Saturday, March 27, 2010
correction
I realized I made a mistake concerning the number of homes we have lived in so far: It will actually be Dylan's 4th home, Elliot's 3rd and Ayden's 2nd!
Friday, March 26, 2010
surreal
NOTE: I began writing this post about 3 weeks ago!
It feels so surreal that Friday next week we will wake up back in the capital. I can't believe this chapter of our lives is closing rapidly and it makes me feel all sentimental. So I thought I'd share some of my realities to ward off the sentimental!
A year ago, Dylan was attending the local Pre School but for various reasons we weren't always too happy with him going. And as the year progressed and Dylan started wanting to stay home instead of going we decided to take the plunge and give homeschooling a try (as much as you can homeSCHOOL Pre School! :)).
Now I must confess that I have always harbored a huge prejudice towards homeschooling and thought it was just plain weird. In Germany it is illegal to homeschool your child and if a child repeatedly fails to appear in school the police will actually show up at your front door and escort said child to class. So homeschooling was foreign to me until I met various citizens of the USA who had been homeschooled. And when I discovered huge gaps (or at least they seemed like huge gaps to me) in their general knowledge I assumed (being all wise and knowledgeable) that this was due to them not attending a 'normal' school and missing out on all the wisdom real teachers should have imparted on them (or is it to them?).
Anyways, to make a long story short, I thought homeschooling resulted in awkward, uneducated and ill adjusted individuals who had been raised in a Christian bubble and knew nothing of the world (because of course all homeschoolers are Christians, or so I thought).
But then we were faced with the decision what to do about schooling (albeit a bit sooner than I had anticipated) and homeschooling quickly turned out to be the best solution. And so I dived into researching different options and curricula and finally settled on Sonlight.
When we arrived in Germany the boxes and books were waiting for us and so our own homeschooling journey began.
Since then I have had a change of heart and attitude and been confronted with my own prejudices and most importantly pride - being proud of our education system (which I am realizing is not so great after all) and of being well - educated (how do you measure that anyway?). And I have discovered that essentially I have harbored a secret unadmitted fascination with homeschooling that I tried to cover (Why?).
Thinking back on the people I know who were homeschooled I have come to see that they are not ill - adjusted, weird adults who live in a Christian bubble but fantastic individuals who are firmly rooted and secure in their own identity. They may be different but they are not afraid to admit that.
I enjoy this special time with Dylan immensely. It's amazing to watch him learn and discover and to be a part of it all, not just an observer. I love knowing what story he is reenacting or what book he is talking about, love being able to integrate teaching and learning into every aspect of our daily life. And I love being the one who is spending the most time with him each day. I never really understood how vulnerable kids are at this age and how much they soak up everything around them until we had kids. Now it makes so much sense to me to have them home at this stage in their lives, to be the ones influencing them and passing on values, thus giving them a firm foundation on which to develop and grow as an individual. I hope that these years will help to give all three boys a deep understanding of how much they are loved, not just by us but by our Father and that this will contribute to a sense of worth and self - esteem that will remain unfazed by whatever life throws at them. I pray that they will grow to be caring, passionate, different, unique individuals who know who they are and who rejoice in being different.
And so our journey of learning continues!
It feels so surreal that Friday next week we will wake up back in the capital. I can't believe this chapter of our lives is closing rapidly and it makes me feel all sentimental. So I thought I'd share some of my realities to ward off the sentimental!
A year ago, Dylan was attending the local Pre School but for various reasons we weren't always too happy with him going. And as the year progressed and Dylan started wanting to stay home instead of going we decided to take the plunge and give homeschooling a try (as much as you can homeSCHOOL Pre School! :)).
Now I must confess that I have always harbored a huge prejudice towards homeschooling and thought it was just plain weird. In Germany it is illegal to homeschool your child and if a child repeatedly fails to appear in school the police will actually show up at your front door and escort said child to class. So homeschooling was foreign to me until I met various citizens of the USA who had been homeschooled. And when I discovered huge gaps (or at least they seemed like huge gaps to me) in their general knowledge I assumed (being all wise and knowledgeable) that this was due to them not attending a 'normal' school and missing out on all the wisdom real teachers should have imparted on them (or is it to them?).
Anyways, to make a long story short, I thought homeschooling resulted in awkward, uneducated and ill adjusted individuals who had been raised in a Christian bubble and knew nothing of the world (because of course all homeschoolers are Christians, or so I thought).
But then we were faced with the decision what to do about schooling (albeit a bit sooner than I had anticipated) and homeschooling quickly turned out to be the best solution. And so I dived into researching different options and curricula and finally settled on Sonlight.
