Sunday, July 9, 2023
There's a big roach in the bedroom. I wake up to the crackling of its shell as it walks back and forth. I turn on the nightlight - yup, there it scoots. I don't want to spray it with lethal chemicals (which are more harmful to us than it anyway.) I tiptoe to the kitchen and fill a glass with boiling water. The roach runs away from scalding, scurrying under the bed and around the room. I can't stand it. They can climb - what if it gets into our bed?
I watch it run here and there until 2a.m. Ugh ugh ugh. Finally, I wake W and he catches it, my hero. We're wide awake so we work for a few hours: writing agendas for today's meetings for me, catching up on messages and other stuff for him. What a way to start the week.
Guests from an English program join the Gathering this morning. One of the delights of an international community is welcoming a wide range of guests from around the world.
After, the Community Table quickly empties of snacks. Alice has prepared yummy treats as usual.
When the Gathering is over, the worship leaders meet briefly to lay out a strategy for the rest of the year.
Then the leadership team meets to discuss community matters. Afterward, our families join us, walking to lunch together at #NaraPark. It's a wonderful, diverse group that reflects the DNA of our participants.
When we make it home, the Porch has fewer guests than usual but they're having fun. Laurel takes some pictures.
Monday
We start with an early walk with a quick stop at GG to ensure that the prayer room is ready for tomorrow's cleaning. It's time to set the room in order.
Relief supplies and clothing have been piled in the room since late November, after an earthquake devastated a few cities 40 miles from Bandung. Volunteers took many boxes but planned to come back for the rest. They're working among the earthquake victims all year. It's time!
Lunch is a return to Kalpa Tree, a restaurant that opened a year or two before the pandemic. Their gorgeous facility has few customers, except on weekends when every eatery overflows with hungry tourists. My ramen is very good. I pass the meat to W and enjoy the miso broth, noodles, and vegetables.
W orders a breaded deep-fried pizza: they bake the pizza, then fold it in half, grease and bread it, and bake it again. It looks utterly disgusting to me - I dislike fatty foods and thick breading at the best of times. It tastes good to him and he has leftovers for supper.
We make calls and host meetings on the Porch.
Tuesday
Walk. Calls. For breakfast, I cook "mixed grains" from an outdated Bob's Red Mill package. Their food is so expensive here that I'm loathe to toss it. It cooks for 20 minutes and tastes just fine, 3 years past the due date.
Sitting on the Porch, I see the yardman, hard at work with his machete. He lifts a dozen bromeliads onto the lawn. They have 1' leaves and hang on one stem. Then he clears out seedlings underneath that have erupted in the soil. Weeding is an ongoing conquest. He lays the bromeliads back in place when he's done.
Wonderful Indonesia! I'd pay a lot for one of those in Seattle. Here they bloom all year and spread like wildfire.
The team has a 2-week break from meetings. That opens up time to catch up on notes, set appointments, write a weekend talk, and study. I'm feeling ambitious ... but get tangled for an hour of clearing the "in-come"ing stuff that landed on my desk. There are books (thanks, Richie), art supplies (thanks, David), sewing supplies (thanks, Christine), silk flowers (thanks to last week's bride), and more.
Two silk bouquets get stored away. The remnants of silk roses make a nice ring in a vase of dried dill flowers.
When I can set my cup of tea on the desk, I open the computer and start writing. I'll declutter the rest when I'm done with Sunday's talk.
Our young friend Kat writes from Brazil that she's having a wonderful time. She's connecting with extended family, does a mission trip with her teen group, and is exploring her Brazilian roots. What a privilege to live abroad, and what a joy to return to the heart's home occasionally. It makes me happy when others thrive.
Wednesday
Walk. Write. 7:00 online study. 9:00 online annual business meeting. By noon, I'm peopled-out. We have lunch and rest up before some lovely friends arrive. William lives and studies in Tasmania so we haven't seen him since Australia locked down for COVID. He and his sis Maddie are always welcome! (But we miss you, Max.)
I'm trying something new. Daiso's potato chip maker for the microwave works! We make lovely crisp chips in 7.5 minutes. I cut a yellow potato with a mandolin, dry the slices between a folded cotton dishtowel, and spice it before it goes into the microwave = just enough of a snack to share, along with a plate of cookies, banana squares, and tea. No oil. Potato chips @130 calories? I'm sold!
William and Maddie choose some books from the Porch haul but forget the bag of Starbucks coffee grounds for their mom's garden.
*Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth. Sing to the Lord, praise his name; proclaim his salvation day after day. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples. For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the nations are idols, but the Lord made the heavens. Splendor and majesty are before him; strength and glory are in his sanctuary.
*The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. Psalm 145:8*Their congregation shall be established before me. Jeremiah 30:20
*[Paul writes:] If then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Philippians 2:1-2
Moravian Prayer: Welcoming God, we come into your house like children who have been away from home far too long. As we knew you would, you wrap us up in arms of welcome and acceptance. On the table sit our favorite dishes; our bed is made with fresh linens. How wonderful it is to be home—with you! Amen.
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