The navigation between years

Sunday, December 29, 2019
The last Sunday of the year is here. W and I invite people at BIC to reflect on the year past and look ahead with purpose in the New Year.

Here are 2 handouts from the program. Download them for your own use, if it's helpful.

People take a few final selfies; the Christmas station will be dismantled this week.

Pak Danny takes a big group to Ethnic after. What great company.

I am abstaining from what looks like a delicious lunch. My stomach has been rumbling since the Potluck last Wednesday. I finally notice. The fastest way I know to digestive happiness is a 24-hr fast. (It works again.)

Monday and Tuesday

I'm in recovery mode. In the mornings after I make toast and eggs for breakfast, Tabitha and I sit on the porch. Somewhere in the day, I toddle off to my room to read or just chill out. I write 2 news editions - one for BIC and one for us. W reads them through before I send; we both miss the personal title on one (personal rather than corporate). Ugh. Oh well.

We eat some good meals this week, exploring Nara, Pino Terrace, and Miss Bee. I don't have much of an appetite and don't think W and T would like ramen, which I crave. I don't have energy to bake or cook: it's tiring to think ahead in the day to "Oh, what's for breakfast/ lunch/ supper?"

At Nara, we sit at a window open to the field below. Parents and children blow bubbles and toss styrofoam airplanes into endless loops.

On another day, we turn up early at #KalpaTree, a short walk away. They turn us away, though there's no one at the restaurant and the first reservations don't start for another half hour. I guess we could phone them from their doorstep, but we have a lot of other choices. Their loss. 

We walk a block to Miss Bee. All the servers and the manager greet us warmly, seat us, wish us a Happy New Year. They look after us well with personal and professional service.

My special consolation prize: the hot chocolate at #MissBeeProvidore  is excellent. I unwrap and throw the chocolate truffle in with the rest, and pour it over a glass of ice. Chocolate with chocolate and chocolate. Obat Juanita (women's medicine), right?

Wednesday - a quiet start to the New Year

We call people we love and talk to friends. We go for a few walks, but mostly, we're at home. Love it. I replace the red sofa cover of Christmas with a black one, and recover the cushions in black and white.

Pak Gum is repainting inside. We've had water damage, a lot of guests, and a lot of movement. The house is ready after 5 years of living. 

We move the 2 meter (6') metal panel off the nook wall. After the paint dries, it goes on a picture rail in the living room.

Tabitha helps assemble a pendant lamp that we found in IKEA's As-Is on our last visa run to Singapore. It's been sitting in a box on my desk for weeks. Since Boxing Day, I'm clearing house. I'm almost done with the desk and my office after a month of people "dumping" things from holiday events and activities. That's the last piece - poof!

Where to hang the chandelier? For $10, it seemed to say I'd find a place somewhere. Yup. The nook by the front entry is perfect. W rewires the fixture while Tabitha clicks the stiff plastic of the papers onto the end-caps of the long wires. Whew - she's young with strong hands.

We like the shadows it casts on the walls. The gardenias plucked from the garden release their scent from a black bowl under the new light.

Then she's off! Tabitha flies back to Malaysia in the evening. She's been a good guest - and is a dear friend. We're cheering her on as she goes back into her classroom tomorrow.

How awful! Our friends write that Jakarta is flooding after rain in the area overflows the rivers and drainage canals that meet in the neighborhoods before flowing out to sea. The person with a plan to fix such disasters (2 meters of water in some homes and businesses) was ousted 2 years ago and his plan jettisoned. (Jakarta Globe picture)

Many people  who protested against him are suffering, without any solution in sight. It's common for vehicles - including motorcycles - to drive through 1-2' of water in Jakarta rainy season. The water streams through the streets on the way the canals. But this extraordinary New Years rain causes additional havoc. Pray with us for displaced thousands.

We lock up the gate and house. I grab some books to read and settle in with a cup of tea.

And then I get an email: several friends have donated to the Christmas project. My heart is full of gratitude. Their generosity will bless a special-needs school and cover universal access for the BIC hall. Thanks, everyone!

Thursday

Our daughter's coming today. Can't wait to see her.

Read more:

*This assembly may know that the Lord does not save by sword and spear. 1 Samuel 17:47

*"Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit," says the Lord Almighty. Zechariah 4:6

*A harvest of righteousness is sown in peace for those who make peace. James 3:18 

Moravian Prayer: God of peace, teach us your ways. Our ways lead to conflict and mistrust. Guide us to see the path forward that brings your kingdom on earth. Amen.