand flew up and she held her finger against his palm. His tiny fingers closed into a hold on her finger. His back twisted and her looked at her upside-down. His leg flew up. He cooed. A tube was taped to his lip, to be used for feeding at some point. He sucked at it. Lord, please be with this precious little baby. When he gets older, help him learn about You.
Jackie looked up a Rohiza who was watching and smiling. "What is his name?"
"Fardus."
"How old is he?"
"One year and three months."
Jackie tried to hide her surprise. Little Fardus looked like a skinny six-month old.
"May I hold him?"
"Yes."
Jackie carefully supported Fardus's head and lifted his little body. She cradled him close to her and sang softly. Before she was ready, the mother returned to take him.
Fardus. I know your name now. I'll be praying for you by name.
Monday, November 10, 2014
The Tear
To read this story from the beginning, click HERE.
The next time Liya and Jackie went to visit Rohiza's family, there was no bad smell. They sat on the floor against the opposite wall from the last visit, the wall by the door. The room seemed brighter and a breeze brushed against Jackie. She noticed a ceiling fan and that the television was actually on a proper television stand. Jackie saw pictures on the wall. Had they been there before? There were the swirly designs of Arabic and a large framed picture of a bride and groom. On this day Jackie saw familiar faces and they were so excited to see the two ladies. Why had she thought the room looked so dirty before? It really wasn't so bad. In reality, nothing had changed but Jackie's perspective.
"Where were you last week?" Intan asked.
"We gathered together and waited for you but you didn't come!" Rohiza exclaimed.
Rohiza and Intan still had insane teeth, but Jackie didn't notice them so much. She still couldn't understand a word Rohiza said, but Jackie could see a bit of her heart. On this day Liya and Jackie learned more names and met more people. Rohiza served lukewarm chocolate milk and over-fried blobs of banana pieces dipped in batter. Jackie knew the family couldn't afford to spare this, there were so many mouths to feed.
Jackie looked around the room. There are 16 of people sitting on the floor and a few more in one of the rooms. The floor...it didn't seem all that dirty after all. The TV incessantly played a scratchy soap opera, the girls in the bedroom listened to loud music. A dad, another son of Rohiza, reclined on the floor with no shirt on and was yelling at his baby son. Kids came in and out, alternately playing and watching the visitors. Yep, it was still a lot of craziness all in one little house.
Liya and Jackie tried to converse with Rohiza and Intan. Of course, Jackie mused, they were the two ladies who were the hardest to understand.
Then the blind man entered. He quickly joined the conversation and he seemed very happy that the visitors were back. Liya told the story of Noah. They listened and when she was done, she asked them, "What was the most interesting thing about the story?"
This made for lively conversation. As people came and went, Jackie and Liya visited with different adults. They met a family friend, the great grandmother, and several husbands. At one point one of the young moms left on a motorcycle with one of the men.
"Where are they going?" Liya asked.
"That's her husband. They are going to the hospital to visit her father-in-law. He was in an accident. He broke his jaw...and shoulder...and leg...and foot..."
Jackie lost count of the places he'd been injured as the comments went on.
Rohiza's husband had been killed in a vehicle accident. The blind man had injured his eyes as a result of a vehicle accident. Jackie wondered who else in the family had been in accidents, but she didn't really want to know, afraid of what the answer might be. Bad luck seemed to follow this family around.
At some point in the visit, Jackie asked the shirtless man about his children. He was half-watching his two little ones and half-watching the television. In fact, to keep from having to chase after his toddler, he put a pair of squeeky shoes on the little guy so he could hear how far off the front porch the little one was venturing without actually having to get up. The little boy was two years old and the little girl was a year old. Rudy and Rani were their names. The father said he wasn't working because of migraines.
"I'm stressed," he said.
"Why are you stressed?" Liya asked.
"Because of having to watch these kids," he said. "It's very hard."
"Yes, life is hard. What do you do to ease your stress? Does God help you?"
"I have to pray and do good."
"Is that what you do to go to heaven too?"
"Yes."
"What if you are very good, but sometimes you do bad?"
"You have to try to do more good."
"Did you know that you can be sure of going to heaven? God made a way so that we don't have to worry or be stressed about that. There is a way. Have you heard of Jesus?"
"No, I have not heard."
No one here has heard of Jesus. And He is the One they need the most.
Jackie felt a strange emotion come over her. A little bit of fear...a sad fear.
What if they don't get it, Lord? What if they keep hearing it, but they don't get it? I am already starting to love this family and the thought that they could reject You is already gripping me. If they reject You, it's going to break my heart. Oh Lord, I guess Your heart is already broken over them. I'm just now growing to love them and You are already there. I don't really want to get to know them any more, Lord, because I can't bear to know them and then know what it will be like for them if they do not choose You.
A tear. Not a physical one. Not a wet drop. But a tear nonetheless. A figurative one. It rolled down Jackie's cheek. And figuratively, she took another step forward. She knew it was dangerous. But it was already too late anyway. This family was growing on her and God was giving her love for them.
It's going to hurt, isn't it Lord? OK. I'm going to open my heart. I'm going to love them. I'm going to trust You with what comes next.
The next time Liya and Jackie went to visit Rohiza's family, there was no bad smell. They sat on the floor against the opposite wall from the last visit, the wall by the door. The room seemed brighter and a breeze brushed against Jackie. She noticed a ceiling fan and that the television was actually on a proper television stand. Jackie saw pictures on the wall. Had they been there before? There were the swirly designs of Arabic and a large framed picture of a bride and groom. On this day Jackie saw familiar faces and they were so excited to see the two ladies. Why had she thought the room looked so dirty before? It really wasn't so bad. In reality, nothing had changed but Jackie's perspective.
