Island work

Monday, March 11, 2024

By 10:00 we're in the Jakarta airport. (Yes, we left home early.) Our rest stop along the way includes breakfast - a bento box of salt and rice.

Don offers his "Top Three" takeaways from the week in the car, before we hang out in the airport lounge. It's a short and empty flight to Belitung.

W's arranged a van for about 20 passengers since many took the same Jakarta-Belitung flight. The driver casually checks his playlist while negotiating the curves and hills to the Sheraton in the northwest corner of the island. 

The hotel lobby is impressive. Conference venues look like tourist flyers. That's one privilege of living in the tropics. Someone mentions the chirping of a lizard in their hotel room. It's novel and weird to them because they live in a Jakarta apartment, high above the ground. The chirping is familiar to us - those cicaks run through our rooms day and night in Bandung.

The view to the sea makes us hopeful about the setting for this week of conversations and connections.

When we walk to the onsite restaurant, we look back over the lagoons toward the rooms.

The clay-lined lagoons are sterile: they're not fish-friendly, we're told. 

It's a "sustainable" resort and lodging is expensive for this part of the world, though about the same as a lower-range hotel room in the States. Of course, W has gotten a reduced room rate through his travel apps and signing up for their member bonuses.

The lobby attendants let us know we've arrived in the worst season of weather: westerly monsoons mean rain at some time every day. We settle into clean calm room. Our view is a tree beside the balcony that provides privacy (yay!) We overlook a grassy courtyard toward similar longhouse-style lodging. I break off the branch scraping the roof and pluck a seed head from the tree.

God's handiwork is intricate. I watch the seed-head unfold in the next few days.

Tuesday

We wake to the patter of rain on leaves. W reads on the porch for an hour and heads for an early breakfast while I enjoy a bath on the balcony. The stone tub keeps the water hot. Two stand-up wicker screens shade me from view.

Privacy screens are available in the exterior halls. Near the service elevators on our floor, a cart has been sitting full of rainwater and unwashed dishes since Monday (remnants from room service?)

I finish listening to the book club's next book: "Lady Tan's Circle of Women" by Lisa See. What a marvelous story of the terrible circumstances in the Ming dynasty: oh, the competition and malice, striving for status, household rivalries, political alliances to protect self against others, wealth vs. abject poverty, and more. I wouldn't have enjoyed reading the detailed descriptions of the beauty of clothing, faces, and gardens half as much as I learn by listening to it. The tale makes me grateful to be a follower of Jesus - in this era.

Just before 10:00, I head for breakfast and connection. The furnishings in the restaurant are simple and elegant.

Someone has carefully considered the decor. We're told 80% of building materials are from the island. I like the little rock/water/sapling centerpieces that dot the dining tables.

W and I walk the length of the beach in one direction about noon. Natural beauty is everywhere.

The tide has come in so there's a narrow strip of beautiful white sand to walk under an overcast sky.

The restless sea hisses relentlessly against the beach. It's a soothing sound.

Seaweed and tree trunks have been swept onto land.

So has plastic and human discards.

The boat wrecks are full of plastic bottles and refuse.

This close to the hotel, I'm surprised they haven't been picked up and recycled.

You'd expect a sustainable endeavor to have connections with a recycling plant (or build a small one of their own?) At the least, why not hire someone to pick up the bottles - glass and plastic? 

That would provide local wages and a more pleasant shoreline.

The water is tinted brown from iron in the rocks. Further out, the beautiful blue sea awaits. The chug-chug of diesel tour boats drifts across the surface of the ocean.

W requests room service at the front desk because our wet towels are still in the room at 4:30 when we head to supper. At the tables, the company is good. The food is ... indifferent, if not unappetizing.

We come back to a clean room with a small piece of cake and an unopened box of tissues on the end table. Hmmm.

My PJs have been taken from under the pillow and set on the bench at the foot of the bed.

