Goodbye from Afar

On 25 July, my maternal grandfather died.  With his rapidly declining health, we knew it was coming but somehow part of me kept hoping that he’d recover and allow me to see him again…in a year or so?  Sigh….

Saying “goodbye” from halfway around the world is a bit surreal.  Nothing changes in my life here to mark that he was here with us one day…but today he is gone.  I find that I’m most sorry for myself.  Is that wrong?  That I can’t celebrate his life with the rest of the family, and mourn the empty spot he leaves.

Actually, I think I began mourning 2 years ago when I said my final goodbye to in person.  We had just spent a wonderful month on the family homestead helping out and reconnecting with friends and family in the area.  We spent a lot of time sitting on that swing set talking and reminiscing.

And when it came time to leave, Grandpa asked us again why we had to go all the way to Papua New Guinea.  Did we like it better over there?

“No, Grandpa, home is always best, but the people of Papua New Guinea need to read the Bible in their own language.”  We hugged and said we’d be back in 3 years.  Grandpa commented that he didn’t think he’d be around when we came back.  I protested mildly that I hoped it wouldn’t be true…but I think we both knew he was probably right.

You were right, Grandpa.  But I thank God for all the wonderful memories and time spent with you.  You will be greatly missed!

First Day of Home School

 

Claire, barely able to contain her excitement to begin the first day of school, leaps out of bed at the break of dawn.  <insert dripping sarcasm>

 

 

 

The caramel apple cinnamon rolls Mommy made to celebrate the beginning of what we hope is another great year of learning together.  (Can’t forget the obligatory mug of Milo to wash down the anti-malarial meds….)

 

 

Claire’s math workbook assures her that “Math is a blast”!  (See the picture of the space shuttle launch pad on the left page.)  Somehow, I don’t think Claire is convinced.

 

 

 

Wow!  This lefty has amazing penmanship!  Keep working hard, Isaiah!  When you finish that copy work, you can have 5 minutes on the swing.

Upside-Down Refrigerators and Other Mental Drains

We’ve recently moved into this beautiful home.  I hesitate to even call it a move because we didn’t change states or countries…just transporting stuff from one house to another.  OK so maybe that’s moving, but as far as moves go, it was pretty easy. 

That is…until we got unpacked and I was reminded how much I usually function on autopilot during the day.  Repeatedly searching under the kitchen sink for the rubbish bin.  Groping uselessly on the wrong side of a doorway for a light switch.  Staring idiotically at the inside of the refrigerator because you can’t find the ice cubes.  (My opinion of freezer-bottom refrigerators has temporarily soured.)

Every transition requires re-learning those tasks we used to do “automatically”, and thus consumes an exhausting amount of brain power.  So although the house is excellent and I’m very sure I’ll love living here as much as the rest of my family, I’m still in the midst of my mini culture-shock.  Hey!  I just celebrated my 40th birthday and you know the saying, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.”

Be patient with me and when I spend an excessive amount of time on my new verandah drinking tea, remember that the key to thriving during transition is to focus on the positive and keep a thankful attitude.  And I am very thankful for this positively gorgeous view!  <wink>