Valentine's Day 2010

I have one thing to say about Valentine's Day: Life is too short to live with regret and what-ifs. Sure, I'm not married or even close to it, and I still choose to celebrate this holiday. Valentine's Day has always been one of my favorites - who can resist chocolate and roses?? Not me!!! I love celebrating the love of my favorite couples and their example to me.


With all that in mind, a sort-of last minute trip to New York City took place. In all, there were nine of us single girls who left Friday morning for the city - for a fabulous weekend of a Broadway show, good food, lots of laughing and memories, and shopping. :) 


We watched "The Miracle Worker" - which though a small production, was very, very good. We got all dressed up, went out to dinner, got 'lost' on the subway, stayed up late talking, and walked all over the city on Saturday siteseeing and shopping. 


(The only picture I took all weekend was of my gyro lunch on Saturday. But Becky posted some pictures here.)


I had so much fun this weekend. I love big cities and their excitement, especially when you can wander around and do whatever strikes you as fun instead of having to stick to a schedule. It was fun to have Anne along as well - a bit of a last single-girl fling since she is 'deserting' us this summer to join the ranks of the married. (Heehee...you know I had to work that in!)


It was a certainly a lot more fun than sitting at home and feeling sorry for myself! When I got home, there were a dozen roses waiting for me from my Dad and one of my girls in Sunday School gave me a bag of homeade chocolate-covered pretzels. So I still got my roses and chocolate! ;o)

A Snowy Night

From last week's journal, and in honor of the snowfall tonight:

Well, I couldn't help myself.

While I was holed up one evening, the snow came. I didn't even realize it until I let the dog outside, and was surprised at the sight of a white lawn before me. I had just gotten out of the shower, so I reveled in the beautiful world as best I could from inside my warm window.

But then, around midnight, I wanted to see. I stuck my head out the window, hoping that a breath of the snow-fresh air and the sound of the stillness would be enough. But it wasn't. And that was when I couldn't help myself.

I pulled layers over my pajamas - a couple pairs of pants, a long skirt, a couple sweaters, scarf, socks, mittens, hat, hood, boots, and coat. Then out I went, as silent as a mouse, trying not to wake my sleeping house.

It's a magical world - a snowy night like this. I love a lot of things about snow. I like the cold, I like the white, I like the cleanness and the quietness. But while that is all well and good during a bright day, at night it takes on another dimension. At night, the clouds hang low and between the clouds and the snow, the light is reflected and refracted a hundred times over, until it seems almost as bright as day. Every light that happens to be shining, even just the moonlight somewhere above the clouds, dances over the snow like a million glittering stars. I just want to dance and twirl in it - in my lawn of diamonds. And the quietness, the stillness. It is as if the entire world has stopped, breathless, to watch the snow fall from the sky.

I turn my face upwards and close my eyes tightly, feeling the icy bits kissing my face and  brushing past me to the ground. I lay on the ground and look at the sky, look at the snow falling, and feel so small and insignificant in this great, grand world God has made. I listen to the stillness, the quietness. The only noise that breaks the silence is the water flowing in the creek behind our house. Always flowing, never stopping. Though mostly frozen over the surface, there are still openings to the rushing water underneath, throwing its babbling laughter through the holes so that everyone knows the creek still lives on.

The trees stand like tall sentries, dark and straight against the orange sky, each branch and twig outlined in shining diamonds. The ground is flat and continuous - one unbroken slate of beautiful white. Even things like grills and cars, toys and bikes left out become things of beauty when covered with snow.

So this is why I go out, why I run the risk of waking others up, why I get all dressed up to go in the cold - even in the middle of the night. It's this moment that I will remember for the next year, until the next snow fall.

Welcome Home!

You know those friends who you can not see for months and months, but then when you see them again, it's like you were never apart? I have a couple like that. We can talk on and on about things far and near, and you would never guess it was the first time we spoke in months or even years.

My blog has always been that sort of friend for me. I can leave it lonely and neglected for weeks...and then come back and jump right in. In this particular case, I can do nothing but throw a couple YouTube videos at it for almost a month, and then saunter back as if nothing has happened. :)

This week promises to be just as busy as the last, but I feel like I'm ready to start writing again. In a lot of ways, it seemed like my world was turned upside down with our return to the States. I wouldn't say it is necessarily busier here than it was in Botswana, but it is a different kind of busy. It is a busy that is less exhausting and draining on one hand, but involves much more thinking and multitasking. If that doesn't make any sense, don't worry; it confuses me too.

