Flying through the week

Monday, November 16, 2020

Quote of the week: "Never believe anything bad about God." Steve Cuss (Makes me ponder: why do we blame God when we do not praise or worship him for opportunities and accomplishments, or as we examine and exult in the wonders of the world and the good people around us?)

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Kirsten's on her way back to the USA tomorrow. She does her "lasts," like picking up a Miss Bee iced chocolate drink.

We eat a final dinner together at Nara Park, tucked under a stairwell because the live music is rather live-ly and loud.

We enjoy its beautiful landscaping

and shoot a Marco Polo for our grandkids at its turtle park. See the big turtle shell inside the half-barrel?

Tuesday

After the morning team meeting, I walk home from the office. Ibu Apong has made a special lunch for Kirsten and us - yummy chicken and potatoes. K's a potato-lover.

Of course we take porch pictures: K's last stand on the garden overlook.

After 8 hrs of driving to Jakarta, supper, and check-in, the plane takes off about 10pm. Kirsten has good flights, with a 2-hr delay in Chicago. By our time, Thursday at 4am, she's at her Airbnb in Texas. That's about 38 hours of travel time, door to door.

She had excellent connections this time. (It's brutal every time we go back.) Isn't air travel a marvelous invention? A hundred years ago, who would have dreamed you could circumnavigate the globe in a day or two?

Wednesday

We're prepping Advent packages for BIC attendees all week. "Who is going to have to pull together the devotional content and stuff for kids?" asks a weary team member. Then Hillcrest Church in Bellingham calls to offer us their Advent devotional, complete with kid activities inside. What great timing! Thanks, Toni and P.Christian!

I shoot an Advent announcement video for Sunday once the colorful bags are delivered - and begin to drop items in, including the Hillcrest booklets. It's going to be a good packet. People can pick them up Monday to Wednesday next week. After that, we'll deliver to the addresses we have in our community call list. (If you attend BIC, make sure we have your current address.)

All week, I comfort myself with endless cups of tea and lots of paperwork. This lovely china cup was an earlier birthday gift from our Indonesian "kids" (students who stayed with us in Seattle a decade ago).

The helper and I clear out K's room. IbuS washes bedding any time there's water. City water has been sparse and spotty the past weeks, despite rainy season. We may get 1-4 hours of very green or algae-laden water in a day (if it's flowing).

We do our wet chores whenever there's water. Running a load or two in the washing machine empties the storage tanks and uses up the water for the day. We fill the plastic kitchen buckets for washing and rinsing dishes before using the clothes washer.

Mom says she's cried our daughter's farewell for me. "Just cry as you clean," says my mom. "That's what I used to do when your younger brother left for his next contract." 

I try. Nope. no tears come. Just a feeling of loss and an empty room. I'm a slow emotional processor. W and I already miss Kirsten! Until she's home, we pray night and day for her safety and good arrival.

Thursday

Since we came back from the work conference, we've been walking every morning, starting about 6am. (Dawn starts at 5am, so that wakes me up.) It feels good to put a few miles on our feet, especially if the dogs are ready for a brisk trot. I am at the office about 7 but walk home for lunch most days. Sometimes there's enough work to go back until supper. And then it's nice to fall into bed early.

I love the theme of Advent, shared by Hillcrest. Indeed, there's a lot of darkness and a need for light. In our souls as well as our bodies. I'm so grateful to have an hour or two of hot sun every day in the tropics.

Today we don't go on the weekly mountain walk because we're acquiring food for the weekend sembako packages. Saturday, the BIC Alpha crew will pack up 50 parcels of rice, ramen, sugar, oil, coconut cream, and beans - plus a surprise treat: one of the snacks K left behind. (She loves to try new foods.)

People are hungry! really hungry, in a culture that lives day to day ... with COVID taking away many jobs. (You can donate here if you want to be part of the next sembako project. The funds go 100% toward buying food. Everything else is volunteered and gratefully passed on.)

Someone drops by the office, shedding English books and CDs of kids and Christmas music. They're heading back to North America for a while. We'll pass their goodies along.

I ask Ibu Apong to cook "whatever you want with beef and coconut." We've avoided those the past months because K can't eat them. It feels like a splurge.

Friday

In the office by 7, I work until noon. There's satisfaction in getting things done on the mornings when it seems like there's nothing to be productive about. I sure miss the movie nights, community dinners, and other gatherings we used to take for granted. 

Kim sent me the link to a podcast on handling anxiety as a leader. It's taken me a few weeks to listen - I just don't have the capacity to tune in very often. Afterwards, I check my body and ask, what's wound tight, what's relaxed? And where is God in this part of our story? Do I trust him with the day, the weekend, the next week ... and my life?

Read more:

*O taste and see that the Lord is good; happy are those who take refuge in him. Psalm 34:8

*We praise you, God, we praise you, for your Name is near; people tell of your wonderful deeds. You say, ‘I choose the appointed time; it is I who judge with equity. When the earth and all its people quake, it is I who hold its pillars firm. To the arrogant I say, “Boast no more,” and to the wicked, “Do not lift up your horns. Do not lift your horns against heaven; do not speak so defiantly.”’ No one from the east or the west or from the desert can exalt themselves.

