It's My Blogiversary

It was exactly one year ago today that I set up this blog. I've gone back and read through it for a little perspective on my first year here. What a wild ride! And how faithful God has been to us. I am tired but grateful. And I know that

Even youths shall faint and grow weary, and young men shall fall exhausted, but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:30-31 ESV

Fixed Point

Our trip back home involved copious amounts of barf. I'm sorry to have had to write it out, but there it is. It was a difficult and despair-inducing trip up the mountain. Winding around and around in our taxi, we kept hoping that we were almost there. And we never were. Finally, our driver said in Hindi, "Keep your eyes forward and don't look side-to-side. Then you'll be ok." And it worked. At that moment I couldn't help but make the application in my spiritual life as well. I've been tempted to look side-to-side these days and it has made me nauseous. But if I keep my eyes forward--on the Fixed Point who loves me--then I'll make it.

Hot Town, Summer in the City

Today was our last day in the capitol before returning home tomorrow morning. We wanted to do something fun for the kids, so after visiting a friend and enjoying Lebanese lamb rolls, hummus, and pitas for lunch, we took the kids to the movies. We bought tickets to see How to Train Your Dragon and purchased grown-up sized soft drinks for every member of the family.

The movie theater was nicer than many we've been to in the States, and when the lights dimmed the kids wiggled in anticipation. We all donned our 3D glasses and enjoyed an in-your-face adventure, all from our cushy seats in the air conditioning. Aahhhh...

A great way to close out a very busy and very hot week. And tomorrow, it's back on the road again.

Oops, He Did It Again

Our middle son, C, is positively infamous for saying things he ought not say. Furthermore, he doesn't realize that he's saying inappropriate things.

The other thing is, he gets a lot of attention from Indians because of his light skin and blond hair, and he resents it. Today a man thumped him good-naturedly on the head and I guess it kind-of stung because the following came out of his mouth:

C: Why do they do that to me, Mom? I hate it. Why can't they do it to Ivan?

Me: Well, I think you know why...

C: Is it because of my blond hair? He only has brown hair.

Me: Yes, I think that's it.

C: Or is it because I'm cuter? I mean, I haven't lost any of my baby teeth yet so my teeth look good. Ivan has lost a lot of teeth and his grown-up teeth are...a little out of style...

Me: I know you don't understand this, C, but you have suddenly improved my day.

Test

Just a quick announcement to let you know that J has reached 'Advanced' on his test which means he has completed the level he needed. We are beyond grateful. Thank you for the prayers. All the time away from him has been more than worth it!

Golden

We have water, folks. It came on this morning, on the very day that J was to arrive. We needed it so badly for many reasons, not the least of which is that we are traveling to Delhi tomorrow and need to have clean clothes to pack. And no water=no laundry.

So this morning we all took showers, filled buckets, washed two loads of clothes...I have never been more appreciative of flushing toilets in my life. So J is home and resting. The kids are happy and docile, basking in the glow of a reunited family. D went to stay with friends while we are in the city. At this exact moment everything is golden.

I am just so thankful.

A Review

While Daddy was gone we experienced:

• water shortages every day
• unusual power outages morning, noon, and night
• a cockroach-infested master bedroom
• a rat in our kitchen--a rat that jumps and frollicks and isn't dead to date...
• a break-out of hives
• emotional drama (!)
• a funeral
• moths
• sleeplessness

But we also had:

• good Mommy/kid talks
• hot meals from our landladies
• moments of serenity in the midst of chaos
• a sense of teamwork
• popcorn/movie nights
• many chances to trust that He is who He says He is
• opportunities to witness unexpected grace
• oh yeah, and J rocked his test!

They were not easy, these past two weeks. I do not wish to repeat them for a long time (or ever). But they went by pretty fast and we survived. The Lord is good, and J comes home tomorrow morning. Thank you for your prayers.

p.s. He'll get his language exam results sometime this week and I will let you all know!

Down to the Wire

Well, folks, we're down to the last day...which is to say that tomorrow morning (tonight for you), J will take his language exam. After that, he'll check out of the hotel, settle up accounts, and board the night train to come back to us. He'll be back in the city on Saturday morning (Friday night for you). We'll spend a day together resting, doing laundry, and packing because we have to turn around on Sunday morning and head to Delhi for a meeting.

Needless to say, our kids are excited about seeing Daddy again, and I am ready to have a husband once more. Delhi will be a time for business, but then we'll also take time to enjoy American food, visits with friends, and getting in some quality family time. I've heard they have an awesome English theater with reclining seats (like flying first class, but at the movies). There's really no question that I'll be purchasing my ticket.