When we arrived in Germany the boxes and books were waiting for us and so our own homeschooling journey began.
Since then I have had a change of heart and attitude and been confronted with my own prejudices and most importantly pride - being proud of our education system (which I am realizing is not so great after all) and of being well - educated (how do you measure that anyway?). And I have discovered that essentially I have harbored a secret unadmitted fascination with homeschooling that I tried to cover (Why?).
Thinking back on the people I know who were homeschooled I have come to see that they are not ill - adjusted, weird adults who live in a Christian bubble but fantastic individuals who are firmly rooted and secure in their own identity. They may be different but they are not afraid to admit that.
I enjoy this special time with Dylan immensely. It's amazing to watch him learn and discover and to be a part of it all, not just an observer. I love knowing what story he is reenacting or what book he is talking about, love being able to integrate teaching and learning into every aspect of our daily life. And I love being the one who is spending the most time with him each day. I never really understood how vulnerable kids are at this age and how much they soak up everything around them until we had kids. Now it makes so much sense to me to have them home at this stage in their lives, to be the ones influencing them and passing on values, thus giving them a firm foundation on which to develop and grow as an individual. I hope that these years will help to give all three boys a deep understanding of how much they are loved, not just by us but by our Father and that this will contribute to a sense of worth and self - esteem that will remain unfazed by whatever life throws at them. I pray that they will grow to be caring, passionate, different, unique individuals who know who they are and who rejoice in being different.
And so our journey of learning continues!
Sunday, March 21, 2010
closure
March ushered in the burning part of the slash and burn agriculture that is practised here and for days the sky was hazy, daylight eerie and the sun blocked from view. It always felt like the day was almost over, even at 10 am, just because the haze was so thick it totally covered the blueness of the sky and light of the sun.
Everything is dry and dusty and brown and hot. Yet into this dusty-brown dryness bursts of color and fragance have arrived as the fragipani trees and orchids are blooming! Isn't it amazing the way God planned these plants to flourish just when we need to see something fresh and beautiful the most? I LOVE frangipani trees - their simple yet elegant flowers, the sweet yet strong fragrance. And most amazing of all - you can just cut off the branch of a frangipani tree and replant it (just the way it is) and it apparently always starts to bloom again. Which is what seems to have happended with a frangipani branch that was planted in our yard. This year it suddenly bloomed and it is my first time to see bright pink frangipani flowers instead of the usual white ones. Beautiful! No wonder the frangipani is the national flower here!
Now the mango flower showers have set in and washed away some of the haze. The light is brighter and today I actually saw flecks of blue sky. And the grass in our yard is soft and green again instead of prickly and brown. The difference rain can make! Maybe that is why God allows rain and storms and dark clouds in our lives - to help us not to take the green grass for granted.
We have been busy packing up our life here in this house and town and preparing to move to the capital city. I just realized yesterday that this is the place David and I have so far lived the longest since we got married almost 6 years ago. We will have lived here for 3 years and 4 months and maybe that is why it is so hard for me to leave. It feels like home.
And yet it was hard to be here. But since we have made the decision to move on all of the challenges and difficulties seem to have disappeared and all I can think about is how much I love living here and how much I will miss it. It's strange how we often only recall all the good things about something or someone when it's time to say goodbye...
David is gone this week (7 whole days!!!) at a conference so it's up to me to keep the boys happy and pack up the house. Which leaves me little time to get sentimental and ponder on how our lives will change. If anything I am very much looking forward to being able to settle again and upack the boxes and our belongings. And I am looking forward to a new start. Change is always exciting and invigorating and energizing. But part of me is getting tired of constant change. Our next house will be the 5th house of our married life, Dylan's 3rd and Elliot and Ayden's 2nd home (not counting the home we have in Germany) and - I can't believe I'm actually saying this - I'm longing for some permanence. I will most likely feel different once everything is unpacked but for now permanence sounds kind of nice.
But I am thankful for the 3 years we had here, the friendships we have built, the feeling of home, the difficult times that have taught me much, the beauty around me that has refreshed my soul and caused me to look to the Creator. And, applying all that I have learned about frangipani trees, I will strive to bloom where God is planting me next.
