Anbessu left very early today to re-join the Canadian Work & Witness team, 350 km away. So we will go to church by taxi - Saneit and us and 3 boys. After 2 taxis, we walk several blocks to the Nazarene compound - we know this place! The music had already started when we arrived after 11:00 and continued for some time. There is much expression in their worship - it’s beautiful! They make a wonderful yodeling sound too. The pastor introduced a guest minister for this Sunday and Mark, one of the accountants we met at FAYYAA yesterday, was asked to translate for us. What a blessing! Mark lived for 13 years in the U.S. After the service, a number of people wanted to greet us.We walked back the way we came, but a driver had volunteered to take us back home the rest of the way, instead of taxis.
After lunch of rice with vegetable topping, Saneit has the girls fix coffee for us, to revive us women for grocery shopping. She’s been up since 4:30 to see her husband off, so she needs to “feel light.” The coffee ceremony is very important - coffee beans are roasted (in a short, metal burner) almost until they burn, in a special pan, right in the living room. The beans are brittle and crumbly, and are scooped with a small spoon into a narrow-necked pot which is set back on the coals to smoke and steam. Hot water is added to the pot and a small tin of milk is then added to the burner. We are served the strong coffee in special cups with the hot milk and sugar to scoop with tiny coffee spoons. It’s delicious and quite reviving!
Kuku, the 21 year old, arrived home mid-afternoon. She is in nursing school with 6 months left and a new nurse’s cap, so we fussed over her and took a photo to remember the event! By late afternoon, Janet and Saneit are off with Hani, the boys, and the driver to the 7-Eleven Super Market. I love the local market; Ydidia, the 10 year old, is determined to be my helper with a small grocery cart. He helps me pick out good oranges and mangos, after I get peanut butter and crackers for our office lunches.
If you saw these words on a sign, it might appear to represent an established street or pathway. Our desire, however, is to share the path of our lives as we respond to God’s direction in these days, to present a work-in-progress to our family and friends (known and yet unknown). Our lives have been shaped and molded separately and then together by God’s hand. Here, however, we will specifically address our steps through this time of life called “retirement.”
No comments:
Post a Comment