It is God who judges: he brings one down, he exalts another. Psalm 75:1-7 NIV-UK

*O Lord our God, other lords besides you have ruled over us, but we acknowledge your name alone. Isaiah 26:13

*For my name’s sake I defer my anger, for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you, so that I may not cut you off. Isaiah 48:9

*We must obey God rather than any human authority. Acts 5:29

God saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works but according to his own purpose and grace. This grace was given to us in Christ Jesus. 2 Timothy 1:9

Moravian Prayer: Lord our God, it is you and you alone we look to for calm in the midst of the clamor of a busy day; for joy in the peace of a woodland vacation; for rest in the middle of a sleepless night; for comfort in sorrow of a lost one. 

God, you withhold your anger and show us mercy. You call us to service—not according to what we would like to do, but according to your design. You show us the path with purpose and grace through Jesus Christ. Thanks be to God. Amen.

Surprise, surprise - cultural stuff and happenings

 Monday, Monday. Here we go, on November 16, 2020.

Mondays are catch-up days. After a weekend, the pieces floating here and there need capture - or they drift away. I'm chasing strings with different people - agendas, orders, meetings ... it's one of the most tiring parts of my job.

I try direct speech: "Please just do what I ask for when I ask it. I don't have energy to circle back 2-3X and check if it's done. Send me a note, 'DONE'. Thanks. " I don't have much capacity to think about small things twice.

Anyone else pushing uphill? Everyone seems to be feeling COVID restrictions differently. For me, parts of this are a grand pause. When my work is done, I get to relax and unwind for a few hours between tasks. No guilt!

We're saying goodbye this week to our daughter, after many months here. She flies home and starts life anew in a conflicted and unhealthy country. We'll be praying over her: for health, strength, and great wisdom as she restarts life in the States. We'll miss her!

Wednesday

It's date day - so we eat breakfast together nearby. Then we head to "fish street" where sellers are making aquariums. I need a fogger and a light replacement.

They sell marine fish and turtles in baggies, hung from racks on the sidewalks.

There are lots of bettas, including some very expensive ones. ($15 for this lovely.)

Bags of shrimp and krill to feed your exotic swimmers are heaped on bamboo tables.

You can pick out goldfish or tropical fish, too.

Since little neon tetras are 16 for 80c, I get those, too. Despite water acclimation, etc. some of them don't make the transition and are floating in the tank the next morning.

For those making planted tanks, they'll custom-glue stones together for the background.

Thursday

It's a joy to take the dogs into the mountains for a walk with friends. The dogs clear away any snakes, running on the path ahead of us. We start clean but it's rained hard. They find puddles to bath in and romp through. Total mud baths. Completely happy dogs.

The fields are steeply planted along each side of the hills during rainy season. That makes for great crops but very mucky walking. Clay sticks to our sole treads and weighs down our feet.

Every once in a while, we scoot under or over a fallen tree. Part of the path is overgrown and very narrow in places. We explore a new trail and have a lot of fun finding a new way back to the car.

We end with a very bad meal at a scenic restaurant. The food looks good.  Someone forgot about our meals and left them in the kitchen. After an hour, Veronica asks the server where it is. And suddenly, there it is. Hard. Cold. "Never coming again," says W. I'd give them another try.

The view is astonishing.

Saturday

We're invited to hang out with friends who are staying overnight in the UNPAR Guesthouse. It's a short walk from our house. It's a great way to get out of the center of town and have amenities around. Our friends comment that being under the mosque speakers (next-door) makes conversation a bit rough 5X a day.

We take home a bag of special treats, too! Thanks, Dr. Farah!

We're doing "lasts" this week with our daughter. We try to eat together more and spend more time together. None of us are let's-hang-out-and-talk-for-a-long-time people.

We try the Papua Restaurant again. The gluey sago palm is yummy with lemon and fish soup. You can't pick it up with a spoon: you have to wind it around chopsticks and quickly transport it to your soup bowl.

We're testing sandwiches for a new caterer. They're excellent - and delivered to the door. About $8 for all three of us.

Sunday

It's a working day - we take our Sabbath later in the week. After a long steep walk at 6:00, we eat leftover sandwiches on the porch. The Gathering starts at 9, with Dave speaking on Inner Healing. It is interesting and inspiring.

I finish big-stitching Kirsten's double-sized quilt from Bali. Whew - coming down to the wire on that project. Done.

We're filling a BIC Advent Bag with goodies this coming week. Nope, not telling what's inside. It's a surprise for BIC attendees but it's time to start putting things together for that.

As always, the garden doesn't disappoint. This is the top of a plant, torn off while leaning over the railing of the terrace.

