Tuesday, January 6, 2026
The team is here for supper. We're short one couple and we miss them! We love these committed and passionate friends. Everyone leads something, according to their interests and gifts.
Della, head of Karel Taste catering, cooks a wonderful New Years feast, starting with soup. That's followed by beef rendang, chicken, shrimp, rice wrapped in banana leaves, and vegetables.
She likes to cook and we like to eat her food.
Dessert? A delicious coconut custard called klapertart.
Today's the day Christmas decor starts to move to storage. Outside, all is calm. The 80' Norfolk Island pines remind us that houseplants grow differently in their native climates. They absorb pollution, noise, and sightlines.
The Christmas tree's only been up for a week but it's been a pleasure, elevated to eye level by sitting on a table.
After our walk, I have one last look at the living room before it devolves into chaos.
The lights, the bulbs, the garlands ... we enjoyed them all this year.
But with one loooong (10 meter/32'?) red garland and a few boxes of red and gold ornaments, it looks pretty in the entry. Today it is stowed back in its oven box, along with the red garland.
We're finding strange little pieces that need repair but for the most part the Project is settling in. This window has a 1X3cm/1/2X2" piece of glass missing in a corner. The drain in one sink leaks. The rayap (termites) are eating their way through a just-replaced window sill. Oh well.
An ongoing process is assigning tasks and ensuring that they can be done in the time allotted. The women are clear on their work inside after sitting down with me yesterday.
This tree, given us in a cardboard box with oven drawings on it, was so pitiful that W hesitated to put it together. It has an old-fashioned "stick-with-drilled-holes" trunk and flip-floppy branches that have been inserted and taken apart too many times.
But what needs regular maintenance outside - and by whom? Star fruits are rotting on the ground instead of being picked up. The dog pawprints on the side terrace are there for a few days - it's been swept but not mopped. The balcony is littered with leaves. We decide to go through the outside list on Friday.
W's in an experimental mood. He orders a gourami special. "Want to try it?" he asks. Nope. But he says it's good.
Friday
My favourite meeting of the month lasts 2 hours. I join online from the "apartment" terrace at the far end of the Project. At the end, we all feel celebrated and prayed for. We've been given good counsel from other leaders. Thanks - you know who you are and how important you are to me and each other.
By evening the main Christmas tree is almost bare. The other trees have been packed up for next year and the ornaments are finding their way into boxes. We walk to the old place to pick up W's hiking shoes. He somehow splits a chunk off his big toenail. It looks painful to walk, never mind a hike. He wraps it and says it's fine unless he thinks about it (or someone asks him about it.)
Thursday
It's been over a month since we've hiked. Today is the day! On the drive to the mountains, we spot someone making charcoal from coconut husks. That will smoke the sate made later in the day.
There's a good turnout for the New Years hike: 14 hikers. Our destination is the Dutch forts from where young men fought each other in the Indonesian war for sovereignty from the Dutch colonists.
Eva is a great trail leader. We wind up and around the hills for about 8 km (-5 miles). Everything in the forest looks the same to me and probably to most of the others. The dogs love their mountain runs, romping and playing together. They come back for water or treats.
Eva knows just where she's going. On the first half, the visitors lag behind. Someone gets a cramp and has to wait it out. Another pauses to take pictures. Still others cannot talk and walk at the same time. It takes a couple of hours to climb 4 km (2.5 miles). Beside the trails, local guys are chopping strips from pine bark to harvest the gluey sap in half-coconut shells. It's illegal.
On the way back, Eva keeps everyone together by telling them she's not responsible if they get lost. It's easy to lose track of where we are, with trails going off in every direction.
When the sun is behind clouds, it's not possible to tell which way we're facing. So the newbies stay within sight of the rest of us. It's much quicker coming back with no long pauses.
Five of us lunch at Sindang Reret, a traditional restaurant with floating boat tables set in ponds. Those are not for us today; after a hike, we don't want to sit on the floor around a short table. We stick to a regular table and chairs. The food is excellent, as is the company.
It's a busy afternoon with time for a bath before nightfall. I still can't believe we have a tub!
Sunrise varies during the year from about 5:45-6:15AM in Bandung (6°54'36"S). In the Southern Hemisphere, days are longest in December and shortest in June. The 1m/3' leaves on this roadside plant turn toward the light as the sun comes up.
As W and I walk the dogs, we marvel at the fresh growth on the 6m/19' stub that was left after pruning a few months ago. The bare trunk has a "new tree" bursting out of the top. Everything grows back here.
W goes through tasks with the outside helper. The rhythm of work changes at each residence. It can take staff a while to settle into working efficiently, especially if they're used to long breaks during the day. We share our wifi and everyone has a phone, swiping and scrolling during down time. They may have less time for that here.
We put away the last of the Christmas things. While W puts the trees and decor into storage, I sort through bags of kitchen boxes and Tupperware that were dropped off under the stairs during the move. We're making daily progress.
The Christmas display made by Ruth turns back into a congklak, a children's game played with shells.
Between it all, we do our work.
Read more:
* Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you. Isaiah 60:1
* You rule the raging of the sea; when its waves rise, you still them. Psalm 89:9
* And [Jesus] said to them, “Why are you afraid, you of little faith?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a dead calm. Matthew 8:26
Moravian Prayer: Masterful Creator, you made all that is and gave humans free will, knowing that we would be imperfect and selfish beings. When we try to justify bad behaviors, touch our hearts with Jesus’ words, reminding us that peace comes from forgiveness, not blame. In trust, we pray. Amen.