Everything is dry and dusty and brown and hot. Yet into this dusty-brown dryness bursts of color and fragance have arrived as the fragipani trees and orchids are blooming! Isn't it amazing the way God planned these plants to flourish just when we need to see something fresh and beautiful the most? I LOVE frangipani trees - their simple yet elegant flowers, the sweet yet strong fragrance. And most amazing of all - you can just cut off the branch of a frangipani tree and replant it (just the way it is) and it apparently always starts to bloom again. Which is what seems to have happended with a frangipani branch that was planted in our yard. This year it suddenly bloomed and it is my first time to see bright pink frangipani flowers instead of the usual white ones. Beautiful! No wonder the frangipani is the national flower here!
Now the mango flower showers have set in and washed away some of the haze. The light is brighter and today I actually saw flecks of blue sky. And the grass in our yard is soft and green again instead of prickly and brown. The difference rain can make! Maybe that is why God allows rain and storms and dark clouds in our lives - to help us not to take the green grass for granted.
We have been busy packing up our life here in this house and town and preparing to move to the capital city. I just realized yesterday that this is the place David and I have so far lived the longest since we got married almost 6 years ago. We will have lived here for 3 years and 4 months and maybe that is why it is so hard for me to leave. It feels like home.
And yet it was hard to be here. But since we have made the decision to move on all of the challenges and difficulties seem to have disappeared and all I can think about is how much I love living here and how much I will miss it. It's strange how we often only recall all the good things about something or someone when it's time to say goodbye...
David is gone this week (7 whole days!!!) at a conference so it's up to me to keep the boys happy and pack up the house. Which leaves me little time to get sentimental and ponder on how our lives will change. If anything I am very much looking forward to being able to settle again and upack the boxes and our belongings. And I am looking forward to a new start. Change is always exciting and invigorating and energizing. But part of me is getting tired of constant change. Our next house will be the 5th house of our married life, Dylan's 3rd and Elliot and Ayden's 2nd home (not counting the home we have in Germany) and - I can't believe I'm actually saying this - I'm longing for some permanence. I will most likely feel different once everything is unpacked but for now permanence sounds kind of nice.
But I am thankful for the 3 years we had here, the friendships we have built, the feeling of home, the difficult times that have taught me much, the beauty around me that has refreshed my soul and caused me to look to the Creator. And, applying all that I have learned about frangipani trees, I will strive to bloom where God is planting me next.
Thursday, March 4, 2010
more pictures
I'm four!
And I'm five months old! (well, almost 6 months now)
One of my good friends had fun with Elliot at the waterfall
Grilling the fish
Oh, fish!
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
pictures
Preparing food for our picnic at the waterfall
You may kiss the bride
Parents of the bride blessing the couple
In the mountains on a recent trip to the capital in the South
Three boys in a tub
Life and everything inbetween
Three little boys do keep me busy! Days just fly by and I find myself racing along without even a minute to catch my breath let alone reflect. A lot has happened and is happening so here are a few highlights:
- We attended the wedding of one of our local staff in January. It took us about two hours in our pickup truck, packed full of puking people (the locals are not used to traveling by car) to get to her village. She is 18 years old and her mom died three years ago. Now her father has married again, her new 'mom' is 18 years old...Very strange.
This was the first time I attended a Christian wedding here and it was partly hilarious to see how they had incorporated many of the Western aspects of the ceremony (including 'you may now kiss the bride') into the celebration.
Marriage is hard work and when I see people here make that commitment I wonder even more just what their next few days and weeks and months and years will be like. In a culture where you very rarely talk about feelings or communicate expectations clearly many marriages fail and end unhappily. But this couple started out on this journey with Jesus and so I have hope.
- We went on a staff outing to a waterfall, about 45 minutes outside of town. Again with a pickup full of puking girls. :) It was a great day and what really amazed me was that for many of them it was the first time to visit this beautiful spot even though they live nearby. We brought fish and grilled it and the girls made papaya salad and it was just a nice day of fellowship.
- Dylan, my firstborn son, turned four years old on February 18th! I am so proud of this little guy, his humor, his creativity, his loving heart and joyous energy. I love watching him being such a great big brother and watching out for Elliot and Ayden. And I so enjoy having this opportunity to teach him. He is curious and loves learning and it's been so cool to discover new things with him and see how he incorporates what he is learning in daily life. I pray that he will continue to follow Jesus and will become a man after God's own heart and mighty light for many!
- We had a birthday party on the Saturday after Dylan's birthday and invited all the kids in the neighborhood. It was a fun afternoon with cake and drinks and games. I explained all the games to them and it was funny to see how they interpreted or understood my explanations and made up new games. :) Adults here rarely play with children so it's always a special treat for them.