"Where were you last week?" Intan asked.
"We gathered together and waited for you but you didn't come!" Rohiza exclaimed.
Rohiza and Intan still had insane teeth, but Jackie didn't notice them so much. She still couldn't understand a word Rohiza said, but Jackie could see a bit of her heart. On this day Liya and Jackie learned more names and met more people. Rohiza served lukewarm chocolate milk and over-fried blobs of banana pieces dipped in batter. Jackie knew the family couldn't afford to spare this, there were so many mouths to feed.
Jackie looked around the room. There are 16 of people sitting on the floor and a few more in one of the rooms. The floor...it didn't seem all that dirty after all. The TV incessantly played a scratchy soap opera, the girls in the bedroom listened to loud music. A dad, another son of Rohiza, reclined on the floor with no shirt on and was yelling at his baby son. Kids came in and out, alternately playing and watching the visitors. Yep, it was still a lot of craziness all in one little house.
Liya and Jackie tried to converse with Rohiza and Intan. Of course, Jackie mused, they were the two ladies who were the hardest to understand.
Then the blind man entered. He quickly joined the conversation and he seemed very happy that the visitors were back. Liya told the story of Noah. They listened and when she was done, she asked them, "What was the most interesting thing about the story?"
This made for lively conversation. As people came and went, Jackie and Liya visited with different adults. They met a family friend, the great grandmother, and several husbands. At one point one of the young moms left on a motorcycle with one of the men.
"Where are they going?" Liya asked.
"That's her husband. They are going to the hospital to visit her father-in-law. He was in an accident. He broke his jaw...and shoulder...and leg...and foot..."
Jackie lost count of the places he'd been injured as the comments went on.
Rohiza's husband had been killed in a vehicle accident. The blind man had injured his eyes as a result of a vehicle accident. Jackie wondered who else in the family had been in accidents, but she didn't really want to know, afraid of what the answer might be. Bad luck seemed to follow this family around.
At some point in the visit, Jackie asked the shirtless man about his children. He was half-watching his two little ones and half-watching the television. In fact, to keep from having to chase after his toddler, he put a pair of squeeky shoes on the little guy so he could hear how far off the front porch the little one was venturing without actually having to get up. The little boy was two years old and the little girl was a year old. Rudy and Rani were their names. The father said he wasn't working because of migraines.
"I'm stressed," he said.
"Why are you stressed?" Liya asked.
"Because of having to watch these kids," he said. "It's very hard."
"Yes, life is hard. What do you do to ease your stress? Does God help you?"
"I have to pray and do good."
"Is that what you do to go to heaven too?"
"Yes."
"What if you are very good, but sometimes you do bad?"
"You have to try to do more good."
"Did you know that you can be sure of going to heaven? God made a way so that we don't have to worry or be stressed about that. There is a way. Have you heard of Jesus?"
"No, I have not heard."
No one here has heard of Jesus. And He is the One they need the most.
Jackie felt a strange emotion come over her. A little bit of fear...a sad fear.
What if they don't get it, Lord? What if they keep hearing it, but they don't get it? I am already starting to love this family and the thought that they could reject You is already gripping me. If they reject You, it's going to break my heart. Oh Lord, I guess Your heart is already broken over them. I'm just now growing to love them and You are already there. I don't really want to get to know them any more, Lord, because I can't bear to know them and then know what it will be like for them if they do not choose You.
A tear. Not a physical one. Not a wet drop. But a tear nonetheless. A figurative one. It rolled down Jackie's cheek. And figuratively, she took another step forward. She knew it was dangerous. But it was already too late anyway. This family was growing on her and God was giving her love for them.
It's going to hurt, isn't it Lord? OK. I'm going to open my heart. I'm going to love them. I'm going to trust You with what comes next.
Thursday, November 6, 2014
The Tarp: Part 2
continued from The Tarp
This has to come from You, Lord, because there is nothing in me that can deal with this.
Liya began to chat with Rohiza while Jackie concentrated on understanding the slurred speech coming from Rohiza's toothy (or was it toothless?) mouth. Children sporadically entered the open front door and sat, then hopped up and ran back outside to play. The teen moms came and went. One of them stayed in the room, bouncing the baby with the cleft lip in an old baby bouncer chair.
Suddenly, the back door darkened as a new figure filled the space. The lady eyed Jackie and Liya curiously as she removed her headscarf and entered the room.
"Hello. I'm Liya and this is my friend Jackie."
"I'm Intan," said the lady. She was the sister of Rohiza and, Jackie mused, had definitely inherited the same tooth problems as her older sibling.
Intan shared more about the family. Death and sickness and misfortune seemed to be the running theme, though Intan shared in a matter-of-fact tone, as if talking about the weather.
Conversation fluctuated from family woes to life in general.
"Life can be so difficult. Were you here during the tsunami?" asked Liya.
"We were in a different house back then," replied Intan. "It was a terrible time. We all thought it was the end of the world."
"Yes," Liya said. "Many people did. But, as terrible as it was, it wasn't really the end. The end hasn't come yet."
"Yes, Judgement day hasn't come yet."
"Hey, what do you think? Will you be ready on that day? Do you think you'll go to heaven?"
"If God wills."
"So, how do you know if He wills it? Are you doing things now to make sure?"
"Yes, I try to do good things."
"Oh, like helping people or being kind?"
"Yes. By telling the truth and being good."
"Oh, I see. It's hard though. It's hard to always do the right thing."
Intan laughed knowingly. "Yes, it's hard. Especially when life is hard. My husband died in an accident on his way home from work a few years ago. Now I have to help my mother and my kids and we have no way to make money. We have relatives, but they don't help us."
