New week, new life

Once we are on our own, life restarts in full swing. We have a week or so before the next guests arrive, so we start to catch up. We have awesome teams who are picking up work - that makes the load a lot lighter. Here's a digital media team, newly created by Ivo to coordinate non-profit communications. Thanks, all of you.

Monday, June 10
Dr Hanna invites us to a holiday wrap-up feast. Wow - she has gathered so many friends for a good cause, combining several charities to care for children. And the food is delicious - coordinated and cooked by Alice.

Tuesday
We have staff meeting as usual. A few of us have extra meetings most of the afternoon, deciding on how best to serve local children. I try to get some paperwork out of the way, but frequent interruptions and my "must-dos" keep me from making much progress.

By nightfall, I am still wound up. W falls asleep but I finally get up again for to cook some of tomorrow's meats. By 11, I'm back in bed. I read until I feel sleepy. A late night. Not good, considering tomorrow's load ...

Wednesday , June 12: Happy Birthday to Waldemar
It's movie night tonight! I pull things from the freezer and start to cook at 7. It takes most of the morning. My rhythm is off. I have a 9am appointment. I set a big pot to boil water for pasta and rush online to the meeting. (Well worth it, tho. Thanks for good counsel, V.)

Prep takes longer than usual - I'm not in synch with any good flow. There's a lot on my mind after a week of people coming and going and extra appointments. I feel like I'm dabbling at cooking rather than skating through food prep. But the meal comes together. Thank you, God.

I wait to nap until the helpers arrive at 3pm to cook the rice. Man, I'm tired by then but they need a few instructions before they steam the Melinjo leaves and berries from a tree out back. They cut lettuce and chop fruit for the salads. (The dressing is done, along with pasta, meats, breads, and sauces.)

The food is plated as people start to arrive: the steam trays are hot and the bowls ready. Good help shows up for the final details.

We start by celebrating June birthdays, among them Waldemar's. Birthday friends get special plates (cheers for the dollar store USA). They come to the front of the food line as we sing Happy Birthday - and the evening is underway. After a prayer of blessing, the kitchen fills up with young people.

The first person through the food line whispers, "Are there eating spoons?" Oops, haha - I've forgotten to set out cutlery, though the serving spoons are out. Not to worry - I know just where the cutlery is. Within a minute, the fail is rectified. The rest goes smoothly.

The serving bowls begin to empty. We refill over and over.

People heap their plates. Tonight, our satpams are fierce. (Food sentries: "Here, you can have 2 of these, but please take only 3 of those.")

Seating is crammed inside the house and spills onto the porch. W's chosen his favorite movie as a birthday gift to himself., The Princess Bride. Everyone howls with laughter and sighs with frustration, just as it should be.

Intermission means dessert. The birthday cake is a total fail. It's humid so the eggs for the angel-food cake can't be lifted off the pan - we have a smoosh of meringue... what to do?

I put the crumbles between flat layers, onto a cookie sheet. It looks kinda yucky but a quick taste test affirms it's gooey deliciousness. Before the meal, a young man asked, "What can I do to help?"

I have an idea. "Here, beat the cream," I say, pouring cold whipping cream, sugar, and vanilla into a stainless bowl. I hand him a whisk. "Whip it!" He sweats up a storm to make a the perfect bowl of whipping cream. (It's 85o in the kitchen.)

"Want another challenge?" I ask when he's done. When he nods cautiously, I hand him a rubber spatula and the cookie sheet of crumbly meringue. "See if you can put that atop these crumbs." Wow! He carefully spreads the whipping cream on the meringue - perfect. HIRED

Best dessert ever. I snag the last small pieces from the tray when people come back for seconds and thirds of ... (hmm what to call it, a delicious mess?) Anyhow, I pop the plate into the fridge so W can savor the last bit tomorrow. Our guests love the movie and the last bunch heads home after 11pm.

Thursday and Friday

I am up before 6 to say goodbye to our houseguest, who leaves for the Jakarta train by 6:30. Over the next days, piece by piece, W and I put back furniture, trays, dishes, and other things used or moved for movie night. The Roomba robot vacuum runs constantly for a whole day, picking up dirt and lint. Every time it runs out of power, we empty it and recharge it for the next round.

We swing by a home shop Friday morning. I find 4 floor tiles - I'm a bit tired of the dark tiles that cover a ruined formica counter in the kitchen. How about a white marble pattern? $15 later, the counter and 2 tabletops are updated. Before and after: nice, right?

Saturday
We have Community Dinner tonight. We start to pack the car early.