- Ayden will be 6 months old in just a few days and has just graduated to pureed apples and other Baby food. I can't believe the little guy has been with us for half a year already. He is such a sweet boy, full of joy with an easy smile and laugh and full of curiosity, discovering the world around him. He is itching to join his big brothers in play and loves it when they come and snuggle (or wrestle) with him. He grabs everything within reach and would love nothing more than to be running around with the big boys. I'm thankful for this little bundle of joy!
- Elliot is at such a cool age now. At 2 and 4 months he is such a relaxed and easygoing fellow and very much able to express himself. It's fun to see him discover new things daily, too. Dylan is his hero and it's sweet to hear them talk with each other and just enjoy each others' company. He has a great smile that spreads right across his face from ear to ear and I'm glad he's part of our family.
- In the last few weeks and months we have been thinking a lot about our future and have made the decision to move back to the capital. It's been hard to make that decision and my heart is heavy when I think of leaving our little town and the people we have started building relationships with. Life in the capital will be very different. At the same time I am looking forward to the community we will be a part of here. So change is coming.
There are days when I feel frustrated, stuck in a rut, stuck in circumstances, helpless, hopeless and just plain annoyed but overall I am grateful for this season I am in, knowing that it is a season. I know that each day is there for a purpose, to teach me humility, love, compassion, patience and joy in spite of all circumstances. And so today, once again, I resolve to embrace this season and to be a good student, willing to learn from the Master.
- We attended the wedding of one of our local staff in January. It took us about two hours in our pickup truck, packed full of puking people (the locals are not used to traveling by car) to get to her village. She is 18 years old and her mom died three years ago. Now her father has married again, her new 'mom' is 18 years old...Very strange.
This was the first time I attended a Christian wedding here and it was partly hilarious to see how they had incorporated many of the Western aspects of the ceremony (including 'you may now kiss the bride') into the celebration.
Marriage is hard work and when I see people here make that commitment I wonder even more just what their next few days and weeks and months and years will be like. In a culture where you very rarely talk about feelings or communicate expectations clearly many marriages fail and end unhappily. But this couple started out on this journey with Jesus and so I have hope.
- We went on a staff outing to a waterfall, about 45 minutes outside of town. Again with a pickup full of puking girls. :) It was a great day and what really amazed me was that for many of them it was the first time to visit this beautiful spot even though they live nearby. We brought fish and grilled it and the girls made papaya salad and it was just a nice day of fellowship.
- Dylan, my firstborn son, turned four years old on February 18th! I am so proud of this little guy, his humor, his creativity, his loving heart and joyous energy. I love watching him being such a great big brother and watching out for Elliot and Ayden. And I so enjoy having this opportunity to teach him. He is curious and loves learning and it's been so cool to discover new things with him and see how he incorporates what he is learning in daily life. I pray that he will continue to follow Jesus and will become a man after God's own heart and mighty light for many!
- We had a birthday party on the Saturday after Dylan's birthday and invited all the kids in the neighborhood. It was a fun afternoon with cake and drinks and games. I explained all the games to them and it was funny to see how they interpreted or understood my explanations and made up new games. :) Adults here rarely play with children so it's always a special treat for them.
- Ayden will be 6 months old in just a few days and has just graduated to pureed apples and other Baby food. I can't believe the little guy has been with us for half a year already. He is such a sweet boy, full of joy with an easy smile and laugh and full of curiosity, discovering the world around him. He is itching to join his big brothers in play and loves it when they come and snuggle (or wrestle) with him. He grabs everything within reach and would love nothing more than to be running around with the big boys. I'm thankful for this little bundle of joy!
- Elliot is at such a cool age now. At 2 and 4 months he is such a relaxed and easygoing fellow and very much able to express himself. It's fun to see him discover new things daily, too. Dylan is his hero and it's sweet to hear them talk with each other and just enjoy each others' company. He has a great smile that spreads right across his face from ear to ear and I'm glad he's part of our family.
- In the last few weeks and months we have been thinking a lot about our future and have made the decision to move back to the capital. It's been hard to make that decision and my heart is heavy when I think of leaving our little town and the people we have started building relationships with. Life in the capital will be very different. At the same time I am looking forward to the community we will be a part of here. So change is coming.
There are days when I feel frustrated, stuck in a rut, stuck in circumstances, helpless, hopeless and just plain annoyed but overall I am grateful for this season I am in, knowing that it is a season. I know that each day is there for a purpose, to teach me humility, love, compassion, patience and joy in spite of all circumstances. And so today, once again, I resolve to embrace this season and to be a good student, willing to learn from the Master.
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