"It's unreal," says Mom. "You wake up on Monday, and soon it's Friday." ICBC is dragging out her insurance claim after a car accident. It's been years since it happened. My Dad's died in the meantime, and lots of water has flowed under the bridge.
"If I didn't have Norm, I would give up already because of all the paperwork and appointments." Today he takes her into Vancouver (1.5 hr drive) for the latest round of lawyers, medical staff, etc. It's a clear case of an immigrant driver not paying attention, but ... she has to prove that she's not faking the doctor visits (complete with charts done and examined over and over by different personnel), damage, and other care she's needed after the accident.
This borders on the ridiculous: who could negotiate this without a savvy son or daughter holding your hand? Bravo, Norm! (My brother is the best.)
And yes, it's the weekend again.
Saturday and Sunday, February 12 and 13, 2022
We're home this weekend since BIC is online only. The hill is crowded with strangers from Jakarta. Not a good time to venture around or spend hours in the car.
Tuesday
Like all the meetings yesterday, the team meeting is on Zoom. Everyone's resigned to another shutdown and conversant online. Love these people.
Josh Viera has made great progress in coaching young adults around the world. He's the guest on a podcast hosted by J&J Coaching at #100xDUDES. (Josh Baru and Jeremiah are professional coaches from Australia and Singapore.)
Josh enjoyed himself: "It was a great opportunity to share about #LatinGate and our innovative approach to empower less-privileged emerging leaders in developing nations." I'm not a big podcast fan, but wow! I learn a lot. And I'll send more young people his way.
May I recommend you listen in on the conversation here? When you do, keep your note-taking device handy. You'll have great info to pass along in your own network. Maybe you want to consider joining #LatinGate to add your support and expertise.
Thursday
We're avoiding cars and indoor spaces with others. W did a test-walk yesterday so we don't get lost today. Before we meet the main group, we wind downhill between houses for about 1 km.
We marvel at the tight squeeze for cars parking in this neighborhood. In the USA, it would be an effort for 2 motorcycles to pass without clipping each other. Here, people learn to drive in the tightest spaces. If this is 7' wide, I'd be surprised.
See the green-grey pillar halfway down, on the left? It supports a house and juts into the lane - so the neighbor's curb is angled just enough that cars can get by. What would you bet there have been a fair amount of near encounters? Would you let your teen drivers practice on this hill? Maybe not.
On thoroughfares like this one, it's strictly one-at-a-time, coming and going. It's not a one-way street! This jalan tikus (mouse street) narrows after this gate to 4' wide = motorcycles and pedestrians only.
The plan is to walk down the hill along the river, loop across the park that bridges the water, and come back up the other side.
If you're comparing cultures, you'll always find things that seem normal here and would be breath-stopping elsewhere. For example, some men are raising a high fence along the bamboo steps of the graveyard. No one likes living near a cemetery, right? There's already a stone, brick, and cement wall. With new houses being constructed next door, it's time to build a higher barrier. They'll top it with barbed wire when it's done.
This guy stands on the existing wall (1' wide?) and holds one end of the rope being wrapped along posts up the mountainside. A horizontal plumb line?
I wouldn't have sucked in my breath if the wall wasn't 5 or 6' high on the side plus and 10'-12' (3-4 meters?) down to the drainage canal. The guy is wearing loose rubber boots ...
On another note, people like wearing matching outfits. Companies often give employees matching shirts or outfits. The staff goes on walks together (happens a lot near us), listens to motivational speeches, and does other team-building exercises. Imagine your office, with everyone wearing the same outfits. Hmmm.
Sometimes whole families dress alike to go out. At weddings, they tailor exact matches, one outfit for women and another suit for men. Or relatives will be told what color to wear.
We don't know if this is a women's group or a company dancing with a very twisty and bendy instructor in the park at the bottom of the hill. They're in matching outfits of course.
Oof. There are a lot of mud stairs up from the river on the other bank. We slip and slide upward before walking through the
kampungs. I snap things old and new side by side. See
the rickshaw-like becak, which is pulled by a bicycle? These were introduced in Jakarta (the capital city 100 miles away) in 1936. They're still used today. Parked beside it is a modern minivan.
A friend and his staff run an organic and aquaculture farm. They deliver fresh produce and 2 gourami fish to our place ($5-10 worth) each Tuesday.
Wildflowers galore bloom along the trail as we walk from pavement to mud and back again.
Here's an easy stretch, fairly level and covered in dried bamboo fronds.
Someone has a macabre send of humor in this cabin: there's a mannequin dangling over the edge of the pond, plus other awful decor to deter visitors.
On the other side of his dwelling, the hill drops down to the river. Can you spot the hoses that bring city water to the other side, between the wild banana trees? These service illegal squatter homes.
One such shack is barely habitable, a mix of tin and wood scraps that shelters the bone-thin man hunched on its platform.
There's a modern three-storey house built above him. It sits on a patch of dirt mountainside, one storey below street level. From the street, you enter the house on the second floor. The hill drops away from the street to the first floor, then falls away below their brick and stone retaining wall. We expect that fancy place to slide downhill next time there's a serious earthquake. Yikes.
