Sharing

I guess that it was inevitable that I would be blessed with Dave's cold after so many sleepless nights hearing him snore. I guess that is what married life is all about --sharing! I don't think that he will have the same difficulty that I did with sleeping but that is probably a good thing with the work load that he has right now. Hopefully I will be able to kick this cold before our really busy stretch next month. Luckily the boys haven't caught it yet. Like most pre-teens they feel immune to those things and are more interested in fashion statements than warmth when dressing for school --maybe they have adapted to the climate of Canada better than the rest of us.

Please pray for Dave's work load and that I don't pass on this cold to anyone else as we travel. This week in addition to our regular routine we will be making an extra trip to the boys school to do a presentation on Niger for the other fifth grade immersion class and doing a presentation for the National Board of Administration for the Free Methodist Church.

Thankful

I thought this was published awhile ago, but I just found it my draft box I guess I can add computer malfunctioning to my week too...

I am so thankful to be living in this time in history in this country, mostly because I can see.
This week (Oct.5) I went to see if I was a candidate for laser eye surgery to correct my vision and even though the technology hasn't developed to the place where they can correct my -13 eyes. I was reminded that I have been on the cutting edge of technology with my eyes for most of my life. If I had been born in my grandmother's generation or in a less developed country I might be fumbling around with the foggy blurr that is my vision without the help of glasses or contacts,
This is just one of the many things that I am thankful for today, I am hoping that you are finding many things to be thankful for too as we draw near to Thanksgiving here in Canada,

One of THOSE weeks

I am having one of those weeks, which probably has a lot to do with the fact that I haven’t been getting a lot of sleep. Dave has had a head cold for the last two weeks and as a result has been doing a lot of snoring. So this morning I decided to take advantage of the fact that I wasn’t sleeping and the computer was free. This is my disclaimer if this is full of mistakes or doesn’t make much sense.

It is amazing how fatigue can affect your ability to cope. I found myself struggling with reverse culture shock so much more this week. I have been trying to come to terms with how much we have in Canada and how much money is used for various things in contrast with the stark poverty that we faced daily in Niger. It can almost make you sick and I confess that I cried myself to sleep one night this week—but maybe that was a blessing because it was the best sleep that I have had in awhile. There are no simple answers, but God is gracious through it all.
In addition to those challenges, I have had my hot water tank die this week (good thing it was a rental and the gas company repaired it), I lost my son when trying to pick him up from school (partially my fault for being late, he was found an hour later), my dinner exploded in Dave’s hands when he tried to take it from the oven (thankfully he was ok, but we had to throw out the meat that was covered in shattered glass), I had two e-mails from Niger –one saying that my car had broken down and needed repairs and the other saying that my washing machine wasn’t working. I went to do a presentation in Ben’s class yesterday and the clothing rack decided to fall apart and dump everything just outside my front door and yes it happened to be raining slightly. Then when we went to give the power point presentation I realized that Dave had put the wrong one on the flash drive so we didn’t have the one that I had spent the better part of two days working on. (I think that there is a country music song in here somewhere…)

My list of gripes may seem long this week and you may have had bigger and worse items that you could add to yours, but I am grateful that in the big scheme of things they are nothing major and for all the things that have gone wrong God has turned them around for good. My prayer for you this week is that you would be able to see the good that God can bring about in whatever circumstances
Please continue to pray for Dave as he writes papers in addition to his regular work.

sorry for a long silence

I really am sorry for the long silence. We have been working our way into a routine for the boys, but have yet to work out a routine for Dave and I that gives me some time with both the computer and internet access. I have had time and ideas for blogs while Dave was off with the computer at school (the advantages of being grounded without a car), but otherwise I have either been without the computer or haven't been able to find the time. It has been great being able to visit with so many familiar faces and making some new friends along the way. We are so blessed by our extended family that is the FM church. Ben summed it up so well yesterday when we were in Brantford when he said "I could live here. These people have known me a whole lot longer and better than my friends at school and I really like them." Thanks for welcoming us back to Canada and loving us inspite of our worts! We praise God for the opportunity to know you and work with you. This week we are hoping to get some of the results from our medical tests that we have been going through since we got back. We would appreciate your prayers for that. Please know pastors that you and your families have been in my thoughts and prayers these last few weeks, may you sense God's nearness.

Labour Day or New Year's Day

I heard a reporter this week say that Labour Day was like another New Year’s Eve in many ways. It is especially true for those that are teachers or students because a new school year provides the opportunity for a fresh start. One of the things that I enjoyed the most about teaching was the new opportunities that each year brings. It was like you could make up for past mistakes or choices and try new things and make a difference. There are things that are the same and familiar, but just enough is different to make you feel like you get another chance. That is also what is amazing about the Christian faith, you get offered an opportunity to walk away from your mistakes and start fresh. Your circumstance may not look any different but your attitude and response to those circumstances is totally transformed. Instead of a list of New Year’s resolutions that you hope to put in place you receive a relationship with God that helps you to become even more than you ever imagined. Yesterday was the boys first day in a new school. It is a real blessing for us that they are both able to be in the same school this year. They thought that it was kind of neat that they got to go to a school that their mother had gone to many years before. Thanks for everyone that was praying for them, their first day seemed to go pretty well (I am not so sure about the second based on all the things that I have found left behind that they were supposed to take with them). Cole grew at least 4 inches over this summer, so keeping him in clothes this year could be a real challenge. There are real advantages to living in Niger, where the boys can wear shorts year round. Shorts just don’t seem to get too short as fast as pants, oh well! This week also marks the beginning of our travels as we head to Wallaceburg to visit friends at the Charlemont F.M. church. Please pray for us as we prepare for the trip and try to get everything in place. I still have suitcases to go through and unpack/repack and I feel like I lose things as fast as I find them these days. We have had so much change over the last few months that it seems hard to find a routine or to establish systems that will help things work better. Praying that you will receive the fresh start that you need whether you are going back to school or just back to the same old routine.