Padre Island

Today found our tour in Corpus Cristi. Walking along the beach with Sarah we both realized that we hadn't blogged since Christmas- wasn't Christmas just last week? At least that's what it feels like. I honestly don't know where January has gone...It has come and gone in the laugh of a child, in a smile, in another day of learning, visits from supervisors, rehearsing, improving, and the temperature rising. This afternoon being the big superbowl game we didn't have a performance and got the afternoon off. The lady I'm staying with took the girls out to the nations largest natural seashore beach! It was beautiful- the girls eagerly ran to the water and splashing around it seemed they would never get enough of it. Since I was a kid just loving the sensation of playing in the water and catching waves has been one of my favourtie sensations so that sometimes I feel as though I just can't get enough of it. Peace, on one of her dives into the waves, comes running back to me to tell me that "wow wow don't drink the ocean Auntie Laura it does not taste good!" I asked her if it was very salty tasting- completely serious she replies "Yes! ...who poured all the salt on it?" I keep trying to take pictures of this place- frantically trying to take in by the snap of a camera lense what appears to only get more beautiful with every block I drive or walk here- but it just doesn't capture the panoramic views I have all around me. The setting sun and the cooling of the evening eventually brought us in to have a picnic snack on the sand before we took a leisurely drive through palm tres and over the ocean back home (not to run it in to you Canadians reading this!)...it was the perfect day.

L'arte d'arrangiarsi

Have you heard of the book "Eat, Pray, Love?" I love the pure honesty in the author's writing and wanted to share with you a quote from it that I read yesterday- it made me sit back and reflect on Christmas (and how I should get on blogging it too) but firstly here is what the author had written...

" Generally speaking though, Americans have an inability to relax into sheer pleasure. Ours is an entertainment seeking nation, but not necessarily a pleasure seeking one. Americans spend billions to keep themselves amused with everything from theme parks to malls, but that's not exactly the same thing as quiet enjoyment. Americans work harder and longer and more stressful hours than anyone in the world today, but we seem to like it. Alarming statistics back this observation up, showing that many Americans feel more happy and fulfilled in their offices than they do in their own homes. Of course, we all inevitably work too hard, then we get burned out and have to spend the whole weekend in our pajamas, eating cereal straight out of the box and staring at the TV in a mild coma (which is the opposite of working yes, but not exactly the same thing as pleasure). Americans don't really know how to do nothing. This is the cause of that great sad American stereotype-the overstressed executive who goes on vacation but who cannot relax."

...then the authour goes on to describe the Italian culture compared to that of American life. But I want to pull one quote in particular from this next section:

"L'arte d'arrangiarsi"- the art of making something out of nothing. The art of turning a few simple ingredients into a feast, or a few gathered friends into a festival. Anyone with a talent for happiness can do this, not only the rich.

This past Christmas I experienced that happiness. True happiness. The kind that comes from spending the whole morning outside running in a soccer game, or from watching your children pretend to make African meals from sticks and soil, or being busy in the kitchen with 8 other people cooking together- frantically grabbing utensils, flipping crepes, and sectioning fruits in busy preperation for Christmas day brunch but feeling a complete sense of togetherness in the small space and frantic pace of working together. It really does not take much. An afternoon of wagon riding, an evening of having Racheal make rounds of peppermint hot chocolate for all the chaperones, movie nights, hours of wrapping Christmas presents for the kids over eating appetizers. A small Christmas Eve service- probably the first one I ever attended that you didn't need to come half an hour early for just to get a seat. It was barely half full- but because of that it left room for our kids to lead out the Christmas carols they knew for the people there, and the intimate setting allowed for a lot of time of personal reflection on the holiday. The simplicity of it was wonderful. With all my usual Christmas traditions far away at home I spent a Christmas with the focus shifted from myself to blessing the children- but in return being equally as blessed by their reactions to finding their stockings and gifts.

They jumped up and down when they received sparkly gloves from Wal Mart and tried to wear them to bed that night with the excuse that their hands were always cold! They forgot about the second half of their stockings after finding pictures of their families taken in Uganda before leaving and being so excited to show us and remind us of their parents, Aunties, and Uncles whom we met last August.

