Full house = happy house

Friday, October 31, 2025

All the saints who have gone before us  into the presence of Jesus = the meaning of All Hallow's Eve. The other stuff is just hijacking and twisting a precious occasion into something creepy.

We had a nice supper yesterday at Maxi's with Lew before he heads home this morning. He's making good progress on his dissertation.

The rest of today, we work on the project and spend time with Kirsten. She offers things I didn't think about = one of the joys of having a daughter who is a natural decorator and designer. When I ask, "This or this?" or "What do you think about ...?" she gives insights and great ideas.

We have lunch at Nanny's between work. The rain holds off until we're done.

The pasta is filling. I like capers - that bite of pickle in a creamy sauce.

W puts up more curtain rods and I hang up a couple of sets of pleated tablecloths. The trick is matching ceiling heights and drops - each window is unique. Kirsten confirms, "NO! Keep the height the same across a room."

Every time W hang a rod, I'm ready! with clips fastened and hard pleats set into the curtain. The pleating ties are shaping the fabric until we move in.

One find in a back courtyard is a 6.5'/2.2 m-tall screen. The wood is beautiful and the figure interesting. What an interesting privacy screen for blocking off personal areas.

We love having Kirsten here and she's safely at home when a driving rain descends in mid-afternoon. Too bad rainy season has come, when sunshine lasts only an hour or two in early morning. The sky and house are dark by 3:30 PM.

She's brought skin care from Korea and we try on some. "Mom, this is good for you," though I doubt anything can prevent the wrinkles etching my face.

Saturday

My cousin sends a picture of the only piece of machine embroidery I've ever attempted. Trying new things is fun. Depending on how smoothly and quickly an item comes together, I may only do it once.

 

This 50th anniversary gift for my aunt and uncle was based on their wedding photo.  Even resembles them. To me, my aunt looked like a princess in her tiered 1960s bride's dress. Did I like batik even then? I stretched and framed the work and set it off. Auntie Edith reminded me and mentioned how much it meant to her when Mom and I called her after Uncle Albert passed away.

Auntie E is a marvelous artist who gifted beautiful knitting, paperwork, crochet, and other handwork to friends and family over many years. (I have a few stunning scarves.) As one of their two flower girls, I thought she deserved something personal and crafty.

W and I take the dogs for a walk and pop into the project for a quick move-and-check before he starts his Saturday study. I finally send him the "honey-do" list for the project, which I've been putting off not to add stress. We have a conversation coming up with the builder so I can't withhold the checklist any longer.

K and I eat breakfast on the Porch. I call my dear WPPR friends and each one answers. What a marvel to visit in 3 American states and Indonesia, across 12 and 14 hours of separation.

We catch up, pray for each other, and then I write. In the afternoon, Paul and Barbara arrive to stay for a few nights. "It's like Grand Central Station at your house," she says of the many guests who enjoy the big house.

Sunday

The flowers are stunning again. Thanks, #TitikBadudu!

We pose for photos with K. As usual, people crowd in. It's amusing how many photos we take here.

After the Gathering, Dina joins us for lunch at #NaraPark. The food is good, the company warm, and W hikes up to the hall to get the car so we're dry. It's pouring rain for a few hours and then it's steamy and sunny. K comes down with a bad cold - she comes home from lunch with friends and goes to bed.

Our sabbath is on Thursday since we work weekends. We negotiate with a neighborhood crew  to address flooding at the project, starting this week. Piles of gravel were shifted from across the street when the restaurant opposite the project excavated a deep trench for their own street gutter. Great - that plugged and blocked up the working drain on our side of the street. Water, with nowhere else to go, overflows onto the property to flood the yard and back half of the project.

The concrete blocks must be lifted. Our side will cleared out and their gravel removed so runoff can freely flow through the existing hillside drains. Broken slabs will be stacked against the wall since they're only propped up by the muck beneath.

We meet the contractor's crew for a detailed rundown of work that remains. They've been responsive and quick to fix what's needed. At this point it's stuff like, laundry drains, electrical covers, and some plumbing. We're getting there ...

Our challenge to the foreman is always, "Less please." Less budget outlay with fewer fussy additions. This rebuild is intended to be plain and useful though the bones of the mansion's ruin have always been grand. The more we strip out, the more functional it becomes. Look at those old windows!

Some fun things will come later, like fixing the giraffe statue lurking under the 25m/80' Norfolk Island pines.

Paul and Barbara join us for tea around the big table to celebrate what God is doing. They lead an oral learners program to train leaders across Indonesia.

Monday

As W and I walk with the dogs, Anton always wants to know where his pack, even if we just stop for a sniff. He obeys the "sit" command in his own way.

One of the final movie nights in our current space happens this week. It's a whole week of work: prep starts today and cleanup wraps up on Friday. Today W heads to the wholesaler in town for food and supplies so I can cook for 70 guests on Wednesday.

Read more:

* The Lord said, “If you obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession out of all the peoples. Indeed, the whole earth is mine.” Exodus 19:5

* Jesus said, “If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love.” John 15:10

* There is no distinction, since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. Romans 3:22-24

* So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. Galatians 3:26-29

* Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever. 1 John 2:15-17

Moravian Prayer: Lord and Comforter, what a joy to be enfolded in your tender care! Your love and warmth suffuse us. Let the light and assurance we feel from you shine through us this day. Radiant Lord, in your name, we pray. Amen.