Rohiza returned from the kitchen. She'd quietly slipped away and now brought two small cups of rose syrup juice.
"Oh Rohiza, we didn't mean to cause you any trouble," Liya said, "And now you've brought us drinks like we are special guests, when we are the ones who asked if we could come in!"
"It's no trouble," Rohiza replied. "You are like a blessing that has come to us today."
"You know," said Liya, "we talked about the tsunami, when so many of us thought it was the end of the world. Do you know about the beginning of the world?"
"Not really," said Intan.
"Well, back when God created the world, it was beautiful and there was nothing bad and no problems..." Liya launched into the story of Adam and Eve.
Jackie listened and prayed for Rohiza and Intan. Intan was delighted to hear the story and so Liya kept going with more stories. A movement caught Jackie's eye. Behind Liya she saw the blind man's head move. He turned toward Intan so he could hear.
Oh Lord, help this man hear the stories.
Liya continued right on to the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. The TV droned on, the teen moms came and went, children toddled by, even Rohiza fussed about the house. But Intan and the blind man continued to listen. Shower time came. Naked children running about, one of the moms walking by in a bath towel, water splashing in the background, a random man arriving home from work (perhaps one of the husbands?): Life and Bible Stories, all rolled into one.
That's how it should be Lord, shouldn't it? The Gospel is not to be secretly whispered at a set time of day and it doesn't necessarily have to be printed nice and neatly on a piece of paper and presented in a perfect way. The Bible doesn't have to be preached from the pulpit only. The Gospel can be shared with the blind, the toothless, the poor, the discouraged. It can be talked about over the crackle of the television, the yells of children, the splash of bath water, the gurgles of a baby. The stories can be told on a dirty floor to people who have never heard them. Because the Gospel is for people and that's the life of people. We are dirty, we are smelly, we are poor, we are sick, we are the very ones that You sent Your Son to die for.
"We have to go," said Liya.
"Will you come again?" asked Intan.
"You were a blessing," Rohiza said.
"Thank you for your kindess," Jackie offered.
Then Liya and Jackie stepped out of the dark house and into the sunshine of the road outside: out from under the tarp.
Thank You Lord for giving us the words to say. They heard the Truth. I wonder if they really will let us come back?
This has to come from You, Lord, because there is nothing in me that can deal with this.
Liya began to chat with Rohiza while Jackie concentrated on understanding the slurred speech coming from Rohiza's toothy (or was it toothless?) mouth. Children sporadically entered the open front door and sat, then hopped up and ran back outside to play. The teen moms came and went. One of them stayed in the room, bouncing the baby with the cleft lip in an old baby bouncer chair.
Suddenly, the back door darkened as a new figure filled the space. The lady eyed Jackie and Liya curiously as she removed her headscarf and entered the room.
"Hello. I'm Liya and this is my friend Jackie."
"I'm Intan," said the lady. She was the sister of Rohiza and, Jackie mused, had definitely inherited the same tooth problems as her older sibling.
Intan shared more about the family. Death and sickness and misfortune seemed to be the running theme, though Intan shared in a matter-of-fact tone, as if talking about the weather.
Conversation fluctuated from family woes to life in general.
"Life can be so difficult. Were you here during the tsunami?" asked Liya.
"We were in a different house back then," replied Intan. "It was a terrible time. We all thought it was the end of the world."
"Yes," Liya said. "Many people did. But, as terrible as it was, it wasn't really the end. The end hasn't come yet."
"Yes, Judgement day hasn't come yet."
"Hey, what do you think? Will you be ready on that day? Do you think you'll go to heaven?"
"If God wills."
"So, how do you know if He wills it? Are you doing things now to make sure?"
"Yes, I try to do good things."
"Oh, like helping people or being kind?"
"Yes. By telling the truth and being good."
"Oh, I see. It's hard though. It's hard to always do the right thing."
Intan laughed knowingly. "Yes, it's hard. Especially when life is hard. My husband died in an accident on his way home from work a few years ago. Now I have to help my mother and my kids and we have no way to make money. We have relatives, but they don't help us."
Rohiza returned from the kitchen. She'd quietly slipped away and now brought two small cups of rose syrup juice.
"Oh Rohiza, we didn't mean to cause you any trouble," Liya said, "And now you've brought us drinks like we are special guests, when we are the ones who asked if we could come in!"
"It's no trouble," Rohiza replied. "You are like a blessing that has come to us today."
"You know," said Liya, "we talked about the tsunami, when so many of us thought it was the end of the world. Do you know about the beginning of the world?"
"Not really," said Intan.
"Well, back when God created the world, it was beautiful and there was nothing bad and no problems..." Liya launched into the story of Adam and Eve.
Jackie listened and prayed for Rohiza and Intan. Intan was delighted to hear the story and so Liya kept going with more stories. A movement caught Jackie's eye. Behind Liya she saw the blind man's head move. He turned toward Intan so he could hear.
Oh Lord, help this man hear the stories.
Liya continued right on to the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. The TV droned on, the teen moms came and went, children toddled by, even Rohiza fussed about the house. But Intan and the blind man continued to listen. Shower time came. Naked children running about, one of the moms walking by in a bath towel, water splashing in the background, a random man arriving home from work (perhaps one of the husbands?): Life and Bible Stories, all rolled into one.
That's how it should be Lord, shouldn't it? The Gospel is not to be secretly whispered at a set time of day and it doesn't necessarily have to be printed nice and neatly on a piece of paper and presented in a perfect way. The Bible doesn't have to be preached from the pulpit only. The Gospel can be shared with the blind, the toothless, the poor, the discouraged. It can be talked about over the crackle of the television, the yells of children, the splash of bath water, the gurgles of a baby. The stories can be told on a dirty floor to people who have never heard them. Because the Gospel is for people and that's the life of people. We are dirty, we are smelly, we are poor, we are sick, we are the very ones that You sent Your Son to die for.
