St. Lucia's Day

Happy St. Lucia's Day!  Brought to us by Sarah, who woke up early to prepare fresh scones and honey butter for breakfast in bed this morning.

Honiara Woman's Daybook

For today...Monday, December 12

Outside my window...morning sunshine about to overtake the clothesline

I am thankful for...my fridge.  It is a luxury to have one, and I am so, very grateful.

I am praying for...a friend leaving PNG today and heading back to the States, as we say here "go finish"

I am going...to get some snail mail ready.  I will make the time.  I must!

I am reading..."Michelangelo and the Pope's Ceiling" by Ross King, some grownup reading to complement our studies in history

I am hoping...to put a major dent in village shopping this week.  Honiara will begin to shut down next week for Christmas, and it will stay shut down until after New Year's Day.

I am hearing...the washing machine (what a glorious sound!), the morning birds, the funny way the bathroom sink drains quite loudly right by our bedroom window

I am remembering...my brother.  He turns 30 today back in Georgia.  And I used to change his diapers.

From the learning rooms...Christopher Columbus, Botticelli, Medici family, can you tell we are in the early Renaissance and LOVING it!

From the kitchen...breakfast burritos, leftovers, and stir fry (got to use up those green beans wilting in the fridge)

Around the house...coloring pages of great explorers adorn the walls, Christmas cookies are piling up on the cabinet and dough is accumulating in the fridge, including a fabulous new recipe we found in a ten year old magazine left in our Marulaon house by the previous owners

Something I want to remember...my kids singing Christmas carols as they work together to clean up the kitchen.  Their voices blend together so well.

On my mind...four and a half months till furlough

Noticing that...my lower back, really, REALLY hurts.  Time to call in the ibuprofen and a back massage from my husband.

Pondering these words...

"Arise, and shine with borrow'd rays,

Bright in reflected lustre shine,

Thy Light is come, the Sun of grace

Appears in majesty divine..."

--Charles Wesley

...we do not generate light from anything we are or do.  In fact, we can neither arise nor shine apart from God's previous action on our behalf.  Rather, we shine with the luster of "borrowed rays."  Because the Light has come, we are able to glow with a glory that is not our own.  We reflect back to God what God offers to us as a gift.  --Paul Wesley Chilcote

One of my favorite things...snuggling with my kids early in the morning, especially if the ceiling fan is on and we can burrow underneath the covers

A few plans for the rest of the week...make lots of Christmas cookies to take to the hospital, send cargo out Tuesday to our friends who just went to the village, host a birthday supper Thursday night for a SITAG friend and her family

Here is a picture thought I am sharing...my little brother's birthday 27 years ago (I love that yellow checked wallpaper we had in the breakfast room!)

Motu Fun

We were honored to celebrate with Naomi and her dad this weekend.  His village brother's daughter graduated from Solomon Islands College of Higher Education (SICHE). 

So, we helped them throw a party!

Aaron squeezed the milk from twelve coconuts.  He has a reputation in Marulaon for producing the finest rumit (thick coconut cream).

We peeled the potatoes and layered the pumpkin leaves on top while the coconut cream was boiling.

Then I spooned the hot coconut cream on top.

And we settled in for some Skip-Bo while we waited for the food to cook.

 My stomach was growling as we took off the stones and carried the food up to the house.

Now the potatoes and pumpkin greens had a nice crispy layer on top.  This has to be one of my very favorite foods in the Solomons!

Remember the Russells' crabs we bought?  They were yummy, too.

We had so much fun celebrating with our new friends.  Thanks for inviting us!

Honiara's Central Market

We love Honiara's Central Market!  Bought a couple of gorgeous fish to motu...

while enjoying December's bounty of watermelon and pineapple.

I always look for people from the Russells in the shellfish section, and I wasn't disappointed today!  This woman is from Malaita, but she married a Lavukalen and moved to Alokon in the Central Russells.

I bought a couple of coconut crabs from her, but I shied away from these fuzzy little critters. 

Goodbyes

Part of our life here is constant goodbyes.  Either we are leaving or our friends are leaving.

Aaron went down with a couple of our friends to save seats on the boat at 5:30 this morning, and they got great seats (it helps when you are the first one on the boat!).

The rest of us came down a little bit later and hugged and cried.  This time, our friends will have a 2 1/2 hour ride on the Express, then about three hours in a motor canoe before they get to their village.  They usually have a long, overnight trip on a boat.  We'll put more cargo (with some extra goodies) on a ship bound for their village Tuesday night.

As we watched the boat pull out, I asked a veteran missionary if it ever got easier to say goodbye.  Her husband quickly answered, "You don't want it to get any easier."  Wise words.

If you look closely, you can see them waving goodbye!

This morning...

The house is quiet with the sounds of morning...the breeze changing the shadows as the sunlight filters through the leaves, the kids starting school early while the cinnamon rolls rise, the hum of the dehydrator, the thump of the dog scratching on the porch.  I'm so thankful for "normal" days that line up like pearls, often alternating with busy days (or "adventures" as Sarah likes to call them).  So far, today is not an adventure...

Last night, we enjoyed a new recipe from my all-time favorite cookbook, you guessed it, "The Great Scandinavian Baking Book".  The Finnish Onion Pie was a big hit at our house!

Pineapples

Once again, it's time to dehydrate for our next trip to Marulaon.

Our house smells so good right now!  No candle could ever duplicate this fragrance.

S'mores

A big thanks to my mom, who sent enough ingredients for all of SITAG to have a s'mores party!

Aaron got high marks for his fire building skills from Patson.  We had so much fun introducing our national friends to the wonders of s'mores. 

One of the girls compared s'mores to ice cream, the sweetest treat they know!