All week long we enjoyed cooking and baking together- I got to share a few recipes from home and even make the Christmas turkey with help from Sarah, Andrew, and Martha Stewart. I attempted to make gravy like my Dad's which (to be expected) still needs perfecting on my part or just plain practice- and later that night ladies from Uncle brother Doug's church brought over an assortment of homemade pies to enjoy. A lot of time was spent in play, singing, dancing, devotions, cooking- but most of all, and most importantly just together. That is one of my most lasting impressions of this holiday- the time to be together, relaxed in pure simple pleasure as a tour family enjoying the simplicity of everyday as it came.

Christmas Time..

By the time it was dark outside last night we had arrived at our camp in Laguna Park Texas and had loaded in enough groceries for a weeks worth of meals for 32 people! The groceries were brought in by an assembly line of about 8 of us- with the two kids in hysterics the whole time as they tried to catch bulk supplies of everything while giggling over how much we have for our Christmas holiday!

Laguna Park is a one stoplight town with the most generous and hilarious man (Uncle Brother Doug- the pastor of the church we're singing at tonight) without a doubt. Yesterday he paid for all our groceries for the week explaining that this was about giving to us how he could, and how not just everyone got the opportunity to bless us uniquely! This morning we were invited to the breakfast Uncle Brother Dough cooks for his congregation week after week. So upon getting the breakfast room I am met with the best smell of homemade jumbo sized cinnamon buns, french toast, AND homemade raisin and berry mix english muffins- talk about a servants heart!

Today is our last day of concerts before the holidays- and it's been so fun to have the Christmas music added to the program after finishing it in rehearsals! Little Racheal (the girl who plays Mary) was so nervous to come out on stage to do her part in acting out the manger scene, but after doing it once comes beaming and running into my arms after the concert announcing "I am not shy anymore!". Just for that moment every hour of rehearsal was definately worth it.

After tonight's concert we have no set schedule except for trying to fit in gift wrapping, lots of playing, movie watching, and making sugar cookies with the kids into our days! Our last church that we stayed at donated us all Toms shoes to all the kids- have you heard of them before? I hadn't till tour- for every shoe that is bought one is given to a child that needs shoes in Africa and South America. After hoping to give all the kids new shoes for Christmas this was such a generous blessing to fulfill that wish! As a suprise for the kids I am going to paint the ACC logo and their name on each of their shoes and am pretty excited to do it.

With all of my personal family traditions gone for this Christmas and in being away from home and family my hope is that my focus may be redirected to what this season is really all about. To imagine a life without my faith and be truly thankful for why we're celebrating. And then to find true joy in these kids- in their smiles that I'm so excited for as they figure out what a stocking is, attend a Christmas eve service together, and relax on Christmas day opening gifts and all baking a brunch and dinner together. And so I leave you here- at just the start of it all and as I don't have wireless at the camp wish you wonderful wishes for Christmas now!!

From Nelson...

Now THIS is Texas weather- a day with no coat and 16 degree weather of sunshine watching the kids run around outside. Today has been filled with hours of english lessons- one of the boys in grade 4, Nelson, was assigned a journaling activity today and after writing my blog a couple days ago I had to share it with you- the same story of the first snow through the eyes of a child...

" When we were in Dallas we saw snow. At frist Uncle Andrew said it is snowing but I said no that's not true- please do not joke, so he said touch my arms. So I caught his arms then I felt his arms so so so so so cold. Then I believe that it is snowing outside. Then my friends came out from the shower than they found us talking about snow they my friends did not believe so Uncle Andrew said Let's go outisde. We all went outside shout yes yes! So we went outside to see snow but before seeing when Patrick was holding the door people push Patrick away because they wanted to see snow. Auntie Angela was taking video I opened my mouth very wide and I was eating snow. I will write other when this journal book comes back."

It's....snowing?!?!

