The girls were out of school and very excited about Christmas. Abby was in her little girl mood and she, more than Amani or Sophia, spoke up often, saying she couldn’t wait until Christmas Day. Wanda spent Monday and Tuesday out with our driver Assefa most of the working day doing errands. There was a long grocery list but there were also some gifts to be bought yet. The girls took turns going with Wanda out to shop which I think they all enjoyed.
During the Advent season when we had a supper together as a family we would light advent candles and read the GC devotional and praying before eating. In this season we also watched all our ‘Christmas’ movies one by one on the weekend evenings. DVD’s such as Miracle on 34th Street, Elf, Charlie Brown Christmas, The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, Grinch (with Jim Carrey), It’s a Wonderful Life, The Christmas Story, Home Alone, etc. The final week before Christmas I began reading A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens to the family and on Christmas Eve we watched the DVD starring Patrick Stewart.
Thursday night, Christmas Eve, finally arrived and we went to our church, International Lutheran Church (ILC). I had volunteered to put the service together and lead worship but many people volunteered to sing Christmas songs and carols from their home lands. It was a wonderful milieu of nations with carols in Dutch, Namibian, French, Canadian, German, American, Swahili, Congo, Ethiopian, Swedish, etc. Such diversity made it a very special night. The four purple advent candles were already lit when we lit the Christ candle in the center and later used it to start lighting candles in the congregation during Silent Night. We only expected about 50 people but we must have had closer to 70. A night to remember. Coming home I lit our huge 3 wick white pillar candle and set it on the kitchen table, a solitary light that would remain on for 36 hours. We also lit a fire in the fireplace before starting to watch A Christmas Carol. Wanda prepared hot chocolate for us. Lydette Assefa, our SALT’er who lives next door and who had joined us going to ILC stayed to watch the DVD.
Outside on the streets there was no hint that Christmas was to be celebrated, after all the Christians in this country celebrate January 7 as Christmas. So it was in our little enclaves, inside the churches and houses where the spirit of Christmas was made alive. When we finally went to bed on Christmas night it was after 10 p.m., late for our girls. Sophia and I couldn’t quite make it through the whole movie of A Christmas Carol, so there are some gaps in our memories of the movie. I resolved to sleep in late (that would be 7 a.m.) if I could.
But alas I woke up at 5:30 with a headache and even though I took something I couldn’t get back to sleep so I got up and started getting ready for the day. Last night’s dishes needed to be washed, the animals fed, the curtains opened and breakfast started. The girls were sitting on their pillows in front of the Christmas tree at 6 a.m. in the dark, watching the twinkling lights on it. They simply sat quietly together and I went back into the kitchen within a half an hour 3 voices were raised in song, singing Christmas carols together. I usually listen to the BBC or VOA when in the kitchen in the morning but I turned the radio off for this sweet sound. It reminded me that my daughters are growing in spirit and maturity, not harping on when to start the gift opening but patiently, quietly waiting. In fact when we were finally all in the room and ready to open presents it was our girls who asked if we could read from Luke 2, if we could sing a Christmas Carol, God bless them . . .
But that didn’t deter from the opening of gifts. We all took turns and watched each other open gifts. They were so excited about the various gifts. Three boxes came by post from the Amstutz side and one from our dear friends Jason & Mary Trego in addition to the gifts we gave each other. Soon the floor was littered with paper. I had started a fire in the morning once again and now we had paper to stoke that fire. We didn’t need the fire, it wasn’t particularly cold, but it added an ambience to our little Christmas celebration.
Late morning the MCC young women service workers joined us; Megan, Krista, Lydette and later Tamara. We enjoyed Wanda’s cinnamon rolls with maple icing on top. They were truly delectable, probably her best batch since coming here (baking at 7,600 feet can be a bit tricky). Ethiopian and Kenyan coffee and cinnamon rolls, yum. I made some bacon, an egg and cheese soufflé and pancakes but the meal all were looking forward to was the early afternoon dinner. Wanda had been working on two chickens over 2 days, roasting one each day. She boiled and mashed the potatoes and baked the squash we found at the local market. I made a green bean casserole. It all turned out quite good and all ate to their hearts’ content. We were mindful of the fact that we see extreme poverty and hunger every day in our work, sobering us somewhat in our prayers and celebration. Still, it was good to ‘take a break’ from our lives and work for 24 hours.
It was evening and our MCC’ers had gone home (except Lydette, being local and not having to take a cab across town in the dark) when we watched one of the new DVD’s the girls got for Christmas, Tuck Everlasting. The twins had read the book in school and really looked forward to seeing the movie. Naturally the movie was different in some key areas from the book, so Amani and Abby said, but it was entertaining and even thought provoking nonetheless. Lydette had taken a call from the states during that time and it was a good connection, apparently. Wanda had tried to call her parents, Skype to land line but it was not a success. The line broke up often, the voices were electronic and the delay was very confusing. After the movie, as we were getting ready for bed, a Skype call popped up. It was my brother Lon. I wasn’t very optimistic given the recent track record but for some reason it our Skype computer-to-computer call was crystal clear, no echo, no delay. Amazing! So those of you who have Skype and a DSL connection, we can talk (although I would say some times are better than others).
Today, the 26th, has been a very laid back day. A real day of rest for Wanda and I. Just what we need. I hope you will all get the rest you need after a busy holiday season.
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