We slither up the hill beside his rough house, walk around a wall, and ... what?! That's a university parking lot and a sport court. Totally up to date except ...
for the two guys washing the tennis court by hand. No power washing here. One man squats with a floor brush. The other wields a hose and squeegee. Labor is cheap. It will be clean when they're done.
We cross the river on the university's bridge toward our final climb uphill. The dirt trail starts abruptly where the paving ends.
This is one of the up-hills I dread most. I'm not a stairway fan as it is, but this climb is looooong and steep on our side of the river. Today's walk is 28 flights, not including the ups and downs between.
W spots a mask-maker hard at work. Might be for the celebration that caps 2 weeks after Chinese New Year. Pretty spiffy.
See the narrow cement stairs on the right side? A family has built a concrete ramp across them to zoom a motorcycle into their gate. I plod up the main lane. My knees feel the climb but are not hurting. (However, after last year's bout with COVID, I have to pause a few times to catch my breath.)
Whew, it gets hot out (+85oF) when the sun peeks out from behind the clouds. Luckily for us, it's mostly overcast today.
I pivot and tilt my camera down the hill (below). Yeah, we've already done a lot of steps. Can you imagine going up and down to your house every day, sometimes several times? People have bad knees here for a reason.
Motorcycles buzz by in both directions, carrying building supplies, food, and people. This is a main thoroughfare.
Lunch at Ethnic begins under the trees but as the rain starts, we move under cover.
We're home and showered before friends drop by. They play with the dogs, chat, catch us up, and let us pray with them. It's a treat to see Chacha and Carlos, (and other family members when we can).
FridayThe dogs watch our every move through the open door at breakfast. They're ready to get out of the yard.
Angela arrives after 8 for our Friday walk. We cross the busiest road on this mountain to the neighborhoods opposite us. We're walking in the other direction from yesterday. With the COVID recession, many houses are for sale. Some are in serious decay.
We stop at several cafes to check out their menus. One has a makeshift perch for the gate-keeper, a chair seat nailed to a stump.
They have beautiful tea sets on the counter
and artistic cakes in the cooler.
Ok, this might be hard to see. Look at the platform below, on the middle right!!!
Someone's one-car-wide driveway ends with a launching strip. There's a low curb on the right side. The left side has rusting rebar jutting out over - nothing. The far end over the river-valley drop-off? Good luck. Nada.
Bet you're not going to let your teen learn to park a car there, either. On the way to the parking "spot," the narrow driveway has 8' concrete walls on each side. Scrape, scrape as you back up to the street from below. It's just ... Indonesia. Maybe their helpers park their motorcycles there?
Motorcycles are adapted into many kinds of vehicles, including this 3-wheeled pickup truck with plywood sides.
Almost home, we peek past a fence to watch
the spotted stag rubbing his antlers against a tree. It's bizarre to see wild creatures penned in front of that fancy house. Sometimes there's a 'big cat' pacing along the wall. Its pen has a wire ceiling of course.
Before I head indoors, I check the garden. Oh my, that monster plant has sprouted two more 4-foot-high white flowers. The base of this plant is 18" (1/2 meter) wide, for scale.
It's still rainy season here, with showers every afternoon and sometimes at night. The plants and trees are growing like crazy.
It's a good thing: look at the brushcut on our formerly lush benjamina ficus tree. "Please trim the wall side and some of the branches back so our flowerbed and the neighbor's patio get some sun," I asked the yard man on Tuesday. So he did.
Dropping by my home office, I see some tubes of acrylic. Let's brush a few layers on the wacky face. (16"X24"/40x60cm canvas). Lots of paint to come for this one. But it starts to take shape.
A few weeks ago, I sketched a quick outline with Sharpie markers, which I regret.
I start with blacks and white, then add warm yellow. The marker shows through cheap acrylic paint. I need Golden Acrylics for better coverage.
There are some Goldens on the shelf. A bit at a time, I start to add color.
"Looks like your grandma!" my mom exclaims. The stern look is familiar. Except that Grandma wouldn't wear blue hair or earrings or pearls. The earrings and necklace will stay. What if I perch a blue hat on top of brown hair? She wore hats and her hair was always pulled back in a bun.
Young, wild Grandma.
Maybe. I'll keep you posted.
W and I sort through BIC talks to see what we need to write, record, and pray over in the weeks ahead.
I'm listening to scripture when I wake at night. After the book of Numbers and a few OT prophets earlier this week, I'm plowing through Deuteronomy. The characters and the Law of Moses become more familiar each time through. What a Story!
Read more:
*The Lord said to Moses, “You cannot see my face; for no one shall see me and live.” Exodus 33:20
*Lead me in your truth, and teach me. Psalm 25:5
*We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. May your unfailing love be with us, Lord, even as we put our hope in you. Psalm 33: 20-22
*Jesus said, “If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” John 8:31-32
*God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. 1 John 4:9
Moravian Prayer: Gracious God, thank you for sending your Son, our savior, to show us your love. He was sent into a once perfect world to one filled ith hate and discord. Thank you for sending love to those who seek him.
Please lead us and teach us so that we may grow as your disciples. Direct us to your Word, that we may know and proclaim to others the truth that sets us free. May we never take that freedom lightly. Help us remain diligent in the study of your Word. We humbly praise you for your everlasting power and love. Amen.
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