Story lines

Thursday, September 21, 2023

I'm awake much of the night so I sleep in until 8:00. Whew. By then it feels like half my day is over. I walk to the kids' classroom before lunch. 

My task is filling a blank space with words to inspire the kids who use the room. Clau asks, "How about something similar to the writing on your powder room wall?"

She's referring to the short sentences in the guest bath. One day, in lieu of wallpaper on the constantly wet wall (see the rain damage?), I wrote from my imagination. The half-sentences could be part of a story: however, readers must puzzle in their own beginnings and endings.

The classroom wall was initially given a coat of white paint by a fine crew of friends and teens.

When it dried, Eki taped off a pattern. The next group painted a geometric mural over the whitewash.

I've been assigned the middle white space. I like the theme of LOVE. Before lunch, I sketch guide lines to lay out the project. The color inspiration is the mural colors, an existing rug,

and some tree frog pictures that Clau found.

It takes most of the afternoon to draw scriptures on the blank space. I printed out 2 pages of favorite short and long verses. I need various line lengths. It's casual and spontaneous lettering, with printing rather than the cursive in our guest bath.

With the space almost filled, I add a group of little heart people and call it a day.

Between a morning and afternoon of mark-making on the wall, Pauline's crew at #NaraPark has set a beautiful table for the hikers and friends. Wow! Feels like we should dress up.

We enjoy time together. Some of our walkers haven't seen each other for months. The group scatters around the world for vacations, work, and family time. It's always great to be back home in Bandung.

It's started to sprinkle rain in the afternoons. Is dry season is coming to an end? The parched fields welcome the renewal and cracks in the ground absorb any moisture.

Friday

The morning starts with a walk and a stroll around the yard. It's been dry for months so the grass is barren. Flowers bloom wherever we water.

Occasionally I head to the bottom of the yard to sit in a rattan swing and watch the fish in the bathtub ponds. Even here, the garden is dry and the earth is hard-baked.

As we start to pack, our room is a disaster. Lots of arrangements precede travel: finding house sitters, dog sitters, sorting must-take items, and tracking down gifts purchased for friends/family. W's our expert at weighing suitcases.

Each time we return from a trip, our helpers get hotel samples and supplies. This morning I sort through the collection on the travel shelf: shower caps, toothpaste, toiletries, etc. Yikes - didn't we already give them away!?

We have some meetings. Dr Wuri walk with us to Dr Hanna's house around the corner. It's a high tea. She has unusual (for us) savory and sweet treats. The meringues are from a shop set up in the early 1900s, where DrH's mom used to buy baked goods. So good, including the oolong tea.

Saturday-Sunday

Saturday morning starts with a traditional Western breakfast. I haven't made scrambled eggs, pancakes and sausage in months. I cover an extra sausage and leave it in the pan on the stove overnight. Bad move. It is swarming with tiny ants when I go to heat it Sunday morning.

We finish packing, tossing gifts and clothing into two suitcases. W finds 2 bigger suitcases to put the smaller ones into - we'll need the space for our return trip.

I write our October newsletters. The perfect spot to write is the nook.

During the night, I make a checklist of things to wrap up tomorrow. Sleep is short: 9pm-12:30. It's not enough, but Sunday morning I get out of bed at 5:10. Enough already of lying about.

Read more:

*The word of the Lord is upright, and all his work is done in faithfulness. Psalm 33:4

*Jesus said, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.” Matthew 24:35

Moravian Prayer: Steadfast, trustworthy God, your words and actions are the same from age to age, and in every generation. You are always reliable, and we can believe and take action in your confident leadership, even when we don’t feel so confident ourselves. Thank you, God. Amen.