I was out in the yard working yesterday when one of our hens laid an egg.  If you are city folks, you probably wonder how I know that she laid her egg.  Hens announce their great achievement with much clucking and squawking.  The other girls commend her and voice loud congratulations until the whole flock is commenting on the new egg.  OK, so what possible survival benefit could there be from such noise?  I only have eight hens, but I cannot imagine how boisterous and joyful it would be with a hundred or more. 

I’ll bet commercial chickens aren’t so joyful.  Do you think they get depressed?  Obviously, they enjoy discussing their lives.  Mine do, at least.

This school year has been one of the bests. God knew I needed this rest.  I don’t know if the kids are all that much different though.  I think the change has been in me.  I can’t exactly pinpoint what it is, but I see the results.  Now when I walk in the classroom, I feel loved.  It is more than that though, it is almost like I expect to be loved.  I have always loved my students.  That is one reason I am usually strict.  I know how brutal the world can be if you are unprepared. 

So this year I am as strict as ever, but it is happening without a sense of fighting them.  I think there is much to learn about obedience to God here.  If we develop our love relationship with God, obedience is easy.  We trust him.  We know he always has our best interests at heart. I hope my students feel that way too.  I will be sad to see this year end.  Only 5 more weeks!

The school year is flying by.  Our principal was concerned about giving so many kids to me this year.  His concern was not about the ability to complete paperwork or keep order.  His concern was about being drained emotionally and spiritually.  I think he had a point.  Some days I am totally exhausted and I have nothing I can point at and say this is why.  There have also been other stresses that have put pressure on me.  The result was some health issues surfaced a month or so ago.  I have been working on solutions and adjusting medicines.  Wouldn’t you know that prayer would bring a breakthrough. I was prayed for today at church, and for the first time in many weeks, I had a normal afternoon.  None of the “usual’ sense of stress, dread and most of all, no symptoms.  How good it is to be relaxed this evening!   I don’t want to sound like I am complaining.  It has just been hard, and I am glad to have some relief.  I hope that the healing continues.  I certainly will continue to pray and to ask others to pray too.

For Valentine’s Day a radio station had a contest for your love story in 250 words or less.  I wrote a couple of paragraphs that ended up under the line.  It wasn’t chosen, but I pondering the years and putting it into words. 

Our Love Story

We shouldn’t have made it.  Statistics and facts were against us.  Our histories were against us.  I was a frightened single mother with a tiny baby running from an alcoholic, abusive ex-husband who was threatening to kill me.  He was an emotionally troubled immigrant son, a refugee from World War II.  He was running from the FBI as a draft dodger during the Vietnam War.  In the darkness we ran into each other. We held on for hope and kindness, for love and acceptance in a cold, frightening world.  We were two children and a baby desperately in need of a Father’s guidance.

Our first child together died, and our relationship almost died too.  But a great, loving God reached down into our darkness and wrapped us in light. He held us close to each other and drew us to Himself. From death, life sprang. Old patterns of drugs, drinking, and occult dropped away in his pure, loving light. More children came who have no memory of our hurt.  They only know the great grace of a great God.  He had a better plan than destruction for us and brokeness for our marriage. Thirty-seven years of marriage held together by the greatest bond of all, God’s love!

Dimitri asked me how many albums it would take to record our trip.  I thought maybe two or three.  I am not so sure now.  It was all so beautiful.  I was fascinated by the mass transportation systems of European countries.  The trains are generally on time, clean and safe.  Our trip to the Czech Republic was our first adventure.  We were like little children, awed by everything, and armed with a digital camera, taking pictures of it all!  This is just the train ride.

I am amazed that anyone wants to tromp through my site since I am so neglectful myself.  It has be a hectic and wonderful past few months.  I have been exhausted and exhilarated by it all.  The class I teach is one of the best spiritually and emotionally.  I need this acceptance as I struggle with my own troubles. My family has also been supportive.  I am learning to trust God more and rest in His love and the love He has placed in my life.

I plan to continue with a new slide show of our time in Europe, but right now, I need to get some chores done.  To you faithful friends, thanks!

I went to Seattle on New Years to stay with my youngest daughter for a week.  At the airport when I left, I cried. “When will I see you again?” I asked, feeling the distance so acutely.

“I’ll come home next Christmas for sure.  I don’t think I can come before then.”

That was almost heart-breaking to consider.  On the flight home I began planning a summer visit, maybe to go camping in the cool Northwest while Texas roasted under the tropical sun.  Yes, that’s what I will do.

Two weeks later, last weekend, while snowboarding, Celina crashed and broke her arm at the shoulder.  It was a serious, displaced break in a difficult spot.  On Sunday morning, the surgeon inserted three metal pins into her arm to connect the broken parts together.  They sent her home with a sturdy sling and a bandage covering the heads of the pins that stuck out of her arm.  At home, I searched the internet and found fairly inexpensive plane tickets to come back to help her adjust. 

So now, I am again at her home, not exactly like I planned.  We are working on learning how to cook, wash, dress with only one working arm.  It takes a lot of creativity to figure out the innovations that will make these basic activities workable.  My goal is that by Monday when I leave, she will be ready to conquer her everyday tasks.  Hopefully the pain and exhaustion will be less by then too. I just want to hug the hurt away, but even that is too painful.  Add her to your prayers, please.  It is so hard to be stuck when you are used to be busy.

I love it!  I really need to be grading some papers, but this seems so much better.  I went to Seattle area to stay with my youngest for 6 days.  What fun!  We didn’t actually do much, but I enjoyed the cold, cloudy days and early evenings.  I got lots of much-needed sleep and relaxed during the day while she worked.  We painted pottery one night and had Chinese food at her friend’s birthday dinner.  All in all, it was a great visit. 

I guess responsibility calls.  This week is the end of the semester.  Sigh!  I really love this class, and the year if half over already!

“They’ll be home from Christmas, if only in my dreams.”    

Celina comes in tomorrow.  Rachel, Mauricio and family are in Texas somewhere and will be here soon.  Dimitri will be working at a YWAM base in Spain.  His vacation time was eaten up by our tour of Europe, a willing trade-off.  I still wished we could have both. 

We FINALLY got a tree.  It is one of those annoying traditions to keep putting off getting the tree.  There are real reasons, but …..  I guess I shouldn’t complain.  We have always had one, even if it was on Christmas eve!  Then again we keep it up until the Russian Christmas on January 7th, at least.  That is the other end of the Christmas tree procrastination.  By that time I am at work again and it is harder to take down. 

So, Merry Christmas to all of y’all.  What a wonderful holiday to celebrate!  God’s gift to us and our gifts to others.  I love it all!

This is a gift that I am giving to my brother-in-law.  He is one of the head engineers of the Texas Department of Transportation.

Cobblestone requires precision work, perfect for the German temperament.  These men were artist as their work shows.

The photo that I printed is really good quality.  Xanga just didn’t appreciate the high resolution.  I had to shrink it to be allowed to upload.