Growing in all directions

Thursday, February 26, 2026

Veronica and I walk along the river. Can you believe this is 15 minutes from our house? It's a relaxing and energizing stream that flows between our hill and the next.

Streams and rivers drain the slopes of our mountain city. Downtown and the south end of the city act as a drainage basin. That means frequent flooding. Sometimes water flashes up to a meter or more deep. Motorcycles and cars must pull over immediately for safety during a great downpour, whether that happens in the mountains or in the city itself.

Fix&Fogg nut butter holds me through 10,000+ steps. Slathered on homemade bread, it's an easy and relatively healthy breakfast. (Thanks to Lisa, who brought F&F treats from New Zealand.)

I love all the stages of plants, whether they're weeds or intentionally planted. This one starts with green buds that open into white flowers. Can you see the red berries tucked behind the central leaves?

As we start down the trail, some knots catch my eye.

They connect bamboo stalks to make a beautiful fence.

Even the ends are nicely wrapped. Notice the trail of ants climbing up to get to a nearby tree?

Across the river is a squatter village. There's no way to move the dwellers at this point, though they have erected homes on university land. To cheer the eyesore, an artist has come up with a whole-hillside mural painted on the sides of houses. Someone has claimed a new corner and is building their own house (lower right, not yet colored in).

The walkway was well-constructed. The paving has lasted. However, the wires between fenceposts began to rust and so were claimed by those living nearby. A single strand marks the edge of the drop-off to the river. The sidewalk has begun to slope in some areas where the soil is being undercut by runoff.

There's a plethora of wildflowers, including these daisy-like stems.

I've never worn these trainers without ankle socks. Turns out they rub. I stuff leaves against the irritating spots to ward off blisters. Other than having to replace the leaves occasionally, it works well.

We walk around ITB, a premier university with global accreditation. "You can transfer your credits straight across to Australian unis," exclaims Veronica. Her sister-in-law did just that, earning an Australian degree after completing her junior year in Indonesia.

Plants are abundant, hanging between architecturally interesting buildings. Several academic structures have 3-to-1 drainpipes mounted under the roof. Three stems drain the roof gutter into a single pipe, one storey lower. It creates a visual rhythm.

Many buildings have an extra storey below that's been dug out of the ground. In some places, the lower terraces are used for storage. Others hide utilities and garbage cans out of view.

Student paintings and posters liven the campus.

ITB has a good art department, including some budding sculptors.

Covered walkways protect students walking between classrooms during tropical downpours.

Flowers catch my eye, as always. Look at the 50cm /18" red strands dripping from this shrub.

The campus is well-maintained.

A pedestrian underpass lets students bypass the busy road overhead. On the other side of campus are sports courts and a running track. First, you descend a few flights of stairs. The slope is steep enough that you emerge at ground level.

Nooooo! They're erecting a(nother) padel center on one of their tennis courts. Let's hope padel ball is not a short-lived fad. Padel courts are being erected everywhere. Nearby is the school's Olympic-sized swimming facility.

The place we usually eat offers a takeaway-only buffet. The dining area is closed. During Ramadan, many eateries curtain off their windows so they don't tempt those who are fasting.

We call PakG, who drives us up the hill. After we drop off V, we head for the grocer. The cupboards are almost bare and I'm craving vegetables and noodles.

Dr. Gati and I meet at #NaraPark for lunch and conversation. Later, Anton loses the first tennis ball in the hedge during our game of fetch. He spends a half hour searching high and low - until he finds it.

The internet clicks in and out all afternoon.

The sun shines briefly on the yard, highlighting the ornamental grasses that are seeding after their vigorous replanting 2 months ago.

I pluck a dozen heads and pop them into a tall vase.

After locking up, it's easy to settle into the comfy chair in the library.

Friday
Another walk. Another morning of research and sorting data. This old (1980s?) fountain pen glides smoothly, making note-taking easy. I like it because it clicks open and shut like a ballpoint pen.

I accomplish my research goal in the morning and throw in some book reviews for good measure. Lunch is heated-up barley soup. We're trying to use up what we have in the freezer. The soup is one of the healthier and tastier options. Even the sweet potato /chocolate frozen mousse is healthy (ish). It takes a while to thaw.

We're mailing the weekly letter to grandkids.

And setting up for tomorrow's kid time. The 'lost' carpets have been found and will be unrolled oveer the concrete of the carport.

The whiteboard is moved into place. The plan is to have Moms learn English on one side while kids learn on the other. We put a fan in the smaller room so the kids don't bake like they did last week.

W is a good shopper and finds the spices I was looking for.

Some new books have arrived, too. We'll use some in classes and recommend others to colleagues and students.

The internet continues to flicker. I hand over the photos and text of our end-of-month newsletter to W. He can figure out how to insert it into MailerLite for us. That website and I hate each other.

Saturday
The flame vine is blazing on a nearby wall. Yes, the blooms really are that bright!

On a tree trunk, a 4' /130cm fern is thriving.

After the walk, words start to hit the screen. The paragraphs emerge from the research done over the past weeks. I hear back from admins in Canada, Brazil, and other countries. Hopefully, all the data I need will arrive before the mid-March deadline.

I break for breakfast. What am I hungry for? First, I squish a baked sweet potato into an oiled pan.

I raid the fridge for ingredients.

Then I cut and fry vegetables to spread over the base.

