Tuesday, June 26, 2007

Satisfied with His likeness

We leave tomorrow for Kansas.

Yesterday and today have been a flurry of preparation; with two unexpected trips into the US Embassy in Paris to get Princess an emergency passport. Yesterday on the train as I was praying, telling God that I didn't seen anything redemptive in losing a passport, it seemed God was impressing on me to not miss out on the blessings of the day by stressing about the potential problems and hassles. It made a huge difference in my attitude.

Today was a great day. I made it to Paris and back, got the emergency passport, picked up a very happy Will who thinks he aced the brevet (exams), successfully completed his inscription to high school and confirmed the apartment we want to buy is reserved for us until we get back in August and work out the financing. The house is tidy and the bags are mostly packed. We are thankful.

This is the verse that jumped out at me on the train this morning: Psalm 17:15 "As for me, I shall behold Thy face in righteousness; I will be satisfied with Thy likeness when I awake."

Saturday, June 23, 2007

Psalm 84:4

This verse has stuck with me all day--isn't it beautiful?

"How blessed are those who dwell in Thy house! They are ever praising Thee."

I was thinking of Dad, Necati, a friend of a friend, all who recently passed to the other side. They are ever praising at the throne of God. But so are we who are the temple of the Holy Spirit. And tomorrow wherever we gather to worship it will be the Lord's house, His body. Let us ever be praising the Lord.

Friday, June 22, 2007

This 'n That

Well, it has been a very full week. Mark had several performances of his unique brand of magic. Here is a picture of him performing for a competition--and below is what one finds hanging over the bathtub when it is time to bathe the rubber chicken:
We've had school programs, school registration, music rehearsals and field trips. Yesterday we sent off the first two family members for furlough. The three of us that remain had the Fete de la Musique last night. Will was great as an accompanist and soloist. Our chorale also performed. Now all we have to do is get Will through exams and find the Princess' misplaced passport. The house is getting clean during the search.
On top of all of it we think we have found an apartment right here in Villabe to purchase! I appreciate you praying for this big step. There will be updates as we move ahead with this project.
Below I've posted the three quilts I've finished recently. Now I need to put together some hand work to take to Kansas next week--see you all soon!
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Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Pomp and Circumstance

This past weekend our little ex-pat family gathered to celebrate a somewhat American high school graduation. In France, high school ends with a series of very difficult exams, the results of which one discovers sometime in July. There are no robes, funny hats or relatives crammed onto stadium bleachers. So, to make up for the lack of pomp and circumstance, our team has a tradition of conducting a graduation for those who will be going off to the U.S. to university. It is always a bittersweet time full of sharing, blessing and prayer. Here's a picture of me with this year's grad and the quilt I made for her. The back is a fabric that has a Paris map all over it. (check out the picture of everyone studying the back of the quilt!)


I shed many tears at the graduation. We all live far from our extended families and hometowns. The team becomes a sort of surrogate family. The children of my colleagues are like nieces and nephews--they are almost like siblings to our kids. We have spent Christmas, Thanksgiving, birthdays and other special moments together. Like any celebration of a life's passage, there are tears, but we all love a day together rejoicing at God's faithfulness in the life of a godly young person stepping out into the world.



I'll attach one more picture--this is all of the kids. Can you find my three?

Friday, June 8, 2007

Piano Lessons

If May is the month we love because of the endless parade of holidays; June is the month we dread as it seems to last forever. The school term doesn't end until early July, so June represents exams, evaluations, and the sun rising at 4:30am, setting at 10:30. (Trying to get some shut-eye is a challenge!) So, we imagine all American children happily riding their bikes, climbing trees, swimming in the pond, while we trudge off to school and work; the Grandes Vacances being a barely discernible haze in the distance.

Did I mention evaluations? Will had a piano evaluation last Sunday morning (!) which was Mother's Day (!) playing a piece by Debussy (!). Due to church commitments we missed hearing him, but rushed to the school to hear the comments. What happens is that 6 to 7 students in his group are all called in before the 4 person jury (parents stand around awkwardly) and each student steps forward to have their musical faults pointed out to them. (The parents look at their feet, the ceiling, anywhere, praying that their kid won't get as humiliated as that poor kid getting a public flogging) Will, always positive and optimistic had no fear as he stepped before the jury. Pointing at his feet which were adorned with his favorite African market flip-flops, she said that you must always wear proper shoes--especially when using the pedal--especially when playing a very fragile pastorale Debussy piece. (otherwise he did well) Hubby and I swallowed our giggles as our son smiled sheepishly. Evidently his shoes flipped, flopped, slapped and slid all over "The Shepherd". Afterwards we patted him on the back. At least the lesson was an easy one to apply. Now he has been invited to play the same piece on a grand piano for the "fete de la musique June 21. Lesson learned.