Eating it up

Wednesday, April 2, 2025

It's a good day - we're not hiking tomorrow so we decide to walk across town to dinner. It's a few miles away but W assures me it's more down than up. Turns out to be optimism on his part: we are 9 meters /13 feet lower from our starting point when we arrive. (My watch registers 38 ascending flights, which means we walked 41 flights down.)

I'm wear capris in case it rains: better to have trousers off the ground. There's a slight drizzle when we walk out the gate. W has his umbrella. I have my IKEA raincoat but forget a hat to keep the from  falling over my eyes. When it starts to rain, I pull on the raincoat, roll the lip of the hood back and away, and that's that. We make a few wrong turns but it's interesting to walk through back alleys and narrow paths lined with wealth and poverty.

"We can call a cab anytime you want," W says. It's a pleasant hike in the warm rain.We're climbing up and down so we're not cold. The cement is slick as ice but my shoes grip the asphalt. I watch my feet when the pavement changes.

By the time we get to our destination (2.5 miles/4 km), we're soaked through. Water has totally wet W's long trousers and rain has dripped down my hood and V-neck. We are like drowned rats when we show up on our friends' doorstep. I ask for a towel. Caron takes a look at me and gets a change of clothes, while Jorge gives W a dry shirt. Thanks! (When we take our wet clothes home, we realize we were wet - saturated from head to toe.)

We cheer what Jorge and Caron have accomplished in caring for others. God has opened gateways to many venues because of their willingness to love without limits. Caron has cooked a delicious dinner - and we came into an utterly clean house. How did she do that with 3 young kids? (My place was a disaster when our kids were little - ask anyone who visited us!)

After yummy chicken, pasta, and a layered salad, IbuA's cookies are a hit. We take a fun photo of their enjoyment and send it to IbuA. (She's delighted.) After playing a few games together, the family drives us home so we don't have to hail a cab.

The kids get some aquarium fish and plants from our ponds so their betta fish feels less lonely. Their parents get a bag of chocolate chip cookies. It's a fair trade for a ride :-) with maximum benefits distinctly on our side.

Thursday

After our neighborhood walk, we drop by Nara for breakfast. W orders sugar toast, delivered on soft white bread with a thick layer of brown sugar. My usual is spicy noodles and deep-fried shrimp.

W works on USA taxes while I write and make calls. We don't hike but have walked a few miles by the end of the day. 

I was looking forward to meeting our new dog next week, but the pet taxi sends a heads up. Due to Lebaran traffic (stop-and-go for miles), the taxi won't drive until the end of April. It's risky to crate animals for hours or days if traffic us at a standstill in the tropics. And traffic flow does stall. A normal 3-hour trip (110 miles/180 km) between Jakarta and Bandung can take 8-12 hours, never mind driving across Java to Bandung (885 miles/1100 km).

Friends Daniel and Della come for lunch. There's so much food in the fridge and freezer that meal prep is easy. I boil up a peanut sauce based on smell and imagination: peanut butter, 2 kinds of hot sauce, some ginger drink, brown sugar, and salt. It's a hit all around - spicy and sweet.

Daniel is speaking Sunday so we enjoy his "dress rehearsal" as Della translates. It's going to be good! Della clips seeds and lavender flowers from the garden. What a privilege to host friends during this week.

When we clean up afterward, we find hundred (maybe thousands) of dead ants spread across the "dirty" kitchen in the back. W put out new bait and they have succumbed in heaps on the floor and counters. Gross. The only thing worse than pills of dead ants is having them working away without noticing! We are constantly de-bugging wooden support posts and door frames in the house, plus checking for ant trails.

Friday

The new breadmaker bakes a perfect loaf overnight. It's still warm when I get up. I indulge in honey from the USA and nut butter from New Zealand. What a world we live in!

I enjoy a call with our daughter, snapping a photo of her dog staring her down for attention. Mika is total cuteness. "And needy," says Kirsten. Then we have an inspiring meeting with other global workers. It's encouraging to see what is possible around the world.

There's no morning walk because we have bigger plans in late morning. We pass our neighbor's house. Oh oh! water is streaming out of their front wall. I send a photo to DrW who knows everyone: she'll know who to contact. We meet her walking up the hill as we start the 4.5 km/3 mile walk to lunch. It's hot and sunny so hats and sunglasses help.

Halfway over, we buy a banana at Papaya. It's hot outside and we need the energy. Oh, they have the Japanese vinegar (for soba noodles) that Sayaka told us about. I'll buy a bottle another day.

Alan and Jani at #RoadrunnerBurger have the best fries and burgers in town, made with personally selected ingredients and home-cooked attention! Sam meets us there.

After, we stop at Griha grocer to stock up on flour, veggies, and milk. No schlepping those! We catch a Grab taxi to return across the hills and are home about 4:00. Lucky for us, we're in a car when the downpour starts.

Saturday

We walk before I raid the garden for Sunday's bouquet. It's almost a meter high, a mass of aquarium and yard grasses, shrubs, and Indonesian lavender.

After trimming my hair, I water the plants, write, and make lunch (egg salad sandwiches, fresh mayonnaise bread buns, and a couple salads, with kombucha and sparkling coconut water). John joins us at the table. How we appreciate the prayers each time we meet with friends of the heart.

Read more:

*“Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. Isaiah 1:18

*My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living water, and dug out cisterns for themselves, cracked cisterns that can hold no water. Jeremiah 2:13

*The Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him! Habakkuk 2:20

*Jesus was teaching and saying, “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’?” Mark 11:17

*Jesus said, “Those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.” John 4:14

Moravian Prayer: Source of life, grant us the faith to take the cup of everlasting life and mercy given to us, and grant us the courage to take a sip and live as you intend, knowing that we are never far from your love.

Most holy Lord and God, fill us with your Spirit as we seek your presence with reverence and awe. Forgive us when we act foolishly and ignore your still, small voice that guides our hearts and minds into making decisions that honor you. Create in us a deep desire to give you our best as we praise you in our places of worship, and in how we interact with others. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.