"We have to go," said Liya.
"Will you come again?" asked Intan.
"You were a blessing," Rohiza said.
"Thank you for your kindess," Jackie offered.
Then Liya and Jackie stepped out of the dark house and into the sunshine of the road outside: out from under the tarp.
Thank You Lord for giving us the words to say. They heard the Truth. I wonder if they really will let us come back?
Tuesday, November 4, 2014
The Tarp
"May we chat with you?" Liya asked the ladies standing in the doorway. "My friend would like to practice her language." Liya motioned toward her white-skinned friend standing on the side of the road beside the small house.
"Yes," answered the mother, "come in."
Liya and Jackie slipped off their sandals at the door and entered the room. There was not a stitch of furniture in the room except for a wooden table that held an old TV. Purple and pink contact paper covered the floor and the faded pink walls were smudged with dirt. Jackie smelled a combination of urine, body odor, and dirt. She quickly decided to breathe through her mouth and not her nose. Three daughters who were in their teens or early twenties stood in the room and watched quietly as Liya, Jackie, and the mother sat on the plastic floor. Behind the mother sat a young man. He did not turn his head to greet them and the mother did not introduce him. Jackie looked at the man. He stared straight ahead, was he catatonic?
"Who is that?" asked Liya.
"That's my son," said the mother.
"What's wrong with him?"
"He was in an accident. He lost his sight."
Jackie looked from the mother to the young man. That couldn't be all that was wrong with him. He continued to stare straight ahead, ignoring the conversation about him.
The mother introduced herself as Rohiza. She and Liya began to talk, but Jackie struggled to understand them. Rohiza spoke in words slurred by her lack of teeth. The TV beside them blared a scratchy sounding soap opera that enthralled one of the teenage daughters.
Distracted, Jackie gazed around the room. At the far end was a kitchen area and there were what appeared to be two bedrooms with stacks of mattresses. Jackie guessed that Rohiza and her children brought the mattresses to the living room when it was time to sleep. But Rohiza was not only a mother to these girls. She was a grandmother.
Jackie watched as one of the teenage girls brought in a baby. The tiny boy had a cleft lip.
Liya looked up from her conversation with the Rohiza. "Is the baby alright?" she asked.
"Oh yes," said Rohiza, "he is just small. When he is bigger he can have an operation to fix his lip."
Jackie doubted that a cleft lip was all that was wrong with the baby boy. She noticed that as the young mother held him, his back stiffened and his head fell back. He could not hold himself at all. Something else was wrong with him.
Jackie looked at the teen-aged girls, Rohiza's daughters. Rohiza said they were all married and already had several kids each. The young moms were nice and watched quietly, but did not seem to really engage in the conversation. Jackie looked at the strange man sitting staring straight ahead. She listened to the crackling television and the warbled words of the toothless Rohiza. Jackie smelled the stench of the house and absently rubbed her fingers across the dirty plastic paper used as flooring. And she sensed something...something spiritual. Like a tarp. Yes, it felt like a spiritual tarp.
"I'm overwhelmed, Lord. These people are totally without You Lord! I can't even think right now. Help me know what to do..."
To read the rest of the story, click HERE.
"Yes," answered the mother, "come in."
Liya and Jackie slipped off their sandals at the door and entered the room. There was not a stitch of furniture in the room except for a wooden table that held an old TV. Purple and pink contact paper covered the floor and the faded pink walls were smudged with dirt. Jackie smelled a combination of urine, body odor, and dirt. She quickly decided to breathe through her mouth and not her nose. Three daughters who were in their teens or early twenties stood in the room and watched quietly as Liya, Jackie, and the mother sat on the plastic floor. Behind the mother sat a young man. He did not turn his head to greet them and the mother did not introduce him. Jackie looked at the man. He stared straight ahead, was he catatonic?
"Who is that?" asked Liya.
"That's my son," said the mother.
"What's wrong with him?"
"He was in an accident. He lost his sight."
Jackie looked from the mother to the young man. That couldn't be all that was wrong with him. He continued to stare straight ahead, ignoring the conversation about him.
The mother introduced herself as Rohiza. She and Liya began to talk, but Jackie struggled to understand them. Rohiza spoke in words slurred by her lack of teeth. The TV beside them blared a scratchy sounding soap opera that enthralled one of the teenage daughters.
Distracted, Jackie gazed around the room. At the far end was a kitchen area and there were what appeared to be two bedrooms with stacks of mattresses. Jackie guessed that Rohiza and her children brought the mattresses to the living room when it was time to sleep. But Rohiza was not only a mother to these girls. She was a grandmother.
Jackie watched as one of the teenage girls brought in a baby. The tiny boy had a cleft lip.
Liya looked up from her conversation with the Rohiza. "Is the baby alright?" she asked.
"Oh yes," said Rohiza, "he is just small. When he is bigger he can have an operation to fix his lip."
Jackie doubted that a cleft lip was all that was wrong with the baby boy. She noticed that as the young mother held him, his back stiffened and his head fell back. He could not hold himself at all. Something else was wrong with him.
Jackie looked at the teen-aged girls, Rohiza's daughters. Rohiza said they were all married and already had several kids each. The young moms were nice and watched quietly, but did not seem to really engage in the conversation. Jackie looked at the strange man sitting staring straight ahead. She listened to the crackling television and the warbled words of the toothless Rohiza. Jackie smelled the stench of the house and absently rubbed her fingers across the dirty plastic paper used as flooring. And she sensed something...something spiritual. Like a tarp. Yes, it felt like a spiritual tarp.