Read more:

*So teach us, O God, to count our days that we may gain a wise heart. Psalm 90:12

*How great are your works, O Lord! Your thoughts are very deep! Psalm 92:5

*He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? Micah 6:8

*Pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. 2 Timothy 2:22

*The King of kings and Lord of lords. It is he alone who has immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see; to him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen. 1 Timothy 6:15-16

Moravian Prayer: We sing your highest praise, King of kings and Lord of lords. We stand in awe of your creation and powerful works. We have deep gratitude for your Son, Christ Jesus.

Lord, you require of us justice, mercy, humility, righteousness, faith, love, and peace. Over our lifetime we learn these challenges. We are imperfect; help our ineptitude. Give us opportunities every day to practice in real life—with the help of Jesus. Amen.

Random observations

We come back from our conference in Bali refreshed and energized. I can understand why God mandated rest for his people. Why don't we take him up on that more often?

Today's post is random. A bit of this and that. The beautiful flowers from last week begin to fade within days. I sympathize.

They are silvery and still pretty though.

Since I'm rested, I'm experimenting and having fun. I try out the eyebrow tattoos K picked up online. (She loves to shop and gets experimental stuff.) They don't sit tight on my eyebrows so they're already kinda peeling the first day. Makes me laugh - which is refreshing to the soul, right?

With all the noise coming our way on social media, it's been nice not to look at my phone until I've finished morning routines. I listen to scripture as I wake, pray, lift a few weights, write morning pages (journal), and take a walk (minimum 4500 steps or 2 miles = 2 laps around the neighborhood.) Then I head to the office, usually before 7am. By noon, I'm ready for a pause.

We have company on the weekend. Sarah and her friends liven our day.

Sarah has graduated and brings a wonderful cake to celebrate. Totally yummy.

Our friends Daniel and Della (shown with son Rafael) are creatives. Della and her cousin have opened a café just down Ciumbuleuit Street, across from UNPAR, the closest university. Daniel's outfitted it with shelving and art.

We go down to check it out around supper time. Good timing because the "snacks" are delicious AND filling: bitterbalen (deep-fried veges, chicken, and beef balls dipped into sweet mustard) and rissoles - among my favorite Indonesian foods.

For a sweet treat, there are little donut balls called poffertjes. Recognize the Dutch heritage in the names?

I resist the home-baked cookies on the counter but they look good.

Next week, we'll assemble another 50 packages of sembako (food for the needy). A van-load of ramen arrives. We'll put 5 kg rice, sugar, oil, coconut cream, ramen, peanuts, and mung beans in this time. (If you want to donate to the feeding program, let me know. It's greatly needed as people suffer during the COVID shutdowns.

We're wrapping up time with our daughter, who heads back to the USA soon. We visit places we haven't been for a while. One is a Papua New Guinea-style restaurant.

We eat "slime" made from the saga palm - you have to stab chopsticks into the bowl, then pull up, and wrap wrap wrap the chopsticks around the gel until it breaks from the bowl. 

Wind faster!

If you try to grab some with a spoon, it slides right off and back into the goo. Tip the chopstick-wrapped stuff into the soup bowl surround it with lemon fish soup and bitter greens, and enjoy. 

Or you can order a hot-stone meat and vegetable casserole. The little beef strips are seared on hot stones inside an iron skillet,. On top are sweet potatoes, corn, and greens. Both dishes are delicious.

It's served with various sauces made with ginger, sweet soy, or spicy peppers.

Down below, the courtyard, overlooked by high-rises, has little Papuan hut-covers over the tables. That helps when we get a rainy downpour.

Talking about water - I've come back from our week away to find the paludarium almost empty of water, which has splashed onto a rubber-lined mat (thank goodness not onto the floor). While I was gone, the drip irrigation was moved and is nicely splashing droplets onto the surface of the water and around.

As we go into the holiday season (Advent is 2 weeks away!), we begin to look forward to celebrations and feasts with those we love. 2020 is going to be very different. Thinking forward - what does God have in store for us as the year-end approaches?

A bit of history: someone sends an old picture of my beautiful mama and me in my young teens. Wow - we look so German, don't you think? Guess that's to be expected. Those were the days of real eyebrows and no makeup.

Read more:

*Listen to my words, Lord, consider my lament. Hear my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray. In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.

For you are not a God who is pleased with wickedness; with you, evil people are not welcome. The arrogant cannot stand in your presence. You hate all who do wrong; you destroy those who tell lies. The bloodthirsty and deceitful you, Lord, detest.

But I, by your great love, can come into your house; in reverence I bow down towards your holy temple. Lead me, Lord, in your righteousness because of my enemies – make your way straight before me. Psalm 5:1-8  NIV

*Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes. Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret – it leads only to evil. For those who are evil will be destroyed, but those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land. Psalm 37:7-9

*I was ready to be sought out by those who did not ask, to be found by those who did not seek me. Isaiah 65:1

*For we hold that a person is justified by faith apart from works prescribed by the law. Romans 3:28

Moravian Prayer: God, there is so much we do not know, even if we think we do. Help us to accept the mysteries of our faith. We pray this in deep humility. Amen.