Sweet times and itching to learn

Monday, October 14, 2024

We have a mandatory trip to Springfield for security training that bites a chunk off our annual month of itineration. We hopped a plane yesterday after speaking at a morning service and lunch with a pastor.  Mt Rainier does not disappoint as we leave SeaTac.

We try to see our kids every year when we come back from Indonesia, especially our daughter in Texas. We see the lights of Austin below as we approach. We arrive at midnight after an uneventful flight. That's the best kind!

A lamp from Grandma's sheds light in the guest room. Year by year, Kirsten is making her home more beautiful and personal. It's a delight to see the memories she collects.

W has only a half-day with Kirsten before he's off to the theology commission in Springfield so he crams in as many repairs or upgrades as he can. She drops him off at the airport after a barbecue lunch YUM and his handyman specials.

Tuesday

Our goal is to find a bathroom rug, change outdated art in K's frames, and spend time together. Kirsten and I hang some pictures. Then we hit the discount stores: at DD's Hispanic discount store I find a Christmas tablecloth for $5.99 (well, a shower curtain with a cute fringe), At Ross' we load up on rug options.

Kirsten tests the rugs out in her bathroom and makes a final selection. There's no return policy in Indonesia. Get the wrong size? Wrong color? Appliance doesn't work? (They usually test it at the store because ...) There's no returns permitted.

Wednesday

We pull up crabgrass and seed the yard until after 11 a.m. We can't figure out what these little seed balls are. Or are they bug incubators? Anyone know?

When we eat at a Mexican restaurant, we're the only non-Hispanics. That's a good indicator of classic Mexican food at reasonable prices.

We return the unwanted rugs for K's bathroom to the Ross discounter.

We stop at TJ Maxx for an electric toothbrush and a few things for the house. It's odd to see that the social distancing introduced by COVID is alive and well in the checkout line.

We find the fabric K is looking for at JoAnn - a cute print of bees and another of the woodland animals that frequent K's yard. 

K's a wonderful cook so we're not losing weight, that's for sure. We take our time eating together.

Keelee's up for a call in the late evening, too. I miss the interactions with friends, often online. Sometimes they're busy; sometime we're not available. When we connect, it's a blessing.

Thursday

Kirsten makes tea sandwiches and scones for breakfast and we finish another round of watering in the seeded yard. 

It's a pleasure to spend time together. We agree that each visit gets sweeter. We laugh when we say the exact responses in unison - how can that be when we've lived apart for most of her life? Like daughter, like mother.

We replace old art in existing frames with new fabrics. I trim and hem a large tablecloth to fit K's tea table. K makes spicy noodles before we collapse onto the sofa to watch a fun renovation episode on Plex.

She drops me at the airport with time to spare. Austin has its own look in shops and the airport: "Modern Cowboy."

Both flights are very cold - it feels like 65o inside the planes and the Dallas lounge. People wear coats or drape themselves in blankets. 

W picks me up from the Springfield airport after midnight. We catch up on his week. He had satisfying meetings with the theology commission and got an incentive to write his book on women in ministry.

Friday

For the week, W has found a fancy Toyota Tacoma for a fraction of the price of car rental. The moon is on the wane but still huge as we open the curtains to a cold morning (43oF/6oC). Brrr. I don't have warm clothes along beyond a jacket and long-sleeved top. When I checked weather last week, it was in the 90s (33o) during the day. Today it may hit 70o (19o).

It's our one day off. We wake at 7:00. I'm feeling a little hungover from a short night. The mattresses are comfortable even in a cheaper hotel. The breakfast options are not appetizing: sugary cereals, white bread, and a slow-cooker full of chalk-grey gravy. The OJ is a tang-like mix. W researches breakfast places before we head out the door.

We end up at Gailey's, a downtown eatery, where meals are so big that we take half to our hotel for tomorrow.

We spot this sign, walking back to the truck. I thought Christians were quoting Jesus, not Gandalf. How odd.

This guy has an old man's chopper well in hand, sans helmet. That's legal in Missouri.

We buy some clothes at my once-a-year stop Half of Half Price. We stop at Aldi for chocolate and German breakfast fixings (bread, sausage, cheese).

Neither of us is hungry when we pause for a mid-afternoon lunch at Corner 21, the best Chinese food in Springfield. But when the food comes, our appetites revive. It's so good! We stash half of that in our hotel fridge, too. Portions in the USA are family-sized.

The ant bites (from working in K's yard) are swollen and irritated. W offers Orajel to soothe the itch.

The room has a bathtub which is a rare luxury. W naps while I soak. When the sun sets at 7:00 p.m., we're almost ready to rest for the hard week ahead.

Read more:

*Better is a dinner of vegetables where love is than a fatted ox and hatred with it. Proverbs 15:17

*Jesus also saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins. He said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them, for all of them have contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in all she had to live on.” Luke 21:2-4

Moravian Prayer: Holy Spirit, draw us closer to one another. Heaven is a place full of love and healing. It is up to us to bring Heaven to Earth, flooding our spaces with a deep love. Help us in this task. Amen.