Tonight is our final night staying at a college in Dallas- the kids sung yesterday morning for probably (well, not probably- they were on their feet the whole time) audience to date which was both exciting and encouraging to see after rehearsing so often and watching so many shows. This week marks the final week of preparing Christmas music so that we can add it into the program by the start of next week. I had my day off today and when I got back the kids were so excited to tell me that they had learned the verse to the song I taught them last (Silent Night) in their language. I have come to know the contagious effects of happiness- feeling it first hand through these kids and getting excited and energized to continue working hard for and with them.
Just as we finished showers tonight Rachel grabbed Peace and told her to put her coat over her short p.j's to run outside so she could see the hail- explaining it would be the closest thing to snow she would see on tour. Not 5 minutes later as all the kids are out of the shower does it start to snow! Really snow! Not just freezing rain or slush but huge flakes of snow that fell in clumps- dotting everyone's p.j's. The kids ran around screeming and hugging each other- trying frantically to catch it before the snow hit the ground or catch it on their tongue- it was so fun! I know I have said this whole time that I am so glad to spend Christmas without winter, but it was so exciting for me to see snow- for it to feel like a touch of home so far south and to see the kids eagerly trying to catch in, carry it inside, and then later to have them come running to you wanting hugs to try and warm up their shivering little bodies and cold toes!
But now- it is time to go back to the residence we're staying in to watch White Christmas (for my first time I might add!)- ready to brave the cold with my spring jacket and hot chocolate in hand.

tonight's feature...MADAGASCAR!!

Staying at a church for a couple nights after we flew in from our total of 24 hours in Boston was suprisingly relaxing- it was fun to have everyone together and not feel rushed in our daily schedule for a change. After all the kids hard work prepping for Boston, and after doing such a great job we suprised them with a movie night. The church that we were staying in even had a movie room too- it could not have been more perfect!

We let the kids eat their dinner infront of the movie (but half of them were so excited and entranced with their first movie in America that they forgot about the food!)- it took me back to the days of being allowed to eat a t.v dinners infront of the t.v...that's one of the other great things about this job- it has refreshened so many childhood memories, and the simplest of times that at the age of 8 were such a treat and an exciement.

Halfway through the movie we stopped to hand out popcorn to the kids, and their first soda as a treat- followed by a dance party and cheering they were so happy.

We ended up watching Madagascar- the movie was really funny, but I think that the kids hysterical laughter was what really made me laugh the hardest- at points it was hard to hear the movie anymore because they were laughing so hard. Scovia (the same girl who sits with me on the bus) sat just ahead of me- and every couple lines of the movie kept saying "Ma ye! Ma ye!" which translates to "Wow! Oh my!" and then would burst out laughing. A host the other day asked one of the girls, Lydia, what her favourite part of America was to which she quickly answers "Madagascar!"

Greenbuild 2008 with Desmund Tutu

It is amazing to step back and look at just where life takes you- from singing for 30,000 people in Boston, to unloading bays of sound equiptment once again to set up for a concert and sleep over at a church for a couple nights on parts of a couch the next evening. A few days ago the choir was in Boston to open and close for a speech made by Desmund Tutu at an environmental conference. The morning that we sang I had to remove myself from that moment- from the hundreds of cable wires of sound equiptment, people a buzz in every direction escorting Desmund Tutu, and just think how amazing it is really that these children who walked confidently behind me to the dressing rooms were being treated as celebrities- given the nicest hotel on the waterfront, privately catered meals and snacks were now being beamed over by crowds of people wanting to have their picture with them and media cameras and crew teams praising them for how beautiful and talented they are. Women were crying when they found out that these kids- the ones they were so taken by, are some of the neediest in Africa - and in that moment to step back and see just how much bigger this experience is than I could ever imagine.
The children behaved very professionally and pushed aside weary eyes from our red eye flight to Boston and didn't complain as they poured out all their energy into soundcheck and the performance the following day. The couple of songs the choir performed was not only performed for 30,000 people, but as we found out when we arrived- broadcasted to 80 countires as well! There is also a clip of our kids (well one of the screens our kids were video streamed onto at the conference that is) on you tube- check this out!: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ciJlngh1fy4

...or if that doesn't work then just search Greenbuild 2008 and you'll see them!

I wish that I could have heard Desmund Tutu speak but unfortunately we had to be backstage and the echo of the room made it sound as though there were 10 Tutu's speaking- I know Steve caught more of the speech though- so I encourage you to check it out on his blog site if you want more than I could hear his voice backstage and walked by him...I'd say came close to brushing shoulders really:)