Wednesday

We sleep well. After breakfast and conversations, we head for the beach again, turning left instead of right.

Similarly to our walk the other way yesterday, the brown (iron-infused) creeks run into the sea. We step through the flow to continue our stroll.

A fisherman has lost his net and float. It tangles around driftwood and we carefully step around it.

A few boats are parked on the shore, pulled up beyond the reach of the tides.

A little motorboat bobs in the waves.

Someone has built a cement and stone barrier around the roots of this coastal tree. Trees are considered homes to spirits in local traditions.

A cuttlebone sits between recyclables: I have one of these in each of our bird cages. Fun to see them on the beach.

Some children splash in the pools, watched by their parents.

There are few other guests here during the week, which must be very hard on the hotel. It's restful and quiet for the conference attendees.

Read more:

*Who can say, “I have made my heart clean; I am pure from my sin?” Proverbs 20:9

*Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies. Your righteousness is like the highest mountains, your justice like the great deep. You, Lord, preserve both people and animals.

How priceless is your unfailing love, O God! People take refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast on the abundance of your house; you give them drink from your river of delights. For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light. Continue your love to those who know you, your righteousness to the upright in heart. Psalm 36:5-10

*When Jesus perceived their questionings, he answered them, “Why do you raise such questions in your hearts?” Luke 5:22

Moravian Prayer: Lord, examine our hearts and see our faults. We have erred and strayed, but you, O Lord, are our shepherd. Guide us into the paths of righteousness. Forgive us when we have made excuses or questioned you. With pure hearts, help us to pursue your ways and do your will. Amen.

In with the old, but mixed with the new

Friday, March 8, 2024 (Lent Day 21)

I thought I'd be sore after the hike yesterday but nope - doing fine. W and I walk up the hill to #NaraPark for our weekly date breakfast. The owls stare at us as they are shifted to daylight perches from their overnight aviary.

I check the menu as I always do. And order the same thing I always order because I like it so much: mie Rica (spicy ramen noodles) and popcorn chicken (a side of crispy chicken and shrimp). As usual, I can't eat it all but W distributes the leftovers, including a little bag of sambal (hot sauce - that one's not for the dogs!)

On the way home, we admire the alignment of stone tiles on the wall of the new house. The master mason has done an incredible job. The cornerstones are perfectly placed, too.

I sketch a gazebo for an Austin friend in a few minutes. Such things are pure fun and brain candy for me. It will be drawn and painted to scale after approval.

For lunch, Don joins our meeting with Ps Yoel and Esther at #WaorungEthnic down the hill. We treasure these relationships. It's fun to connect people from all around the world at a table.

The meals are big portions but hit the spot. Dessert is "just right," shared between us all: banana chocolate pancakes and strawberry crepes. (No, I don't try the strawberry stuff. I'm still scarred from picking them in my teens.)

Our friends are donating a guitar to a new worship team. We plan to pass that along on Sunday. Generous partners make the world sing.

Yoel and Esther drop Don and me at Don's next appointment. We stash the guitar in storage for Sunday's transfer. (Below: Instead, Saturday it's wrapped in plastic against the rain and delivered to CityC church via Pak Perdi's motorcycle.)

I refuse Yoel and Esther's kind offer of a ride home and have a leisurely walk, sweating in my raincoat in 85o (30oC). I'm too lazy to carry the coat, though there's no rain.

Yay! I finish marking student papers for the January class I taught,  with a week's grace after the deadline and no penalty for late submissions. I send in the grades and give the school permission for anything that comes in later to be considered and graded by their faculty. At least half of the class is on spotty internet and limited electricity, which makes a Zoom class a challenge. My part is done.

And then it's sundown. Is anyone hungry for supper? (Not I, said the woman who's eaten out twice in a day, for less money than she could have cooked the meals herself ... )

Saturday (Lent Day 22) 

One interesting thing about aging is seeing the shape of family members emerge in your own body. I look down. Woah! I used to trace similar veins on my grandma's hands, while standing beside her in church. She must have been about my age: in her sixties. Lovely to remember her and her fervent love for God. The veins? Not so attractive.

