The gay pride parade, happening this weekend. Amsterdam is sometimes called the gay capital of the world; “tolerance” is the buzz word in this city, and as such it makes San Fransisco look pretty tame.
I don’t think we’ll be going to the festivities. Maybe we’ll go to this parade instead…
The summer is going so fast and I think we’ve only had two, truly “summery” days. I can’t complain, though. I love the cool weather. On the two hot days, I’ve taken Aidan to the public pool and set up his bath outside on the patio to help him stay cool. He really likes fishing around in the water for his toys and kicking his legs until he’s tired and grumpy. He also loves riding bikes. For a while we were borrowing a bike with a seat in the back. But he was a bit too small for it, and his head was dangerously positioned behind our bottoms! These days he’s cruising around the city in a front seat; I think he appreciates the better view!
I’m trying hard to balance being a full-time mom with being a full-time language learner and a part-time English teacher! I still can’t believe that some moms are able to pursue their careers or finish degrees with small children. So far, it’s working well and I’m grateful that we’re doing this while Aidan is still young. In a few more months, I’m definitely going to have to devote more time and energy to taking care of Aidan. Chris is a wonderful daddy and he helps out a lot to make sure that I have the time I need for studying and also just to relax.
After attending our second all-Dutch church service today, I’ve decided that I get more out of these sermons than if I could understand every word. They force me to think about the little that I do understand and work very hard to discover the meaning of the rest. I end up spending the whole day thinking about a 30 minute message.
Since this is a rambling post, I’ve decided to throw in yet another subject: finances. I’ve read many newsletters and emails lately of how the plunging dollar is affecting missionaries around the world. That is certainly true here with the Euro doing so well and the dollar so poorly. Although it is challenging, I want to say that God has been so faithful to us! All we have to do is mention to Him something that we need and a few days or a few weeks later, He takes care of it. However, I have learned to trust God to answer my prayers in the way that He wants to. Sometimes I fantasize about finding a 100 Euro bill on the side of the road and think that it’s naturally the best way for God to answer my prayers. But instead, He answers with more creativity than I expect! Like a few weeks ago when we followed up a freecycle post and ended up with a large amount of useful things for our room (linens, an entire box of all my favorite brands of stationary, notebooks for writing down newly learned Dutch words and other various household treasures). Another encouraging answer to prayer happened last month. Someone gave us several bags of clothes, with pants in the exact size that Aidan needed, on the very week that he needed them. In addition to our answers to prayers, one of my good friends (you know who you are!) mentioned how she was going to reduce her hours at work to spend more time with her daughter. She wasn’t sure how the finances were going to work out, but decided to ask God for help. In the end, things worked out wonderfully and she was amazed at how God took care of her and her family.
I don’t want to make this sound like I view God as my personal genie. To put it simply: I am amazed at how He wants to give good things to His children! This week, Aidan started communicating (sometimes very strongly!) that he wants to play with the things he’s seeing. I believe it’s so important for children to grow up with the confidence that they are free to ask their parents for things. I think it really breaks down a child’s spirit to be afraid to ask because they are almost certain to hear, “No!” It’s great to see him curious and excited about his environment and I feel so privileged to be introducing him to his surroundings. Of course there are things that I won’t give him (like a hot mug of coffee, which he regularly begs for) but I love how the idea transfers to my relationship with God. He really is a good Father and He longs to see us living full, beautiful lives and daily resting in His faithfulness and love. He wants us to be able to come to Him with full confidence that He hears us, loves us and wants to take good care of us.
A good observation about charismatics and suffering.
A crash course in Jesus studies.
Advise everyone, endorse no one.
Mission in the age of Facebook.
Christianity: Confidence and “a crisis of irrelevance”
The rippling effect of the weak dollar. It’s not only our dollar, it’s theirs…
Obama in Berlin and JFK the doughnut.
A few weeks ago, I watched Hilary Clinton’s campaign for president come to an end. I happened to be watching her speech with a young man from Zimbabwe. Today, I walked into our community kitchen to find a Kenyan woman and an Egyptian man discussing the upcoming elections…in America. They shared what they liked/disliked about Obama and McCain (to each other, not me).
The last eight years have been tumultuous and difficult for America. I’ve become accustomed to non-Americans voicing their opinions about our country. But what continually surprises me is the tone of these conversations. Non-Americans often speak of American politics as if speaking of something that belongs to them. This is understandable, given that from the moment they were born, through media and a million other subtle influences, they have come to believe that America is a national power to be loved, hated, revered, aspired to, despised, respected, destroyed-you can fill in the blank-but not ignored. Hated or loved, yes, but not ignored. If you’ve been exposed to the empire that is America, you’ve lost your ability to be indifferent. And there are very few places left in the world that haven’t been exposed.
As an American citizen, I find this to be extremely awkward. The awkwardness comes from the experience of having people participate in your nationality in a way that is not reciprocated. Imagine walking out your door to discover that your neighbor has been watching you-very, very closely. He knows what kind of music you listen to, how you dress, how you talk, where all the furniture in your house is, where you work, who your boss is, your family history, etc. And you know next to nothing about him.
Such is the sensation of an American living abroad.
FEBO, the fast-food chain that makes McDonald’s look good. Personally, I think the automated boxes are a great idea. It’s just whats in the boxes that makes me cringe….