Apparently (I forgot that) I'm helping with table decor. Dr. Hanna comes by in the morning to forage our yard for possibilities. She cuts flowers while Waldemar saws guava pieces off the old branches lying around the yard. We toss the flowers in buckets and load the car with supplies before noon.

W and I get to the hall first. I like simplicity: place guava pieces on the tables, pluck flowers from the watery bucket, and tuck the blossoms around the wood Voila - seven centerpieces in five minutes. Easiest ever. I leave a few petals lying around for a natual look. Here are 2.

We plug in the steam trays, plate the catered food, and think through the meeting together, Josh and Clau have brought photo-booth items (hats, scarves, frames) so that's going to be a fun activity. We're sending our dads a message for international Fathers Day tomorrow.

In no time, friends start to arrive. It's the last time for some. This week, they will head home to several "stan" countries (former Russian satellites). They're warm and hospitable people. Oh how we'll miss them.

Dr Hanna talks about her father, an outstanding man and principal of a local school. We read through Jesus' Prayer about God as our father. He provides, protects and forgives, and expects the same of us.

Sunday - International Fathers Day
Josh and Clau are speaking - it's fun to hear their prep earlier in the week. They inspire us.

In the evening, we meet for a farewell at Josh and Clau's with DrH. They're hosting grad students returning to their countries - complete with good food. It's fun but bittersweet, with hugs and goodbyes all around.

At 7pm, W hails a Grab car for DrH and us. We'have one more stop today, a funeral home a half-hour away. Last night, a friend's 41-yr-old husband crossed the street (walking under a pedestrian overpass before 2am).

Oki had just been dropped off by one friend after a trip from Jakarta, for pickup by another. He was wearing black clothes, so the motorcyclist zooming around the curve didn't see him. He was instantly killed, and the 25-yr old on the bike has broken both his arms and a leg.

Family and friends are heartbroken. By 9am, the body is washed and the coffin place in the hall and draped with netting. Friends start to arrive soon after. All day, the hall fills with mourners. When we leave after 9pm, many people remain, talking quietly and eating the ginger dessert provided.

Dozens and dozens of flower boards are lined and stacked outside the hall - the family is very well known. The body will be laid out for another day before a mass is said Tuesday. The cremation takes place Wednesday, according to Chinese tradition.

I call my dad and chat with my mom to wrap up the day at 10pm.

Monday
It's catch-up time. I start early - 6am. Our study lasts from 9:30-11. I haven't led it for a while, so today's my day. Our story is about Dorcas, a beloved and appreciated "do-er," described in Acts 9. Many women can identify with her, a helper, concerned volunteer, and creative crafter who assists the poor and needy.

But we also talk about the men we know who are generous handymen. Such men and women are vital to the health of any community. I think about Pak Chandra, one such man in our circles. His current volunteer project is designing and building universal access ramps for a public auditorium.

I'm still writing the talk W and I will give next week (King Solomon). Somewhere, I remember the start of a talk - maybe in a notebook? I remember someone dropped by and started chatting, so where did I put it? Oh well, I pour out new ideas for an hour or two. (If I find the previous material, I can integrate it, too.)

WhatsApp is the message service of choice in our region. I have dozens and dozens of message to send today - to leaders and teams, to friends, and to people we may never see again. Some people are leaving their jobs; some are leaving the city. Deadlines are coming up, I have blogs to write, and I need to check my notebooks for other to-dos.

My ideas are jotted into notebooks. Currently, I have four going at once because I seem to reach for any empty page nearby, night or day. They're my brain capture. Today I sort through the "don't forgets" written at meetings or events, in bed or in the car, at home or away. There's a lot to think about - I get about halfway. Carry on tomorrow.

The international church partners with worthy organizations, giving 10% of its donations away, starting in February. Have we distributed that yet? (Nope. We need action steps from our team, updates from potential orgs, and work by the office staff = I churn out a bunch of WAs and field responses.) Is the e-news, handed off to a volunteer this month, underway? (Not yet - that requires a few more finger taps. The deadline is next week.)

Etc. It's almost 5pm by the time I look up. Where has the day gone?

Read more:
*For me it is good to be near God; I have made the Lord God my refuge, to tell of all your works. Psalm 73:28

*Since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 5:1

*You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 1 Peter 2:9

Moravian Prayer: Lord of all, we are reminded that we are yours for a reason—to show our allegiance to you by how we live in the world. We beseech you to enable us to see this world with fresh eyes as you guide us to understand that all dominion belongs to you, and that we are your servant creatures. Amen.