The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver

After a strong recommendation from Melody a few years ago, I finally picked up this book at a thrift shop while on our East Coast trip.  It was a captivating read, but also difficult to come to grips with many of the themes: a hard driving missionary father, political upheaval in the Congo, and a mother caught between following her heart to keep her daughters safe or staying with an overbearing husband.  Wow- so many thoughts, so much pondering.

Written from the perspective of all five women in the family definitely gave me more ideas and detail.  It also presented a full understanding of the characters and their relationships.    Leaving Georgia to head to the Congo in the turbulent late fifties as a dedicated missionary family was hard; but staying in the Congo when the mission organization requested that all families leave -- was foolhardy and dangerous.  This father, called to preach and follow God, somehow got lost in his zeal, and came to believe in his own intelligence and convictions with no regard for his family or the people he came to serve.

Each of the daughters were caught in the web of their father's iron will, and each responded so differently; but it was the most difficult for the mother --her struggle to stand up for herself and her daughters took courage and heartbreak.

The other deeper theme almost moved me more than the broken family situation.  The story of a Congo reaching for independence, and electing a young leader who was killed because of countries who were reluctant to give up their lucrative business dealings in the diamond market.  I again was forced to acknowledge that this country that I love, has an ugly underside where political decisions are made daily that negatively affect other places and people, sometimes simply for personal gain for us.  If we fought so hard to be independent, why can't our leaders see the potential and desire in other countries for the same ideals?  How does greed become so imbedded in human hearts that it blocks out objectivity and good moral choices?  

Morning Walk Musings

Hooray--followed through on my "first day back" goal: our for a walk, against the weatherman's prediction of rain!!  I am asking the Lord to give me good listening skills as I walk and here is my take-away for today....
We missed the "peak days" of Michigan's beautiful autumn season (and I heard that this year was particularly spectacular!); however I was struck by the Burning Bushes (I refer to them as Moses Bushes) in our neighborhood--a deeper hue of red than I have noted in other years.  They strikingly stood out in the midst of the almost bare maples, and the yellow hues of the other trees whose leaves are now briskly falling.  I felt God whispering that this is what He wants of us -- to be still standing for Him, with a brilliance of color and purpose in our neighborhoods, at the end of this tumultuous election day.  He is able to be glorified even in this very broken world no matter what the polls reveal.

East Coast Adventure.....the End of the Line

What a whirlwind of exciting days we have had.  Bill and I keep looking at one another, wondering how 2 months could have flown by so quickly.  About 1 week in, we really thought it might drag on and we would get sick of this journey~~~ but we haven't!  Yes, we WILL take more road-trips!

Some mini lessons we have learned along the way:
Less Hurried Means Less Harried
Relaxing for Bill can actually mean more reading!! (5 books down)
Pacing ourselves leads to balance and moderation...and less anxiety.
If there is a choice between a cheap motel and sleeping in the RV...choose the RV:)
Acceptance of one another's weaknesses means a good day!
Flexibility in our schedule makes more interesting memories.
LOVE is an act of unending Forgiveness...
Appreciating our friends means keeping in touch more consistently~~we loved the time we spent with all the friends along the way.  As we chatted, Bill and I realized again how uniquely each person is fashioned and formed, but the common thread is their love of Jesus.  We were amazed and humbled at how God has used them for the Kingdom.  How blessed we are to call them friends!

Here is our route in a nutshell!  God was gracious in granting AMAZING weather, as you will note in the photos (only 2 rainy days!!) and no RV problems!!  Thanks for coming alongside & enjoying it with us!
  

  

  


  

 

  

  

A little disheveled, but happy to be back!  20 states & 6,000 miles.

Tennessee Time Out for Grandparenting!

Seven very full days in Knoxville!  Although we say it's for the grands, lots of our time was spent checking off Mikkel's lists of projects!!  It really was fun since we haven't had any of our own for a few months!  Bill was busy making shelves, shoe racks and assisting Teg in their almost completed main bathroom.  (He's also the BEST meal clean-upper.) I jumped in as school chauffeur, furniture arranger, decor suggest-or, ass't home school teacher, and sounding board.  So sorry we didn't finish de-sorting the clothing, Mik!
Highlights of our week:  Field Trip to Wonderworks (check out Jet on the Bed of Nails!), Halloween Fun, Cheering for our Soccer Kids, Reading Books, and just CELEBRATING our grandkids!

Mik in center, Azi at right!

Note Mikkel as the "Blind Ref" !!

Working on the mudroom lockers.

 

Azi assists her Robotics teacher
with younger students each week.

   

   

 

It's BOPPA time at the games!

 

Georgia on My Mind....

It was refreshing to be in Georgia and find out that it was way different than I had anticipated:  there are actually deciduous trees with leaves that change colors!  I was delighted to see the autumn foliage from the back porch of Tim and Naomi Thompson’s home in Dawsonville, just north of Atlanta.  Tim was a former Otsegoan from my early days at First Baptist during high school.  After Tim met Naomi at college, it was fun to host her on weekends in our Plainwell home during our pre-kid days!  It was great to catch up, and meet their 5 grandkids.  We covered a lot of ground in our 24 hours together, including a delicious roast beef dinner prepared by Tim!

Our other GA stop was in Kennesaw where we caught up with Wes Askren, but really missed seeing Robyn who was traveling.  The Askrens worked alongside us with the youth in Downers Grove, IL back in the early ‘80’s.  Five kids and three grands later, they anticipate calling GA home in the years ahead.  After treating us to dinner at a cute Columbian restaurant, we decided it would definitely be a nice stop on the way to FL, if we ever head that way!!  Pretty unusual that he and Bill found out they had many former Conservative Baptist “haunts” in common:  Minneapolis suburbs & churches , Camp Lebanon (MN),  Prescott Pines (AZ).  We loved that Wes referred to us as “kindred spirits”!! So true of them, as well as all of the other friends we have lingered with along the way.

    

As our sightseeing portion comes to an end, we find it hard to believe that two months have literally flown by and we feel both Grateful and Aware (GA) of God’s protection, provision, peace and presence as we leave Georgia.

South Carolina~ Revisiting Old & New

Breakfast in Charleston

"Old" Friends are the best!  A refreshing 3 days with Gene & Bonnie Ward in Lexington.  I love that you can always pick up where you left off, 5 years prior!  Lots of chatter, laughter, and stories of God's miracles in our lives.  Bill and I took a side trip to Columbia International University (aka Columbia Bible College) to see the campus developments.  I have been back to a few alumni weekends over the years, but Bill had not seen many of the new buildings and changes.  Grateful for both the solid Biblical foundation I received and the long lasting Godly friendships made, during the 4 years I spent here.
 

Our last side-trip, to Charleston, was pretty amazing.  They are also re-couping from the hurricane, so Bill had fun "interviewing" any construction guys we happened upon.  He loves to hear what the plans are and how they will accomplish it.  We headed to Charles Towne Landing to see the first Carolina settlement, then a carriage ride around the city with a fantastic guide, then a 4 mile walk along the battery- with lots of photos of ante-bellum mansions (built pre-Civil War), and finally a trip to Boone Hall to view a working plantation.  #newmemories  #rebuilding