Honiara Woman's Daybook

For Today...Monday, December 5

Outside my window...a dog on the porch waiting for me to go exercise and a glassy ocean, we've had a couple weeks of bright sunshine and calm seas, great for sea travel

I am thankful for...our friends and family who work so hard to stay in touch across the miles

I am praying for...friends going back to the village on Friday:  calm seas and good transitions

I am going...to be writing lots of e-mails about furlough, scheduling churches and housing.  If you or your church is interested, please let us know ASAP.

I am reading..."Re-Entry:  Making the Transition from Missions to Life at Home" by Peter Jordan, it likens coming back on furlough to the re-entry of the space shuttle with all of the heat and stress involved

I am hoping...to make reservations at an Arkansas State Park for Aaron and me to have several days in May to review our time overseas and plan for our time in the States.  Yay for grandparents!

I am hearing...kids practicing piano

I am remembering...going Christmas tree shopping as a child.  The best trees were the ones we had to tie to the stair rail because they were so big!

From the learning rooms...a quick glance at Africa, India, and Southeast Asia in the Middle Ages; trucking steadily along in math, typing, etc.

From the kitchen...veggie beef stew in the slow cooker so it can cook while Aaron and I meet with the director and his wife.  I love the way the house smells when the slow cooker is going!

Around the house...ten pineapples sitting on the school table waiting to be cut up for the dehydrator, Katherine's handy wreath on the front door

Something I want to remember...Katherine's sweet hands and fingers:  making her Christmas "holly" wreath, stroking my face when we snuggle, helping me make cinnamon rolls

On my mind...finishing well and planning well for furlough.  These two things are coloring everything we do right now.  The colors just change - today, I think it's green.

Noticing that...the sun rises so VERY early here - by 5 o'clock the horizon is bright and the heat is building

Pondering these words..."Like the astronaut guiding his craft back into the earth's atmosphere, returning missionaries must negotitate many potential hazards.  They too must cover dangerous territory; dangerous in terms of the emotional, spiritual, and relational damage that can occur if the process is not handled correctly."  --Peter Jordan

One of my favorite things...Skype, I know I've said it before, but there's nothing like sitting down and typing in real time and occasionally seeing somebody you love who lives very far away

A few plans for the rest of the week...our village debrief this afternoon, a s'mores party tomorrow night, lots of AC meetings for Aaron, dehydrating lots of pinapple on Wednesday, company Thursday night, a motu on Friday with Naomi, and lots of work toward scheduling furlough

Here is a picture thought I am sharing...some "school pictures" (thanks, Naomi!)

Sweet Sabbath

A Mom Moment, making me thankful, & brought to you by my four-year-old:

Overheard at lunch - "Mama, this soup smells like stinky underpits!" (It did have a lot of onions in it.)

At the supper table - "Mama, I'm sorry I was rude about the soup at lunch.  Will you please forgive me?"

"Don't you see that children are God's best gift?  The fruit of the womb his generous legacy?"  Psalm 127:3 (The Message)

SITAG Christmas Party

We are so thankful for the many parts of our SITAG family that help make Bible translation possible in the Solomon Islands!

Saturday morning

Several of the SITAG kids got special permission to participate in a Craft Show/Bake Sale in downtown Honiara this morning.  Sarah, Benjamin, and Olivia all made food & crafts to contribute.

I think it was more work than they anticipated, but Sarah really interacted with the Solomon Islanders who came by.  It was fun to see their faces when she engaged them in Pijin!

Sarah's amazing mocha fudge

Be Careful What You Pray For!

Last night, we enjoyed eating and playing games with three of our Aussie colleagues.  Among them, they have extensive experience in Bible translation in Australia, PNG, and the Philippines, and it's always fun to hear their stories.  Plus, they make great adopted grandparents!

When today began, I knew I was going to be busy.  In addition to teaching the kids, I needed to go shopping for Saturday's SITAG (Solomon Island Translation Advisory Group) Christmas party, wash some sheets, get the ingredients for supper into the slow cooker, and head to a meeting at 3 o'clock about securing some funding for the Sabers.  I frequently tell the kids that God always gives us enough time to accomplish everything He has in store for us. 

Just this morning, I had been praying that more Lavukal would come by SITAG so we could continue to build relationships with them and also continue to refine the Bible stories.  As I was chopping pumpkin and thawing chicken belatedly in an attempt to get supper cooking before my meeting, a stranger approached the door and asked for Aaron.  We visited on the porch, and I soon learned that he was from Losiolen (the village where Aaron most recently held a Translation Principles workshop) while I assured him that Aaron would be home any minute.  I amazed him when I asked, "Laffi lomisa ngoliki?" (Do you want cold water?)  The first time I meet anybody from the Russells, and they hear one of my very few memorized phrases, they are always flabergasted.  It still makes me feel good, even though I know my Lavukaleve is incredibly limited.

Anyway, this man, whose name was also Aaron, showed GREAT interest in helping me revise the creation story.  As the sun slowly sank and flooded the porch with light, he and I scooted farther and farther over to escape the heat, but he never wavered in tackling some of the hard issues.  The Lavukal don't have a word for "animal", which created a problem when we were trying to craft the sixth day.  So, Aaron from Losiolen came up with "mina tutula ovoloria la laketei ngoa" (which very roughly translates into all the things that God made that had life).  Finally, my Aaron came home, and I went down to apologize for missing my meeting.  When I came back up, the two Aarons were finishing their conversation, and I was shocked to hear Aaron from Losiolen ask me if he could finish the creation story!  I was sure I had bored him to tears, but he really wanted to finish reading through the story.  Whoohoo!  He even expressed interest in coming and helping some more when we return to Marulaon.

Supper was very late tonight, but it has been a great day!  I'm so thankful that God answers our prayers.