A roam around the garden provides greens and a few flowers to fill in the gaps left by last week's faded roses. Titik's structure is so good that it takes very little to redo her bouquets for another week. Lucky me! Look at those HOT red bromeliad flowers.

#1 Last week...

#1 This week...

#2 Last week...

#2 This week...

W takes the flowers to the hall in the car. Our driver is off today. PakG is traveling to meet his extended family before March 12 kicks off a month of Muslim fasting (called Ramadan).

We pack our luggage for the next trip. Then I sort through some leadership materials for the next class. The amount of information being written and broadcast is staggering. As a lecturer, I pare it down to the essentials for my students.

Sunday

We meet early in the prayer room. Alice has donated a rug from her mom's collection. It goes beautifully with the paint colors.

After a good message from Don Eischens, the IES Bandung team has lunch together at Maxis. It's a joy to eat together as a family.

After, we pose under a huge benjamina fig tree. We are so honored to serve with this international crew.

Read more:

*Surely the righteous will never be shaken; they will be remembered forever. They will have no fear of bad news; their hearts are steadfast, trusting in the Lord. Their hearts are secure, they will have no fear; in the end they will look in triumph on their foes. They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor, their righteousness endures forever; their horn will be lifted high in honor. 

The wicked will see and be vexed, they will gnash their teeth and waste away; the longings of the wicked will come to nothing. Psalm 112:6-10

*My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning? Psalm 22:1

*[When Jesus died,] the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. Mark 15:38

Moravian Prayer: Sometimes, O God, we feel alone and forsaken but then we remember your promise—that you will go before us and will be with us. You will never leave us nor forsake us. Thank you that we do not need to be afraid because you are present in our lives when we need you most. Amen.

Mucking about

Monday, March 4, 2024 (Lent Day 17)

W and Don head to the train station at 6:00 a.m., the same time I walk out the door for 2 miles around the neighborhood. They'll be gone 3 days - W is doing a seminar and an "Ask the Professor" session in Jogja, a 6+-hour train ride away. He loves teaching.

We've unpacked most of what we brought from Bali. My "haul" is five 1.5-meter cotton pieces, which go to the seamstress later this week. IbuS washes and irons them, ready to be cut. A few years ago, Mom sent along buttons from her sewing room. There are enough to customize each blouse.

I'm taking notes on resources for upcoming classes. My notebook, with pages and pages of handwritten notes and color-coded edges, shows me where one book starts and the other ends. With its little index, it is surprisingly efficient.

Between a spicy Korean ramen lunch and chocolate-covered coffee beans, I cover a lot of ground. Herding Tigers by Todd Henry has me spellbound. Except when my dad was the owner or manager, I've never experienced a team or workplace with Henry's principles of managing creatives. 

If my bosses had followed even half of these principles, I would have worked myself to the bone for them and accomplished 5X the results. Who knew?! (Hey, where was this book when we needed it?) The author identifies what I crave and need to thrive. 

I'm reminded how to step up for my own creative teams.

I clean the fridge of leftovers and explore what's left inside. Vegetables, dairy, lots of jars of sauces and other goodies ... it looks full. So why am I tempted by nothing but the TJ Peanut Butter cups? Resist! resist!

Tuesday (Lent Day 18)

It's a long day of walking, study, 6 meetings, and more. Waking at 4:00 a.m., I might as well stay awake until my first meeting at 5:00. Except it  starts with a postponement until 10:00. After 2 other calls, I sit down at the screen to finish a few things before the rescheduled session.

Oops - I've forgotten my monthly 9:00 check-in. Luckily, the contact is still online; we wrap up 3/4 hours later.

The IES team comes at 1:00. When they leave, the seamstress' husband arrives to chat and pick up the new fabrics. They'll replicate a well-fitting blouse for me in the Bali colors.

