a change in plans and planning change

Sunday was a hard but very good day. Howard's dad's funeral was a very meaningful celebration of a life well-lived. There were tears but there was also a lot of joy as we looked back on his life. The church was packed from top to bottom as people came to pay tribute to this dear man.

After we got home Sunday night Katy went into full gear with her cupcake decorating. She had baked the little treats the day before but this task still awaited her after a very taxing day. I helped her by making the icing and cleaning up and then I was pretty much spent.

She toiled on until after 11:00 but by then I was long asleep. I awoke the next morning at 6:00 with a splitting headache and a rolling stomach. I was so sick. I convalesced between our bed and the bathroom until I got up enough strength sometime in the afternoon to drag myself downstairs to the basement and lay in front of the TV yet still close to a bathroom! Our Valentine's date would definitely have to wait...
Howard spent the day with his mom (and far away from my ghastly germs!). They had a good time together of organizing and arranging and discussing things past and things to come. It was a good day for both of them.
This morning I was feeling somewhat better but was thankful that yesterday I had turned down a 1/2 day subbing job for today. It took me until noon to get myself into gear. I was finally able to eat something and things started to settle down. If the phone rings tomorrow morning I'll be ready to go.
As for all these cupcakes.... Katy managed to get them delivered yesterday morning without anyone seeing her. She was quite pleased about that, however, many of the recipients did figure out who the Valentine messenger was.

brazil

By now my English Camp team should be in Gramado. I have had a few moments when I have felt very disappointed about missing out on this amazing opportunity but I am very glad I made the decision I did about staying here and canceling my trip. Because we were in Germany when my dad died and only scheduled to fly home the day before the funeral, I missed all days and preparations leading up to it. I am glad I have been here to walk through this time with Howard's family. It has been important for me to be here.

My mom sent me some verses today that really encouraged me. They made me cry but they did encourage me too! Psalm 31: 14, 15a. “But I trust in you, O Lord, I say, you are my God. My times are in your hands.”
Proverbs 16:9. “In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.” I subbed today and I had such a nice talk with the secretary at the school who is also a Christian. She knew of my plans to go to Brazil and why they were cancelled. We talked about exactly what this verse from Proverbs says. I had everything worked out, my support had come in but in the end the trip did not become a reality. I do not know or understand why but that's okay. It is in God's plans and He knows what's best for me. I am thankful that I can live in that reality and that Howard's dad lived his life every day as a very clear example of exactly that.

the passing

Howard's dad passed away this morning in his sleep. He was 81 years old. He lived a long and rewarding life. He was fit. And sometimes, he was even funny! He was a kind and gentle man who sacrificed much for many. He will be deeply missed by us all.

missio Dei

Bethany and Katy have come through an extremely busy but rewarding time. They were on the committee that organized the missions conference at their college. They worked hard and it certainly paid off. The final evening featured a "Marketplace" where several booths were set up by different nationalities represented in the student body. It was an excellent evening! The Brazilians were out in force and colour. It was great. At the end of the evening the results were tabulated from the silent art auction and over $1200 had been raised to put toward building a house - "Providence House" - in a new village under construction in the Dominican Republic. The girls came home excited but exhausted yet extremely pleased with the way the two-day event had turned out.

Just a note: I used the camera of the young man in the back to take this picture. He was an MK in Brazil when we were there and we knew his parents, his aunt and uncle and his grandparents. Now he's studying at Prov. Another "small world" story!

real canadiana

Canadian towns love, absolutely love to have large statues which depict their towns in some way. As proof of this, "Our Canada", a very homespun Canadian magazine has had a regular feature on these large figures for quite a few years already. It was quite funny to come across several of these on our trip to Saskatchewan and back. This was the only one we actually stopped to take a picture of. He is the "Red Coat" and this monument stands in a small town along the old "Red Coat Trail". http://esask.uregina.ca/entry/red_coat_trail.html

prairie surprises

As we were zipping along the highway on our way back from Saskatchewan last Sunday we came upon a lovely French village and this beautiful church. It's often surprising what one sees in the middle of nowhere - at least what feels like nowhere to us!