Into the oven it goes, topped with a beaten egg and locally-made ricotta cheese.

I eat about half and put the rest away for another day. It's tasty and filling.

In the afternoon, we host "Saturday English" at the Project. We unroll carpets and pile pillows in 5 learning zones. Then we welcome 74 kids and over a dozen moms. 

I don't teach but I'm tired anyway by the time the gates creak shut behind the last person at 5PM.

I let the dogs off from where they're tied up. They love to explore the smells left behind. After one more review of tomorrow's talk, we give the dogs some treats, lock up the Project, and call it a day.

Read more:
* I am the LORD; I have called you in righteousness; I have taken you by the hand. Isaiah 42:6

* A voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” Matthew 17:5

Moravian Prayer: Leading Shepherd, let us hear your clear voice, calling us out of our occasional spiritual complacency and into a more active love, which tears down walls and transforms them into bridges for our neighbors to cross. Amen.

A sigh of relief at a mysterious reappearance

Monday, February 23, 2026

Suddenly, the research that was gone - and none of us could retrieve - pops up. Now that is strange and wonderful! 36 pages ... where were they? Who knows. Who cares. Thank you, God! By the end of the day the document has swelled to 60 pages. It's one day at a time, just like the bloom on the daylilies in the yard.

I open the drapes after walking and feeding the dogs and making breakfast. The swish-swish of rattan brooms in the yard accompanies the chirping of birds as I click between websites. The printer doesn't work - but I'll figure something out. Sorting information is next. Then comes writing. And finally, the hard part: editing.

I eat whatever I want - and today that's a sweet potato "pizza-ish" recipe. A mashed sweet potato gets topped with broccoli, bacon, cheese, and 2 eggs, then baked. It's delicious but I can only eat half.

PakG notes that one of the exterior light switches is not working. 

And the cheap plastic faucet on the outdoor shower has broken. Water is pouring out and the well pump is going and going. Burnout ahead, except ...

He ties off the hose to stop the flow. I send a note to the contractor who will have to install better quality as water pressure from the well can vary during the day. The stone shower is a relic from when the house was built. We kept as much of the original building as we could. The faucets and fixtures were stolen when the Project was empty so had to be replaced in the renovation.

We find a Hemnes daybed, the final bed we wanted for the upstairs. "I can send it over," says the owner. "Probably at 6PM." Ok, that works.

Except that they leave her place with the bed at 5:30 and take 3 hours to get here. They probably broke their fast and hung around with friends for an hour or two. I'm up at 4AM, so 8:30 practically feels like midnight. The bed is lifted off the truck - isn't it cool how the sides of the pickup fold down?

It's too wide for a side door so they come in the entry.

It's also too wide for the bedroom door so they park it in the hall. When W's done with his current project, he'll unscrew the sides and move it inside.

Tuesday

It's cold and gloomy. By 8:00 it's only 21C/69F and we're dressed in coats or heavy sweaters. I walk with Juno, wearing jeans and a long-sleeved blouse. Brrr. Friends send photos of the snow in New England. How pretty! ... but no thanks.

I count the screws and knobs that have to be replaced on the bed and W orders them.

By 10AM my eyes are blurring from focusing on the screen. I make ramen with lettuce for lunch. Did you know that lettuce is a good vegetable for soups? Neither did we until we saw it here; it wilts just like spinach and other leafy greens.

The team comes over at 2:00. The kettle blows out its circuit. There's also no hot water from the dispenser, which is on the same line. W helps me figure it out: the extension cord needs resetting. This tangle of cords behind the living room bench is normal, in a country where electrical outlets are few. Ugly but normal. You "hardly" see it after a while.

Wednesday - work day
The streets are still mostly empty in the morning.

Once a tree starts to rot, the termites go at it. This formerly massive tree (9'/3m tall at the break) has one thin branch and a few leaves left. (Do you see what I see? A creature with tilted head, hands to the sides, and big feet.)

I print out pages of research and grab a pen to number the sections. Why not use something enjoyable to write? I have some dried-out fountain pens so I soak them. When they're clean and working, I add soap to clean the sink.

Except we can't drain it. The push-and-pop-open plug fails. So we text the contractor to find out what to do. IbuS and PakG get it open with his instructions. When they close it to check, it won't reopen. So they open it and leave it. 

PakG notices a leak. We send that pic as well. Is that where the water on the floor is coming from? We turn off the water behind the sink.

What a good group at the Women's study this afternoon. There are many snacks at Tetty's house; nearly every participant contributes something. (It's what women do.)

Thursday
I'm up early but we don't walk the dogs. Today we want to hike along the river. Let's see if the rain holds off. Breakfast is IbuS's homebaked bread with the Fix&Fogg nut butter that Lisa brought from New Zealand. The porch is so cold that I go inside for a thick sweater.

Read more:

* Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, O righteous, and shout for joy, all you upright in heart. Psalm 32:11

* The meek shall obtain fresh joy in the LORD, and the neediest people shall exult in the Holy One of Israel. Isaiah 29:19

* For you know the generous act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich. 2 Corinthians 8:9

Moravian Prayer: Renewing Savior, let us not look away from the poor and the needy in our neighborhoods, but instead, let us find positive, practical ways to engage with those in need. May our service to them help restore their bodies, hearts, minds, and souls through lovingkindness. Amen.