Merry Christmas and greetings from the cold,
David and I arrived in Michigan safely and were greeted by ”wonderful” frigid weather. Can’t believe how quickly a persons’ blood thins! To think we have spent the last eight months wearing pants and a shirt and sleeping without even a sheet then to come back to this, I feel like I have my whole wardrobe on my body and at night with four or five blankets on us, I can hardly move. Our first night in the apartment we ran out of propane fuel so spent half the night with no heat. But….. I keep thinking, we have somewhere to stay, food and water so much luckier than many.
As you may have heard, the elections in Haiti were very stressful. The two candidates I mentioned previously were the top vote getters, Mirlande Manigat with 31% and Jude Celestin with 20%. There will be a runoff election on Jan 16th to determine who will be president. The announcement of the results were followed by riots, demonstrations and unrest. The last few weeks have been very volatile and we pray it calms down soon. The UN has been out in force. We have many friends in Haiti and it has not been safe for them to be out of their living spaces or go to work. The pictures on TV showing empty streets are haunting, Haitian streets are NEVER empty. Please keep the Haitian people in your prayers, this is a very important election for them.
For the first time in three years, we were stateside on Thanksgiving. We spent the day with our niece Jennifer and her family. It was a wonderful day in spite of the fact that the two turkeys weren’t cooperating. The lid on the cooker prevented one bird from being done on time and the deep fryer cooked one beautifully on the outside but inside.. not so well. I remember a day when those type of events would have made me crazy but I just couldn’t stop laughing. The food isn’t what it’s really about, it’s the family time. Isn’t that what memories are made of?? A “turkey-less” Thanksgiving makes for great leftovers!
We are still adjusting to the pace we Americans run at… David and I always joke with each other on the flight in that we need to put on our running shoes and get ready to jump back on the “hamster wheel”. No one hurries in Haiti… Many people say to us how nice you can come back and rest but we never seem to stop moving while we are here. We have a very busy speaking schedule, many Drs. and dentists to see and all the family and holiday functions. We are not complaining, it’s just a very busy life compared to the pace in Haiti.
Our granddaughter, Mia, is such a joy! We have been having so much fun with her. She’s so smart (of course), cute and funny. Didn’t take her long to figure us out… we were going to make Xmas cookies the other night and she was misbehaving so I said well we will have to make cookies another day. She said “I don’t like it when you say no, when Grandpa gets home he’ll make cookies with me”… He is such a pushover It’s really hard to leave her each time. We are having so much fun cuddling on our fold out couch, reading stories, watching kids movies and fighting for sleeping space. How can one small child take up so much room????
I just returned from Colorado (thank you frequent flier programs) visiting our oldest son, Chad. Great visit and I was honored he asked me to help him pick out an engagement ring for his girlfriend, Amanda. He has two dogs and a cat (he’s a vet) and it reminded me how much I miss having animals. I enjoyed spoiling them and taking nice long walks (on extremely smooth roads that did not challenge my balance constantly….). He and I went and picked out a Christmas tree, something we have done together since he was four years old. I was overwhelmed with memories, a little boy bundled in a snowsuit so big he could hardly move, picking out huge trees and then trying to fit them in the car and into the house. Love the smell of pine and evergreens, we had fun remembering.
One of the many blessings we are thankful for are all the wonderful people God has placed in our lives since this journey began three years ago. Last weekend we were in Grand Rapids with a group of friends we first met in Zambia and again in Haiti. Wonderful people with huge hearts and such a love for our Lord. We had a ball and were able to make even more new friends. David drove down to TN to visit his dad and made a quick trip to Atlanta to visit friends we met in Zambia and Haiti to speak at their church. Another long weekend coming up with great friends from Rochester Hills. Their daughter spent a month with us in Zambia and now we get “joint” custody while we are home Their church will be sending a team to Haiti in February. So happy that many churches are still so committed to Haiti!
We are homesick for Haiti. David and I continue to marvel at what God has done in our lives this year. To sit here in the US, with a comfortable place to stay, food, heat, electricity and water and miss living in a tent or a shed…. hmmmm…that is certainly God at work. This past year has been such a time of growth, filled with challenges but also with wonderful experiences that far outweigh any negatives. The Haitian people are so kind and caring, God has blessed us by placing us there.
David has many building projects scheduled for 2011 and the list of teams scheduled to visit Haiti grows daily. A special thanks to those of you that have been faithfully praying and supporting us since Day 1. Hope you are enjoying the journey! We have had many people step out and become prayer/financial partners and we continue to pray that God will move in the hearts of people and churches as they make their decision to partner with us. If God has been nudging you, please consider making a financial contribution to help us reach our support goal. We currently have 59% of our yearly goal made in pledges and another 14% in cash donations. That leaves us with 27% (roughly $16,000) to raise to meet our goal and return to Haiti.
Remember any contribution made before December 31 will be a charitable deduction on your 2010 income tax return. You may send them to
World Hope International
Attn: Contributions Lockbox
P O Box 17151
Baltimore, MD 21297-1151
Please remember to enter our constituent number 28163 on the memo line of your check. You may also donate by credit/debit card and if you have questions please call 1-888-466-4673 and ask for donor services. The quickest way to donate directly to our account is on-line at https://giving.wesupport.org/gift2/designation.php?GUID=0A797C5B-2B8A-4686-AB22-A52383315A6B&id=7327 . Thank you!
As we celebrate this season that leads up to the day of Jesus’ birth, take a moment to count your blessings and if you have more than you need (not want), bless someone else! May your holidays be happy and peaceful and always remember the reason for the season! Merry Christ-mas…
Blessings,
David and Beth
P.S. I have found new weapons to surprise the “enemy” with…. Watch out ants!!!
P.P.S. Sat down with a map the other night and realized that we now have friends in almost all of the states… one of our retirement “dreams” (when the Lord says we are done serving on the field) is to take a bike (motorcycle) trip across the US and visit everyone!
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