Wednesday (Lent Day 19)

Another day of meetings flies by: by the time I fire up the mandatory 9:00 company meeting, I've already been in 3 others. I check for student assignments but decide to grade them all together later. Grades are due on Friday.

 Late in the evening, W and Don return to Bandung by train. I stay up until my eyes are falling shut. To stay awake, I prepare supper and swap the cushion slipcovers for something lighter.

Before... 

After ... 

I finally give up waiting: their train is delayed by over an hour. I protect the food on the dining table with ant-proof covers, shower, pull on PJs, and hop into bed. It's a restless night when nothing feels comfortable. I sleep 9:30-11; 4:30-6 (when W's alarm blares), and snooze until 7:00 before my own alarm beeps the wake-up call.

Thursday (Lent Day 20)

Hiking. It's our sabbath day of refreshing each week. After 4 hours of sleep, my body unwinds on the 5+-mile (8km), 14,000-step trail. We go up and down many times, but the total elevation is only 8 flights.

We walk through coffee plantations shaded by the tall pines planted by Dutch colonists. History is everywhere in the city and the mountains. We pray God's favor over the people working in the fields and forests as we pass them. Most are friendly and wave to us.

We pose at the entry to the old war forts. The dogs look at us expectantly: sometimes they get a treat when we stop. Not this time.

The forts are almost overgrown behind high walls. The grasses are 3-4 meters high (9-12').

The cycle of life is that things sprout and die. This patch of ferns is definitely on its way out, even as new plants emerge.

Several times, we cross the rain-filled trenches gouged into the wet dirt by all-terrain vehicles and motorcycles. The dogs don't bother with the stepping stones we step on to keep our feet dry. Coming and going, Juno takes a mud bath and is a happy two-toned wonder when she emerges.

As we walk out of the forest toward the cars, we spot three men welding a new canopy across the admission gate. They don't wear safety harnesses and the only thing under their feet are the metal beams they're connecting.

We have lunch a few hundred meters up the road. This suspension bridge over a deep valley sways as tourists traverse it. We would have tried it in the first 3 months. After that (now), with the Indonesian disregard for maintenance, we prefer to watch others make the trek. It starts to pour within minutes of arrival and the strolls across the canyon become jogs. 

Lunch is good food and good company. My $6 ribs and soup are yummy.

We make one more stop: the grocer. I stay in the car to save money, sending W inside. He adds eggs to his own list. Don gets the juice he needs, and we're on the way home. Shower. Rest. Refreshed.

IbuS has baked a fresh loaf of bread. That will be our simple supper, complete with cold cuts and the last tomato. I'm reminded of the goodness of God, who supplies every need.

Read more:

*God said, “I will establish my covenant between me and you, and your offspring after you throughout their generations.” Genesis 17:7

*Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart. Recite them to your children and talk about them. Deuteronomy 6:6-7 

*Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.

Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:28-31

*This is what the Lord says: “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths,

ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls." 

But you said, "We will not walk in it." Jeremiah 6:16

*Jesus said, “The Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all that I have said to you.” John 14:26

Moravian Prayer: Gracious God, thank you for every opportunity we have to praise you. Help us feel your guiding presence in these difficult times. We know there is hope when we do what is right. Help us to cling tightly to you. Amen

At least 4 = a lotta links to a lotta stuff

Friday, March 1, 2024 (Lent Day 15)

Our final morning in Bali is full of good news - how to lead, how to focus on what's important, and how to transfer your values to others. My head is buzzing and my notebook page is full. Thanks to Don Buterra, an uncommon and unconventional leader who reminds us that God uses who we are, where we've been sent.

We have purchased a few gifts. (= my interpretation of Balinese mood and peoples above)

W and I catch a flight to the new Bandung-area airport (2 hours from town). Our flight is partly full but we are the only flight landing during the hour it takes to get our luggage off the only moving carousel. So ... we maybe see 1-200 people in this second-largest airport in Indonesia. There's a lineup of shuttles to the villages and cities.

