Nothing in life is free, except my pressure cooker

It's pretty normal when I travel to the States, especially at Christmas, to bring things back for people. I have a general policy though that I don't go out and hunt down and buy the stuff myself, but have them ship it to me. On this particular trip I knew I'd have excess luggage allowance and agreed to bring back much more than usual. Since my mom was moving in the middle of the Christmas shipping season, I had everything sent to my sister-in-law. She dutifully piled everything up in a corner of the house. A week before I flew back she sent me a picture of the pile of boxes, wondering how it was ever going to fit in my luggage. She couldn't believe that they'd even ordered a pressure cooker. I said as much to my friends, but both of them told me that they hadn't ordered a pressure cooker! To this day we have no idea where the pressure cooker came from or who ordered it, but I did manage to fit it into my suitcase, so now it is mine :). It's a small one, perfect for me really, so now I just need to find some recipes to make in it! 

Happy New Year 2016!

One of my favorite daily reads is Oswald Chambers' "My Utmost for His Highest". I've been reading the same wrinkled, mashed up, worn out copy for nearly 10 years. Or maybe more than 20 years. I mark and underline as things jump out to me, and will often jot down a date or situation that it applies to. The earlies dates I have recorded are March 2006, but it's possible it took me awhile to start dating things. Anyway. There are a few classic quotes that I try to catch every year and one of them is from December 31. Chambers writes, As we go forth into the coming year, let it not be in the haste of impetuous, remembering delight, nor with the flight of impulsiveness, but with the patient power of knowing that the God of Israel will go before us. 

I needed that reminder today, as I need it so many days. My future perhaps looks more unknown on the outside than most, but the truth is none of us knows what tomorrow brings. I am certain of very little in life, but I am certain of God. I am certain that he goes before me. And that brings all the peace I need to step into tomorrow, even when tomorrow is a new year. I know that the Almighty God goes with me, behind and before. So no, I don't know a great many things, but I know enough. This year, may I not be hasty or impulsive (oh so hard for me!) but rather may I be patient and trusting, in my head and my heart right down to the marrow of my bones. 

Happy New Year, dear blog readers, from cold and snowy Bellaire Michigan. May you too know that the God of Israel goes before you and prepares a place for you. 

Lots of love,

Clare 

On figure skating, even if it's not Olympics

I don't usually blog about figure skating unless it is about the Olympics, but I've been enjoying this season so much (thanks in large part to my friend Ann who shares her subscription with me) that I thought a blog post might enoucrage a few casual fans to tune in to the big events in 2016. I have to confess, I was skeptical of the decision to allow lyrics and no one used them in such a way last year that changed my mind. It seems though, that in the second year of lyrics skaters and coaches are bolder in their use and this year I am really enjoying them, especially in my two favorite programs. 

Two must watch programs: 

1. Short dance of Madison Hubbell and Zach Donohue. These two have been climbing the ranks this year and I'm sure this program has a lot to do with that. Always emotional skaters, this mesmerizing program highlights all their strengths and draws you in like never before. 

2. Short program of Alexa Scimeca and Chris Knierim. Wow, this program presents a side of them that we've never seen before and actually makes me want to watch pairs skating again! The music, costumes, and choreography are a perfect fit, and like Hubbell and Donohue, I think it is part of their success this season. 

Two skaters/teams to watch:

1. Megan Duhamel and Eric Radford. They just get better and better every year, and Grand Prix Final aside, they are the ones to beat every time they step on the ice. They have rejuvenated the pairs event and are just plain wow. 

2. Satoko Miyahara. She's tiny, but she's incredible. The only woman with a real shot of topping the Russians at worlds. There are a few (like Mao Asada) who have a shot if they skate perfectly, but they've all been inconsistent this season. Miyahara is a consistent joy to watch. 

One performance to watch:

1. Yuzuru Hanyu's short program at the Grand Prix Final. If figure skating still gave out perfect scores, he would have earned one. He had to settle for a new record score. A quad, quad-triple, and triple axel, all made to look as easy as singles. He floated over the ice. Is he human? 

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee O Israel: advent reflections on another mass shooting

I am a bit of a news junkie. I have two news sources/sites that I check nearly daily, and another two that I read about once a week. World news, national news, local news- I cover it all. My phone often gives me breaking news banners from several of those sites, so the headlines are often one of the first things I see in the morning. This week I felt so frustrated, discouraged, and angry when I woke up to yet another US shooting in the headlines. They're becoming so common that we can't keep track, that we are no longer shocked, and we are growing numb.

This past week was also the start of the advent season, my favorite time of year. Every morning I sing and listen to one of my all time favorite songs, O Come, O Come, Emmanuel. It is a song of crying out, but also a song of hope. I won't pretend to have any idea where to start with the gun problem in the United States- and it is a problem that we cannot continue to ignore. When I look at it, it feels irreversible and overwhelming. I want to give up. I want to raise a fist in anger at the lack of mental health care or at policies that freed terrorism. But then I sing:

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee O Israel! 

Rejoice. Rejoice not because all is well in the world, not because the news headlines are cheerful, not because we know that the road ahead is easy. Rejoice because Emmanuel. God with us. Rejoice because the beginning of the story is Jesus and the end of the story is Jesus. Rejoice because our God is real, he is alive, and he is with us. 