"I'm overwhelmed, Lord. These people are totally without You Lord! I can't even think right now. Help me know what to do..."
To read the rest of the story, click HERE.
Thursday, October 16, 2014
Instead of the Thorn Bush
Come Christmas season, I had a problem. I wanted a Christmas tree, but there were none to be found. We finally decided to cut down the thorn bush in the front "yard" of our house. We wedged its stick-like trunk into a bucket of rocks and hung tiny ornaments sent by my sister-in-law. I was so proud of our Christmas tree!
We spent 2 1/2 challenging and wonderful years in Eritrea. I believe that we lived there during the best time in its history. We heard amazing stories from our friends who fought for independence. We saw joy and hope in the eyes of everyone who walked freely down the streets in the evenings when once they hid from MiGs flying overhead. Life was simple and happy for Eritreans. The nightmares of war faded and the dreams of a promising future grew more vivid.
Little did we know that only a few months of peace remained when we departed our little African home and returned to the USA. Before long we received news of fresh fighting. Within a few years we received news of our friends being imprisoned, tortured, killed. Churches went underground as persecution intensified. Unrest came both from within and from outside. Our hearts broke every time we heard a new report.
But God is sovereign and He is in control. This morning I read Isaiah 55 and I found a little phrase tucked away amid promises that God's ways are not our ways. Verse 13 says, "Instead of the thornbush will grow the pine tree".
How pleased I was with our thorn bush that Christmas we spent in Eritrea! But when I think of Eritrea nowadays, my heart is heavy. Figuratively speaking, even the thorn bushes are stripped away. But God is in control and one day (figuratively speaking) He will fill its landscape with pine trees!
I find hope in Hebrews 2:8,9a "In putting everything under him (Jesus), God left nothing that is not subject to him. Yet at present we do not see everything subject to him. But we see Jesus..."
Today I see the thornbush. I smell dirt. I feel the prick of the brier. It is ugly.
But when I look at God's people in Eritrea...I see green. I smell the scent of the fir. I see fresh. I see life. I see hope. I see pine trees.
One day, instead of the thorn bush will grow the pine tree.
One day...
Friday, October 10, 2014
Did You Tell Lana?
Lana was a young lady who had been visiting
in our home each week. One day after
she left, my son asked me if she believed in Jesus. I told him no.
“You have to tell her about Jesus, Mom,” he said.
“If you will pray with me for Lana every day, then I will share with her next time she comes,” I replied.
That satisfied my son and he prayed each day. The next time that Lana came to our house, my son whispered to me, asking me if I had shared.
“What did your son say to you?” Lana asked.
“Well, he wants me to tell you all about Jesus,” I replied. And I did. That day my son prompted me to “get to the point” and share Jesus with my friend Lana.
“You have to tell her about Jesus, Mom,” he said.
“If you will pray with me for Lana every day, then I will share with her next time she comes,” I replied.
That satisfied my son and he prayed each day. The next time that Lana came to our house, my son whispered to me, asking me if I had shared.
“What did your son say to you?” Lana asked.
“Well, he wants me to tell you all about Jesus,” I replied. And I did. That day my son prompted me to “get to the point” and share Jesus with my friend Lana.
As
a family, we can be each other’s cheerleaders, prayer warriors and mission
partners. Our kids are a vital part of our team. Kris and I have discovered
that we grow closer as a family when we minister together. When we pray as a
family for our nonbelieving friends, we get excited together when we have
opportunities to share with them. When we open our home as a family we have a special bond: it is the bond of being on
mission together.
Sunday, October 5, 2014
Eid Mubarak!
It's quiet over here on my side of the island because most of my neighbors are Chinese and expats. But somewhere around here, and most definitely in places surrounding the island, folks are celebrating IdulAdha (Eid alAdha). I have some great memories of long hot days celebrating the holiday with our neighbors and friends.
Our first time to celebrate was in East Africa. Here we are, don't we look youuuuuuuuuuuung? By the way, that cute little lamb survived. It was not sacrificed that year, like so many other sheep were. Our friends were so proud of their new baby sheep that they wanted us to take a picture with it!
My first memory of Eid alAdha in North Africa was when our neighbors (who were Libyan), invited Aaron to come watch them sacrifice the sheep. When in Rome, right? So I sent my four-year-old next door to watch. Aaron came home to tell us how he got to feed the sheep and then the man cut the sheep "and jelly came out of his neck". Awesome. Mom-of-the-year.
I remember the year I relaxed in the courtyard of a friend and watch her prepare sheep intestines. She squished all the pellets out of the LONG tube and rinsed it out before looping it with her fingers like she was crocheting yarn. Then she boiled it. Your mouth is watering, right?
I remember eating raw liver while I was pregnant. I found out later (from my OBGyn) that in America that is a big No No. No raw liver when you are pregnant. OK, well, just to be safe, I'll NEVER EAT RAW LIVER AGAIN. Or esophagus. I will eat raw esophagus and liver only once in this lifetime ok?
I remember riding down the streets of our dusty desert town and seeing dead sheep hanging from door posts or trees outside the door, waiting to be skinned and prepared for lunch. Their heads sat on the ground beneath the bodies and next to a pool of blood.
I remember the yummy fried meat. Lots of it. Meat, meat, meat.
Eid alAdha: celebrating the provision of God when Abraham was going to sacrifice his son. God provided a substitute. I am so thankful that we no longer need to sacrifice. I am so thankful that God gave His Son, Jesus Christ, as a substitute for the punishment that I deserve.