Thursday night: please pray. More later!

D's Homecoming

This morning D came back home. The funeral was sweet and people were comforted. D was tired but safe when she returned. We had a hot meal waiting for her, and then she was able to sleep a bit. I admit that I crashed after lunch, too, while my kids watched E.T. The power stayed on so I was able to sleep so hard that I didn't even dream.

This afternoon I was able to talk with J and he says that he can feel the prayer and support of our friends and that he thinks he'll do well on his test. He decided to take it on Friday morning (Thursday night for you all in the US). If you'll lift him up then we'd appreciate it.

It Would Still Be True

Last night we got the news that one of the aunties who helped to raise D had passed away. Of course, D had to attend the funeral, which happened today. That meant that late last night, D and I were scrambling to get together a bag for her with clothes, extra cash, a water bottle, and then there were phone calls to make...

It also meant that at five o'clock this morning, D and I were on our porch hugging and praying for her safety. She would have to walk alone to the bus stand in the near-dark, buy a ticket, and then change buses in another city. I told her she'd be fine. I wasn't sure.

And then it meant that the kids and I are alone today. The sad part is, before D left I had to get her to show me how to light our gas stove without blowing the apartment up. That's how little cooking I do. I was already making plans in my head to hard boil eggs, slice cheese, get out the peanut butter, cereal and popcorn...

Imagine my relief when our landladies sent up a hot Indian lunch for us and have promised dal and rice for dinner tonight. So no "cooking" for me! D is supposed to return at the crack of dawn tomorrow morning, which means I'll be up with the birds again. I'm thankful to have heard that she made it to her destination safely and I'm thrilled she'll back so soon.

The truth is, though, even though I've been blessed with help during D's absence I am only vaguely grateful--like finding my wallet before I realized I had lost it. My kids and I have cried today. I'm beyond exhausted. And yet, I know without a shadow of a doubt that the Lord is faithful. And even if today had completely fallen apart that would still be true.

But it didn't fall apart. We had water for a long time and the electricity only went out for the normal two hours in the afternoon. And that is a mercy.

So thank you for praying. J seems to be doing great with his Hindi studies and we are making it. I miss him, though, and we are all ready for him to come home. Which will be on Saturday morning, incidentally. Oh! And he takes his test on Thursday afternoon, which will be Thursday morning for you all. Will you remember him in prayer then? Love to all.

I Love D.

J usually makes pancakes on Saturday morning. Since he isn't here, D woke up early and made them and we all sat down to our usual weekend breakfast--minus Daddy, of course. D has been an immense help to me. Besides making our meals and helping me around the house, she has watched the kids while I make time in the day to talk with my landladies. Without her, being in a foreign country for two weeks without my husband would be much harder. Even though it hasn't exactly been easy this last week (what with missing Daddy, constant power outages and water shortages), it has been doable largely because of D. I consider her a gift.

Itna Mooshkil Hai

Well, I would have blogged last night, but our electricity was out for a big portion of the evening. And no power=no internet. Our oldest son couldn't sleep last night and was crying because he misses his dad so much. I've actually never seen a kid love his dad more than our oldest loves his. So I tried to comfort him, and in the end we called Daddy. By the end of the conversation he felt better and crawled into bed.

I decided that it was time for me to sleep too, so I went to bed. At a little after midnight all the lights came back on. I was glad, of course, but naturally a little startled too. Needless to say, we've been dragging at our house today.

I still went downstairs for a conversation with my landladies this afternoon but it was not a good Hindi day, and at one point I said, "I'm sorry, but my Hindi is terrible today. I can't think straight!" They were gracious as usual, but when I came back upstairs I wasn't exactly thrilled that they had invited us back downstairs in the evening. I really just want to sleep. Instead, I will be back down after supper.

On a good note, J seems to be getting a lot out of his time of intense Hindi study. And no matter what we're grumping through here, just knowing that makes things much easier...

Day Two

Today was a roller coaster ride. We had sufficient water for the day (we're getting good at storing it) and that should have improved my mood. But it didn't. I was cranky and tired today. I may or may not have snipped at my almost six-year-old for not counting by 2's fast enough during math...

But then I talked to J and he reminded me of everything I already know but often forget. I love that man and I simply do not deserve him. He is a gift from the Lord. He had a fantastic and productive Hindi day. So our crankiness and cabin fever is worth it.