So I gave this poor blog a bit of TLC tonight, and though I don't want to make a promise I can't keep, I do have some things lined up to post on later this week.

I'm looking forward to this weekend! I have some special plans with some friends. Let's just say it involves a few girls who are also single, a night in New York City, and a premiere. We are a little psyched about it, and let's just hope we make it home in one piece. :)

A Love Story

MY love story...

   Just a poor, beggar girl I am, deserving of nothing. He is so great and so far above me, like a Grand Prince over all - fine, educated, rich, handsome, kind. So far above me - wretched, dirty, stubborn, ugly, stupid me. "What about your self-image?" you might say. And this is my self-image - that I am a dog, that I am a sinner, and that I was incurable.
      Continue reading...

I Cannot Tell

One thing I missed while in Africa was singing. I'm happy to be back where we do a lot of singing...all services, all week! Here's a special I did with three of my friends. Keep in mind it sounded a whole lot better in person. ;) Lyrics below.

VERSE 1

I cannot tell why He, Whom angels worship

Should set His love upon the sons of men,

Or how His heart upon the cross was broken,

The crown of pain to three and thirty years.

But this I know, He heals the broken hearted,

And stays our sin, and calms our lurking fear;

And lifts the burden from the heavy laden,

For yet the Saviour, Saviour of the world is here.

VERSE 2

I cannot tell how He will win the nations,

How He will claim His Gospel heritage;

How satisfy the needs and aspirations

Of east and west, of sinner and of sage.

But this I know, that I shall see His glory,

When He shall reap the harvest He has sown;

And some glad day, the skies will thrill with rapture,

When He, the Saviour, Saviour of the world is come.

TAG

But this I know, His sun shall shine in splendour,

And myriad, myriad human voices sing,

And earth to heav’n, and heav’n to earth will answer,

At last the Saviour, Saviour of the world is King!

Why do craft supplies always multiply?

I've been cleaning out. Again.

It's like a compulsive disease that I have. I feel like I am always cleaning out, getting rid of, purging...and yet, I still seem to gain more stuff.

It could be the clothes. I like having a small selection of clothing - versatile wear for any season. And yet, I like changes in clothing often. I'm not the type of person that wears the same items of clothing over and over and over for years until they wear out. Maybe that is a fault of mine, but I prefer to view it as a ...frugal freshness. (Like that? I just made it up!) I buy most of my clothes second hand and rather cheaply anyway, so why not give them away when I am tired of wearing them and buy something else cheap and cute?

The real reason for this post, and you may have already guessed this, is that I have torn my room apart and I'm somewhat avoiding putting it back together. This has actually been a work in progress since we arrived last Wednesday, and I think I am at the final stretch. If only I could finish the last few shelves - but therein lies the problem, because they are the craft shelves. They house everything from my fabric and yarn for sewing and knitting, to paper and stationery, to candles and picture frames. It's a monster, and I'm not exactly sure how to control it.

There are two sides of me that war when it comes to cleaning out. There is the side that likes simplicity and neatness, freshness and uncluttered spaces. Then there is the side that enjoys stashing, or pack ratting. When something comes up - whether it be a sewing emergency or a last minute Sunday school lesson - I enjoy knowing that I have a stash of 'stuff' that will cover any need. I like reusing and recycling items for other purposes, but often that means that you have to store a lot of junk until the inspiration hits. And I'm not quite sure I want to deal with the whole storing of junk thing.

You can see that I am just putting it off. I've been successful in cleaning out my clothes closet, my bathroom stuff, and even my files - yet this last area remains to be conquered, and presently looks like it puked on my library floor. There are some good things that come out of avoidance - Monday night I made a new curtain and three new throw pillows for my couch. This post has served a good diversionary, and I just remembered a birthday present I have to make. There is hope for the evening yet. :)

So here is your question for the evening. Why do craft supplies always multiply? Does this happen to anyone else? I have a nice, contained area for craft supplies - neatly organized and labeled. Give it a week, two weeks tops, and it looks like all the ribbons and markers and papers had little babies and everything is a wreck. Am I the only one who can't get this area under control?

Please, don't kill me.

Be sure to check out the comments on the second video. I haven't read all the way through them yet, but there's some interesting stuff!