Today I remember my Muslim friends and pray that they will meet God in a special way this year.
 |
My first memory of Eid alAdha in North Africa was when our neighbors (who were Libyan), invited Aaron to come watch them sacrifice the sheep. When in Rome, right? So I sent my four-year-old next door to watch. Aaron came home to tell us how he got to feed the sheep and then the man cut the sheep "and jelly came out of his neck". Awesome. Mom-of-the-year.
I remember the year I relaxed in the courtyard of a friend and watch her prepare sheep intestines. She squished all the pellets out of the LONG tube and rinsed it out before looping it with her fingers like she was crocheting yarn. Then she boiled it. Your mouth is watering, right?
I remember eating raw liver while I was pregnant. I found out later (from my OBGyn) that in America that is a big No No. No raw liver when you are pregnant. OK, well, just to be safe, I'll NEVER EAT RAW LIVER AGAIN. Or esophagus. I will eat raw esophagus and liver only once in this lifetime ok?
I remember riding down the streets of our dusty desert town and seeing dead sheep hanging from door posts or trees outside the door, waiting to be skinned and prepared for lunch. Their heads sat on the ground beneath the bodies and next to a pool of blood.
I remember the yummy fried meat. Lots of it. Meat, meat, meat.
Eid alAdha: celebrating the provision of God when Abraham was going to sacrifice his son. God provided a substitute. I am so thankful that we no longer need to sacrifice. I am so thankful that God gave His Son, Jesus Christ, as a substitute for the punishment that I deserve.
Today I remember my Muslim friends and pray that they will meet God in a special way this year.
Friday, October 3, 2014
Crying Baby
 |
| My baby on the shore of the Nile River. |
I continued to sing, I was singing the Lord’s Prayer in the local language. As I finished the song I noticed the mother had stepped outside and was listening to me. She asked me about the song I sang and I told her the story of when Jesus’ followers asked Him how they were to pray to God. It was such a sweet time. But you know, it never would have happened if I had not been outside comforting my crying baby.
Tuesday, September 30, 2014
Grasping
I smiled nicely at them as I unloaded all the items onto the conveyor belt thingy. The ladies smiled at me and whispered to each other. Then one of the ladies scootched over right next to me and spoke to the cashier. Continuing to scan my stuff, the cashier asked if I had a Tesco card. Why yes I do. How nice of those ladies to remind the cashier to ask me for my card. I stopped unloading my cart and reached in my purse for my card to give to her so she could scan it.
As I returned the card to my pocketbook and continued unloading, I realized what was going on. Those ladies weren't reminding the cashier to scan my card. They were asking if she would scan their card so they could get my points!
I looked back at them. They were still gawking at my stuff. When I had bagged all the groceries and was ready to pay, one of the ladies positioned herself right beside me so she could see the amount that popped up on the cash register.
I wanted to say, "NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!"
Why does this bother me so much? True, it's none of their business, but why do I fight so much to keep my supposed "right-to-privacy"? Am I willing to forego that "right" in order to live among a people who live life so much more in community than I am comfortable with? Obviously I am willing because...well...here I am. But am I willing to forego that "right" with the attitude of Christ who "being in very nature God did not consider (even) equality with God something to be grasped"?
The Lord has been bringing up that passage to me lately (Philippians 2:4-11) in relation to things I am tempted to grasp. Jesus was in very nature God, but He did not grasp it. He was willing to make Himself nothing for our sake.
I am blessed with so much. Do I grasp those blessings or am I willing to hold them with open hands so that I can give them up if the Lord asks me to?
What are you tempted to grasp?
Monday, September 29, 2014
My Favorite Adventure
Saturday, September 27, 2014
Novel Book Cover Survey
Can you help me choose a cover for the upcoming novel? The publisher is doing a market research survey to help them design a great cover. You can help by taking just 2 or 3 minutes to look at their sample covers. It would help me out a lot!
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Y8VBVS7
Just go to the link above and say what you think!
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Y8VBVS7
Just go to the link above and say what you think!
Friday, August 29, 2014
Novel Title Survey
So did you know I wrote a novel? Yeah, I did. Crazy. But what is crazier than that is that I am now on this twisty-curvy roller coaster ride of publishing. The Lord totally knew this was coming, but I have been blind-sided by it... if you can call it that, because it's in a good way.
So I'm on a steep learning curve. And I am enjoying the journey.
At this part of the journey we are in the titling phase. The publisher would like to take a survey to see what YOU think of the title ideas.
Can you take this survey and tell them what you think? It is just 2 questions.
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/VGDTVYZ
Survey is closed now...thanks to all who participated.
So I'm on a steep learning curve. And I am enjoying the journey.
At this part of the journey we are in the titling phase. The publisher would like to take a survey to see what YOU think of the title ideas.
Can you take this survey and tell them what you think? It is just 2 questions.
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/VGDTVYZ
Survey is closed now...thanks to all who participated.
Tuesday, June 3, 2014
End of the School Year
How lucky I am to have something
that makes saying goodbye so hard.
-A.A. Milne, Winnie the Pooh
It's the end of the school year. Just like every school, some students are leaving, moving away, and some are staying. But I think that international schools are pretty unique in that there are SO many who leave, both teachers and students. It is an emotional time for almost everyone, even if they don't show their emotions. Not only is the entire Senior Class graduating and spreading out all over the world, many of the faculty, staff, and other students are moving far away as well.
Next year will be different. We all disperse for the summer. Many of us will return, but it won't be the same. New people will be here. A new year means more than just new books, new paint, new schedule. New for international schools means new teachers, new staff, new students...all who will be going through culture shock. New is good. But new is also different.
