This weekend, we celebrate twelve years of serving in the Solomon Islands.  The mirror tells me a lot has changed since I limped off the plane.  I've finally started using a wrinkle cream, and Katherine has reminded me to make sure I put it on my forehead.

Twelve years ago, just before we set foot on the plane that would bring us to the Solomon Islands

I just added "Marriage in the Middle" to my Kindle, since I'm almost finished with "When Did Everybody Else Get So Old?".  And I giggled when I read the author's observation that when we hit midlife, we start reaching for "superfoods" like quinoa.  The Solomon Islands has just started carrying a fairly reliable supply of quinoa, and our family has discovered some recipes that we really enjoy when we're in town...like this quinoa pear breakfast bake and this fabulous ginger chicken quinoa stew.

Maybe it's because we're getting ready to launch our third child in just a few months.  I'm reminded to number my days well as I read Psalm 90 and as I listen to songs like Legacy.  "I want to leave a legacy.  How will they remember me?  Did I choose to love?  Did I point to you enough to make a mark on things?"  I still have "Aging With Grace: Flourishing in an Anti-Aging Culture" and "Lost in the Middle: Midlife and the Grace of God" on my wish list to read soon.

Maybe it's because we only have a few months left in our current term, and even those months are filled with uncertainty.  The Solomon Islands state of public emergency has been extended until March 24, so we will be depending on the handful of sporadic government sponsored flights to leave the country.  Our hope is to have the Sermon on the Mount consultant checked before we leave, but with such an unpredictable departure date, we are holding plans very loosely.

In my Bible reading challenge this morning, I read Psalm 59, and it was exactly what I needed:

"But I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble.  O my Strength, I sing praise to you; you, O God, are my fortress, my loving God."  Psalm 59:16-17