On Traveling and Being Home

Swimming one day...snow the next. Goodbyes in the airport, never fun, made harder by a nephew growing up to understand a bit more of what goodbyes mean. Long airplane ride...hard time getting comfortable. Long layover in Georgia...Starbucks received my business after 3 months. Strange seeing my breath in the winter air.

Home to our little airport to find my nieces and nephew, ready to wrap their arms around our necks and wake us up with their enthusiasm. A stuck airplane door kept the luggage hostage, time ticking with church starting in minutes. Home for quick showers and a bite to eat. (Sentimental me had a moment to tear up when entering the familiar abode.) Then home to church, and friends, and Hello! and How was it? and trying to mumble thoughtful responses, when for the life of me I could hardly get a thought to work.

Woke this morning to a splitting headache, a blessed feeling of being rested, a frigid room, and snow in our yard (not fresh, but still pretty!). Took a shower with the hottest water I could get, the steam filling the bathroom and making it hard to see. Pulled on my comfy yellow sweater and thick jean skirt that's frayed at all the edges, SmartWool socks and slippers, then set about the business of unpacking. How strange it is to be pulling flip-flops and swimsuits from the bag! How far away that sunbathed world already seems...

Glad to be home here, but missing my home there. Glad to have baby arms here and conversations laden with questions from growing minds so intrigued about the far away world of Africa, but so sad to have left some others behind. Glad to be back in a world of winter, snow and ice, but really wishing I could go for a quick dip in the pool right now!

What I've Been Up To

I've started several posts this week, but none of them have made it to publishing status. :) We've done some traveling and sight-seeing, we've made lots of dessert and coffee, we've had lots of conversations, we've picked lots of litchis, and we've played a lot of Legos. We've kissed the baby a lot, and generally just spent a lot of time on holiday.

Lots of memories. Lots of love. Lots of food.

It's almost time to go. I'm more ready to come home now than I was when we first left Botswana. I think I needed a bit of time to think some things through and process everything that happened there. Now that our departure is drawing nearer, I'm finding myself excited about getting home (that word is so relative anymore) in PA and back into the schedule of things there. But for now, I'm just enjoying the last couple days...

On the Zipline

Saturday was an exciting day! My apologies if you've already seen these pictures and videos, or if you've already heard the story. :)

When we visited Tzaneen a few weeks ago, we saw a sign for "Magoebaskloof Canopy Tours." It was near George's Valley, a beautiful valley you drive through before you get to Tzaneen. We assumed, from the name, that it was some sort of paragliding operation and the guys talked about checking it out. Upon further checking, however, we found out that the canopy tour is done with a zipline!

Now, some of you may remember a sort of pathetic story involving me and a zipline back at summer camp. As much as that scared/scarred me, I was determined to get over my fear, and the best way to do that was to what? Of course! Go on a series of 11 ziplines through a river gorge in a country inhabited by poisonous snakes and spiders. Good thinking. :)

There were six of us in all: me, my dad, two of my brothers, Eric (on the tail end of his missions trip here), and my 5-year old nephew.

I'll just be perfectly honest - my stomach was in knots the whole day just thinking about it. But as much as I wanted to chicken out, I knew I would be okay once I got started and if I did decide not to go, I would be disappointed later that I didn't. So I forced myself to go. (Also, my nephew was quite pumped up about going, and as long as he wasn't scared, I couldn't be!)

The tour guide did an excellent job! There was a brief session where he explained what all the equipment was and told how everything would work. Then we got suited up...

...and everyone had an opportunity to try the 'baby slide' - a short little zipline relatively close to the ground. This allowed the guides to help us get the right technique, and to help people like me see there is nothing to be scared about.

Then it was time to go! I was much relieved after the instructions and the baby slide, but still a bit nervous. Once I got past the first 'real' slide, though, I was just fine. AND I was so glad that I forced myself to go (like I knew I would be!). I had a lot of fun and I definitely recommend it to anyone in the area.

The scenery was beautiful. We were over the Letaba River the entire way, and went over several waterfalls and deep pools. Most of the platforms between the slides were bolted right into the side of the cliff, which towered high above us and dropped off way below. We always had to be hooked onto something, because the platforms were often just a couple feet wide, with quite a drop below.

The slides got longer and longer, and we all got better and better. :) All too soon...it was over...

Here is a video clip of yours truly zipping on one of the lines. :) We uploaded six videos in all (one of each of us) so you can click through to YouTube if you wish to see the rest.