How blessed our family is to have made some good friendships. That's what makes saying goodbye so hard. But it's worth it, and we look forward to the new and the good that God has for us next year.
If you are saying farewell, be thankful to have had the special friendships that makes saying goodbye so hard.
Friday, May 30, 2014
Wednesday, May 28, 2014
Shout Out to Fractions!
- Never let your brain go on cruise-control even when using a tried-and-true recipe
- Common sense and little red flags that go up in your brain are gifts from heaven. Pay attention to them.
- Well, I think that's pretty much it.
Today I cooked for two different sets of folks. Why not double the recipe and just use half for one set and half for the other. Why that is an excellent idea, I think I'll do that.
And why not use a well-liked recipe so that I know it will be a guaranteed good meal for all involved in eating it. Why that is another excellent idea. Let's do it!
So I begin preparing oven fajitas, a recipe I found on Pinterest. So far everyone has loved it. Awesome. Here I go. I start mixing up the spices that will be used to marinate the chicken. As I begin measuring out the various spices I say to myself,
"Hmmm, that seems like a lot of spices. I don't remember that...well, it must be because I have doubled the recipe. Yes, that's it."
A few spices later...
"Wow, that really seems like a lot. Well, I think I have more spices in the cabinet this time than I did last time. I must have skipped some of the ingredients last time. OK, I'll just keep on, I mean, I've made this many times and I know it's good."
I finally get to "Cayenne Pepper" which is one of the spices I did not have before. My brain is thinking about switching to cruise-control. My eyes register "8 tsp". Wow, that is a lot. I start measuring it out. Doubling the recipe, of course, will mean 16 tsp. Really? Wow. By tsp number 4 I think,
"Hmmm, that really is a lot."
I dip my finger into the cayenne pepper and taste it, yep, it's pretty spicy. I think I'll stick with 3 tsp. I try to dig out what I can from the pile of spices I've dumped into the bowl to get the cayenne pepper down to a lesser amount.
Ok, marinate chicken. It's all in the pan and ready to bake. I double check the recipe for the amount of time to bake. That's strange. It's not on the recipe. I look it up on the internet site. That's when I notice the spice amounts are different on the internet recipe. When I go back to check the recipe I am using on Pinterest, I see that the TOP number of the FRACTION is way off in the left-hand margin, nowhere near the recipe itself. That leaves the bottom number over by the recipe. So instead of 1/2 Tablespoon of chili powder, for example, I read "2 Tablespoons". But I am doubling the recipe, so I dump in 4 Tablespoons. You can see then, that when I got down to the Cayenne Pepper (after dumping about half my spice cabinet into the bowl) I read 8 teaspoons instead of 1/8 teaspoon. That's a big difference Yo!
I look at the chicken. It is literally already baking under the heat of the cayenne attack. I think I hear it sizzling right there on the cabinet. My face burns. My hands burn. I glance at the guests in the living room. I think about the others who are innocently waiting for me to bring them a home cooked meal. This stuff is fire and I am pretty sure it's more spice than chicken at this point.
Hmmmm...
I rinse the chicken. I dump it all into a mixing bowl and rinse it. No joke it takes about 5 cycles before the water is no longer orangey-red and the spices are mostly gone.
Start over. Wow, it sure does look more reasonable now.
1/2 teaspoon salt instead of 2 teaspoons (doubled to 4)
1/4 teaspoon onion powder instead of 4 teaspoons (doubled to 8)
You get the idea. Whew, I baked it and it turned out just fine.
Disaster averted.
Fractions are important y'all. Numerators are vital. You can't just use the denominator.
Lesson learned.
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Way Back When
Way back when, I wrote this in my journal:
August 12, 2009
(A friend) asked me yesterday if I would write down some of my thoughts of my time here. Encouragement for new ladies here. It got me to thinking more and more about this "book" of mine. Lord, I want to keep placing this in Your hands. Would You have me print it quickly and cheaply for the ladies of (Land of Sand), or go through a self-publish? And of course, Lord, it's not actually written yet! I ask for the guidance, the inspiration, and the time to write!
***
About a year later I had written Villa in the Hilla and our generous home church made 200 copies. By then we were in Texas and I mailed about 100 or 150 of them to "The Land of Sand" but they floated around the world in their cardboard box and ended up back at our house in Texas! So then friends had to hand-carry the books in. By then I'd discovered the beauty of Amazon's Digital publishing as well as Createspace which is where they also publish hard-copy books. By then we'd given away all 200 copies, so this was a new and great way to continue distributing.
The goal of Villa in the Hilla has always been to get it out to people who wanted to read it. Amazon helped us do this. So, as most of you know from recent posts, I made it a free download for five days. I am happy to report that Villa in the Hilla was downloaded 997 times! I am so happy!
I am hoping that anyone who likes it will also check out the next book Cottage in the Kampung. It is also a devotional book but is about Asia rather than Africa.
August 12, 2009
(A friend) asked me yesterday if I would write down some of my thoughts of my time here. Encouragement for new ladies here. It got me to thinking more and more about this "book" of mine. Lord, I want to keep placing this in Your hands. Would You have me print it quickly and cheaply for the ladies of (Land of Sand), or go through a self-publish? And of course, Lord, it's not actually written yet! I ask for the guidance, the inspiration, and the time to write!
***
About a year later I had written Villa in the Hilla and our generous home church made 200 copies. By then we were in Texas and I mailed about 100 or 150 of them to "The Land of Sand" but they floated around the world in their cardboard box and ended up back at our house in Texas! So then friends had to hand-carry the books in. By then I'd discovered the beauty of Amazon's Digital publishing as well as Createspace which is where they also publish hard-copy books. By then we'd given away all 200 copies, so this was a new and great way to continue distributing.