Day One Without Daddy

We had a successful first day without our Daddy. In spite of the fact that we had no water in the apartment last night and could not flush our toilets or take showers, we weren't too peeved. In the morning, G came sneaking into my room (too early) and whispered, "I flushed the toilet so there must be water!" Sure enough, there was.

I grabbed every bucket we own and filled them immediately--along with every water bottle. We knew that the water would be cut off again in the afternoon, and it was. It's just that time of year here. I hurried the kids to the shower and we started a load of laundry. All before I would normally have been coherent. I just didn't want to take any chances on the kids going to bed dirty again.

Then my landlady came up this morning and told me that she'd ask me every day if I needed anything from the market and that she'd have her 'man' get it for me if I indicated that I did. I'm humbled by how much these people shower love on us.

Finally, we had a good school day, which is always nice for both the kids and me. And then! We received a wonderful package from our sweet friends in Portugal. It had microwave popcorn in it, a movie, and fun stuff from 'The Office.' What a treat. The kids and I are going to relax this afternoon, eat popcorn, and watch a movie together. One day down, 13 more to go...

Thank you, Lord, for a good day.

Here We Go Again...

J will be traveling to another city (eight hours away) to study Hindi like a crazy person for two weeks. The rest of us will remain here. For two weeks. By ourselves.

But we're going to be fine. We have our landlords--an ever present force in our lives--and we have sweet D. Would you pray, though, that J will rock his test? That this time he spends away from us will result in an excellent evaluation? That we'll do more than survive when he's away?

He doesn't really want to go, but we both know he needs to. If he does well it will impact whether we're allowed to come back to the States in June for a visit with family.

Anyways, thanks.

McDonald's

Dolly and I got into a discussion the other day about Americans and how fat they are. She asked me why this is. I gave her the usual pat answers:

Dolly (in Hindi): I was wondering if Americans eat junk food often.

Me: Yes, they do. And they don't exercise enough.

Dolly: I see...

Me: You know, like, they eat at McDonald's too much.

Dolly: Wait. McDonald's is even in America?

Me: Um, yes. Yes, it is.

Compliment

A teenage boy to our yellow-haired middle son:

"You have cute hairs."

Uh...th...anks.

One for the Books

We had a fantastic day today. We

1. took D to get her eyes checked and bought glasses for her. We did it all in Hindi and understood the eccentric eye doctor, though he talked like the Micro Machines guy.
   
2. visited dear friends and our kids played cricket with the neighborhood kids for the first time.
3. gave food to a beggar woman, knelt and talked to her in Hindi, and then saw her later in the bazaar. Had the pleasure of having her wave at me and smile. Saw her yet again and got to treat her like a human one more time. I'm learning that love is in the little things.
4. Ate at a great restaurant and sat next to two Dutch guys. Felt more at home with Indians than with them! Ha!
   
5. rode on a bicycle rickshaw two times with the kids and had our rickshaw drivers get into a little race with one another. The kids were overjoyed.
   
6. spoke a ton of Hindi and finally felt a little bit at home...

And tonight, we will eat popcorn and watch the 1967 classic musical Camelot. We downloaded it off i-Tunes and it's a reward for our oldest son because he just finished reading about King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table.

This day was one for the books...

Some Things Never Change

It was a year ago that we boarded a plane to come to India. So much has changed since then. We've changed, our perspective, our idea of what the good life is isn't what it used to be...

But God hasn't changed. And for that, and so many other things, we are grateful.

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. His mercies never come to an end. They are new every morning.

The Best Textbook

I've been learning Hindi through stories these days. I read them, make notes, and then Dolly helps me translate them and learn new vocabulary. I'm reading out of a fourth grade primer and it's full of lessons. Imagine my surprise when I turned the page for tomorrow's lesson and discovered the story of the woman caught in adultery and Jesus' response to her.

So tomorrow I'll be learning about his compassion, grace, love, and otherness--in Hindi. Should open the doors for a very interesting conversation with my landlady. Would you pray?

Happy Easter

Hallelujah

He is risen.

A Good Friday...

I am doing better these days. Thanks to everyone who wrote and prayed. The kids started feeling a little yucky yesterday but since they are bugging each other and laughing I'm choosing to believe that they'll make it.

Today is Good Friday and today we remember what He did for us so that we might live.

For he grew up before him like a young plant,
and like a root out of dry ground;
he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,
and no beauty that we should desire him.
He was despised and rejected by men;
a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief;
and as one from whom men hide their faces
he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Surely he has borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken,
smitten by God, and afflicted.
But he was wounded for our
transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that
brought us peace,
and with his stripes we are healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned--every one--to his own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.
Isaiah 53:2-6