The shootings are tragic. The terrorism is tragic. The wars and ongoing conflicts are tragic. They are heartbreaking and angering and just plain sad. There is not a continent or nation, a color or people, who are not affected. The world is unjust; it spews violence and hatred. There are no words to make that go away. But in the midst of it we cling to God With Us. In the midst of it we rejoice because there is One who has come and paid our ransom while we are yet in mourning. In the midst of it we have hope because the Son of God came first as a baby, then grew and gave his life for us. In the midst of it we sing because we know he will come again. 

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

and ransom captive Israel,

that mourns in lonely exile here

until the Son of God appear. 

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel 

shall come to thee O Israel!

A Real Overseas Thanksgiving

I have to confess, I have not always been a big fan of overseas Thanksgiving. I may have even referred to it as Fake Thanksgiving a time or too. It's not that the things I did weren't fun, they just never constituted Thanksgiving to me. Twice in Argentina and once here I was able to go to the beach for Thanksgiving, which was great, but it sure didn't feel like Thanksgiving. Sometimes I have had traditional turkey dinners, while other years I have eaten fish at the beach or simply avoided the whole thing. 

That began to change for me a little bit two years ago when I gathered with some good friends and had my first "homestyle" Thanksgiving dinner in Thailand. It wasn't the same as a Thanksgiving on Hidden Trail, but it was a pretty good substitute and I walked away feeling like I'd had an enjoyable day. Did we eat at the proper time? Have the exact right side dishes? Sit around for hours with apps and wine before dinner? Walk the golf course before pie? Was my mother's mincemeat pie there for me to make fun of? No. But for the first time I was able to get over all of that and have fun. 

Now, I know, and have always known, that Thanksgiving isn't about those details, even for a detail person such as myself. But it took time for the day to feel Real without those traditions. It may sound slightly ridiculous that it took so many years, but as my lovely sister-in-law ever so kindly pointed out recently, my family might have slight tradition overload. Hey, I got my routines and regimin from somewhere!  

Last year, and again this year, I find myself actually really looking forward to Thanksgiving. I am excited to make the things I am bringing and even more excited to put the whole thing together with friends tomorrow. It's fun to feel like I can participate in both the meaning of Thanksgiving and give thanks and praise to God for all he has blessed me with, and also enjoy the feeling and nostalgia of the day. Happy Thanksgiving! 

New seasons

November is the month when the seasons change in Thailand, from rainy season to A Bit Less Hot season.  This week we've had several breezy days where the heat does grip in quite the same way and the AC might not be required every minute, and it's been great. I do love rainy season, with it's rolling black clouds and rush of wind as the storms blow in, but cool season is definitely my favorite. Everyone's favorite, I would imagine.

Lately, as the season shifts and the school year rolls on, I have been feeling so incredibly blessed. God has been incredibly good to me this semester, even in the midst of difficult circumstances. The abundance of his goodness and grace is often overwhelming and I find myself lost for words beyond Thank You. And believe me, I am not often at a loss for words!  

Even in the midst of abundance and blessing, life still holds great uncertainty and unknowns, but I know the One who goes before me and I trust that whichever way the road turns, I am going to be okay. After a long hiatus from running, I've finally gotten back into it a bit the past few weeks, and I love the opportunity that it gives me to think. I allows my thoughts to flop around in my brain in way that they can't when I am doing other activities. As they have done so, I have found that even in the bits of life that are unsure or sad or maddening or frustrating, I also have great peace and joy. 

So as cool season ushers in new life to Bangkok, the way the first winds of spring do in Michigan, I also feel ushered into a season of peace and contentment and trust, even in the great unknowns. 

Intertwined: joy and sorrow

I have written before about the intersection of sorrow and joy; this isn't new to me. But a picture says a thousand words, so here is my picture of sorrow in the midst of joy and joy in the midst of sorrow.

This is me, hanging out with the love of my life, my nephew Elliot James. To sit on the deck behind my Grampa's house on a perfect October afternoon and laugh and giggle with Elliot was such a joyous gift. But we gathered there that afternoon to celebrate my Grampa's life, after a long and tearful day at his funeral and burial. It was with a very heavy heart that I traveled to Michigan in early October, compelled by my love for this great man, and by his love for me. 

Even as I'd sat in the church that morning, filled with sadness and pain, there was also joy. Joy that at long last, he was back with my Gramma, that for him there is no more tears or sadness or pain. Joy that he was a man who loved God and walked faithfully with God for many years, that he fought the good fight, that he kept the faith and finished the race. And man, what a race he ran. 

I am thankful. Thankful for the chance to travel back briefly and be with my family. Thankful for the gift of an amazing grandfather, and the gift of having him in my life for nearly 35 years. Thankful for Elliot snuggling in for a nap, and for those precious extra days with him. Thankful for a family that loves and cares for one another. Thankful for many friends and coworkers in Bangkok who made my absence possible. Thankful for being there, something I have learned to never take for granted. Thankful that in the midst of sorrow there is always joy, and that the sorrow in fact teaches us what it is to feel joy. 

With Grampa on my trip to Long Lake in September 2013.