The goal of Villa in the Hilla has always been to get it out to people who wanted to read it. Amazon helped us do this. So, as most of you know from recent posts, I made it a free download for five days. I am happy to report that Villa in the Hilla was downloaded 997 times! I am so happy!
I am hoping that anyone who likes it will also check out the next book Cottage in the Kampung. It is also a devotional book but is about Asia rather than Africa.
Saturday, May 24, 2014
Free Just A Little Bit Longer
Villa in the Hilla FREE
Villa in the Hilla for Kindle is free on Amazon until May 25. Download it today if you haven't yet and pass the word! You can get your free copy here.
Also, check out this little video.
Friday, May 23, 2014
An Open Letter to the Wall Lizards in My House
I don't see you around a lot, but I know you are here. By the amount of poop you leave on the floor, you either have huge parties at night while we are sleeping, or you have serious digestive issues. Either way, I'd like to bring up a few problems that I see with our living arrangement.
You have never offered to pay rent and that is OK with me. I've never asked you to. But I feel it is very reasonable to ask for you to earn your keep. When I see mosquitoes in the house it is proof to me that you are not doing your job. If you want to hang out on our walls, please eat our mosquitoes.
Secondly, I would like to discuss your toilet habits. Poop stuck on the wall leaves stains. Please don't do that any more. Please find a location outside to do your business. I know you go outside at some point. I know this because there are more and more cicaks coming to live in our house. So you either leave the house at some point, or you are sneaking on my computer and tweeting my address to wall lizards everywhere.
And finally, I don't know what sorts of parties you are having at night, but when I find a tipsy cicak in the morning who can't even stick to the wall and falls splat on the floor in front of me...well, frankly it startles me and grosses me out simultaneously. It is just such an incident that has prompted me to write you this letter.
So, dear cicaks who live in my house: please...eat more, poop outside, and please please quit falling splat on the floor.
Sincerely,
The Folks Who Provide the Many White Walls You Live On
Monday, May 19, 2014
I Got a Face Lift
Well, not me. But "Villa in the Hilla" did! Thanks to a very talented friend. Now the devotional books match. Yay! Now here is the best news...Villa in the Hilla will be FREE for Kindle download for five days. Please take advantage of this if you do not have a copy yet (or if you do but you want this cool new cover). And tell your friends.
Villa in the Hilla will be FREE for download on Amazon from Wednesday, May 21 to Sunday, May 25. Umm, that's give or take 12 hours depending on where you are while you read this. I think it will be effective at "the stroke of midnight" Pacific Coast Time so, you know, plan to download on May 22 just to be safe :)
Don't forget!
Wednesday, May 14, 2014
It's Here!
www.JanaKelley.com
You can even access this blog from there.
(ummm, little disclaimer...you have to type "www" in the address until I can fix that prob. I was boss at getting the website all ready but not so boss at working out the kinks!)
Monday, May 12, 2014
Mother's Day
First we went to church and spent some time in Psalm 119. Then we went out to eat at Chili's. Mostly because chips and salsa is one of my faves.
I did not get to talk with my mom or mom-in-love because that's the way it goes sometimes when you live in different time zones. But I am so thankful for email and iMessage, and for moms who understand why we are in a different time zone to begin with, even if we don't get to hear each other's voices much.
Happy Mother's Day! (Late I know. It has nothing to do with the time zone, it's just that I am a little rebellious and didn't want to post a Mother's Day post on Mother's Day because it seemed too cliche. And then I decided I should, but it was a day late...and also a work day which meant I didn't have time to put a bunch of thought into it but I thought I should do it anyway, so I did. Just now. While dinner is burning in the oven.)
Thursday, May 1, 2014
Throwback Thursday
I haven't figured out the whole social media scene very well. I do my best, but I am definitely an outsider (read why I feel this way). But it's Throw Back Thursday today, folks. I threw back yesterday though, so I was a day early. I found an external hard drive in all my stuff. I plugged that bad boy into my computer and found pictures and videos from 2005 onward. Wow, there went my evening. I spent a couple of hours throwing back. It was great!
The Lord has blessed us with some amazing opportunities and adventures and I am so very thankful. Today I re-watched some of the videos with the kids. They enjoyed it as much as I did.
Here's a picture (I won't make you watch all the videos, although I'd love to because they are really fun!) in honor of Throw Back Thursday...
Click here if you want to see my instagram
Click here if you want to see my facebook
Click here if you want to see my pinterest
Click here if you want to see my twitter
Click here if you want to see my youtube
Cick here if you want to see my soundcloud
Click here if you want to see my google+
Click here if you want to see my vine
Click here if you want to see my vimeo
Just kidding. you can click if you want to see them, but they won't take you anywhere...remember, I haven't figured out the whole social media thing yet...
You can click the X in the top right corner if you're done, but remember to check my blog again later :)
The Lord has blessed us with some amazing opportunities and adventures and I am so very thankful. Today I re-watched some of the videos with the kids. They enjoyed it as much as I did.
Here's a picture (I won't make you watch all the videos, although I'd love to because they are really fun!) in honor of Throw Back Thursday...
 |
| On the Nile...just a walk away from our house! |
Click here if you want to see my instagram
Click here if you want to see my facebook
Click here if you want to see my pinterest
Click here if you want to see my twitter
Click here if you want to see my youtube
Cick here if you want to see my soundcloud
Click here if you want to see my google+
Click here if you want to see my vine
Click here if you want to see my vimeo
Just kidding. you can click if you want to see them, but they won't take you anywhere...remember, I haven't figured out the whole social media thing yet...
You can click the X in the top right corner if you're done, but remember to check my blog again later :)
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