The road paving has good sideway leveling. However, it's not even going forward, which creates a bucking bronco effect. It's quite bumpy at times and the rain makes it hard to see the beautiful mountains edging paddy fields on either side of the tollroad. There are few villages in view.

The shuttle driver centers the van on the dividing line between 2 lanes unless we pass a motorcycle or car. Then he shifts over to the far lane before returning to the middle of the road.

Saturday (Lent Day 16)

I learn more from this mastermind each month (regardless of who is able to show up) than any other group meeting. The leaders are lively, opinionated, and full of good counsel, leading at different seasons of life and in far-flung places. We start at 6:00 a.m. which knocks my walk off the schedule. Since we've walked 5 miles every day in Bali, I don't care if we skip it today.

After some trail mix, yogurt, and half a cookie from #QuietWatersBakery, I'm ready to catch up on a few book reviews. The cost for each pre-publication book is a review. Some books are useful to me as a lecturer or pastor; others pique my curiosity; a few are pure recreation, written by authors I've enjoyed in the past. Read some of the reviews here. (Use the TOC to find books that might interest you?)

I recommend two books by Johann Hare: a fascinating book on Ozempic, to be published soon, as well as another on digital distraction. All kinds of books pass through my Kindle and e-readers. Some have been published. Others are coming to print soon. 

One that grabs my heart is an account of a father's emotions and processes when his son lands in prison.

I read about recovery from burnout. I skim an account of friendship as transformation (the book of Ruth and modern relationships). I browse a theology manual written by a respected Lutheran. And I review a another batch of novels that did/n't live up to my expectations.

I limit myself to 20 reviews, which takes up the middle of the day. My head is spinning, my stomach is full (DIY Mexican-ish noodles, a recipe here), and my eyes are tired. Time to take a break and prepare for the Leadership Team meeting tomorrow.

A new-to-us recruiter for short-term interns arrives in late afternoon. He's exploring what ways volunteers could be helpful in the community and country. He's touring Indonesia, seeing sights and meeting people. We're glad he showed up at our place.

Supper is a walk away, up the street to #NaraPark.

A young graduate is posing for pictures in a niche by our table.

Sunday

Don speaks on the Boldness of the Spirit. The morning's highlight is baptizing 3 people. It's a declaration of their intention and promise to follow God for life.

Each one in the community rejoices.

The leadership team meets right after we're done. Some of the LT join us for lunch.

The food at Maxis is good. $6 for 2 king prawns? ok.

The flowers come home from the hall.

Ibu Titik is a genius in creating fresh arrangements. "It's fun for me," she insists.

Monday (Lent Day 17)

Time for a walk. The living room is flooded with sunshine before I head out.

I notice a few new things in the neighborhood. The stone tiling is finally done on the wall where the new house is being built. It looks colossal. 

Maybe Rabbit Town is getting ready to open, after being closed since the pandemic. All the cartoon-animal figures are lined up and waiting for the public.

Mom's her usual cheerful self in our early meeting before my first meeting with others.

Read more:

*In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.

And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day. Genesis 1:1-5

*How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? Psalm 13:1

*You have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I sing for joy. Psalm 63:7

*Jesus cried with a loud voice, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Matthew 27:46

*If God is for us, who is against us? Romans 8:31

Moravian Prayer: O divine Habitation, we take comfort in the assurance that wherever our lives may take us, or whatever life may throw at us, we are surrounded by your loving embrace. May we remain aware that your abiding presence is sufficient for all the challenges of our lives. In Jesus’ name, we pray.

Gracious Lord, in our moments of distress, we can imagine ourselves to be far from you. When we are tempted to feel forsaken, may we listen for your voice in the silence. May we ever remember that you are only a prayer away. May we seek and always find you. Amen.