missionaryMAC

True to my word in my December newsletter  (with a couple of additions since), I give you my 2020...in beds.  I'd like to preface this by saying it was supposed  to be more exciting. I was supposed  to spend many a night on a bunk in Jamaica and Peru with short-term teams. I was supposed to join the rest of the LAC missionaries at our regional conference in Punta Cana. I was supposed  to stay with many of you while traveling the country on furlough. I was  supposed  to help host a conference in Spain.  But I can't. All I can do is trust that, in His infinite wisdom, there is a reason that the Lord did not ordain for me to do any of those things. All I can do is echo David's words in Psalm 4:8:  In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety. Praise the Lord that in each of the places I lay down and slept in the past year, He made me dwell in safety. I also dwelled in comfort, on account of so...

Happy 4th day of Christmas (pandemic day 286).  Unbelievably, conversations the past few weeks have been like déjà vu, echoing many of the same sentiments that were swirling around Easter. Then, it was " Jesus still rose "; now, it's "Jesus still came," despite rampant cancellations. In the days leading up to December 25, I kept thinking of the ending of Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas , where, despite everything he stole from the Whos, the Grinch realizes that "Maybe Christmas...perhaps...means a little bit more." We in the Church know there's no maybe  or perhaps  about it, and that the more is none other than the Christ Child.  In all honestly, I had an excellent Nochebuena and Navidad.  Christmas Eve morning, I FaceTimed with my family in St. Louis as they exchanged gifts. I was able to surprise them with a few of my own thanks to fellow missionary and St. Louisan Courtney...and Amazon. Then, I donned my apron to prep potluck far...

Party #2 (hosting) and #3 (attending) of the aforementioned most wonderful week of the year , coming at 'ya.  About every month or so, the DR missionary ladies & others who bless and support the mission in various ways (Spanish teachers, office staff) try and get together for a night of fellowship. It was high time for me to host.  The theme was easy: driftwood crafting (and Christmas, obvs). Starting this summer, the merry-go-round of missionaries that stayed at the Krey beach house began casually collecting driftwood. The idea to copy one of those wine + painting nights with cutesy names that are all the rage in the US took root as the stash grew. Never one to talk about things and not actually do them, the rest is history.  The timing was easy, too: before the Warren family redeployed to the US on the 14th, so it could double as a despedida  for Lizz. Sadly, she wasn't feeling well and missed all the fun. You better believe those of us whose masterpieces featu...

Growing up, my family always had a live Christmas tree until one year, I came home from college for Christmas break to my parents' new, pre-lit, fake  tree. Yes, the imposters are highly practical, but no tree in nature is THAT perfectly conical, nor do PVC needles smell like pine AT ALL.  There is no such thing as a live Christmas tree in the DR - just potted evergreens that also don't smell like pine. Hence, I've spent two tree-less Christmases here. A fellow missionary recently pegged me as "the Christmas tree having type," and he's not wrong, I just couldn't bring myself to buy a fake one.  This year, though, I became smitten with the idea of a white Christmas tree. Why even try to make a fake one look like the real thing? I browsed some after Thanksgiving sales without much urgency, saw a few that were more than I had in mind to spend, and eventually gave up. Décor disappears from stores around Dec. 1 in favor of toys and gift baskets, but there's...

I'm never throwing out a large piece of cardboard again. When you live in the Caribbean, that's all you need for some wintry fun! Until next time, blessings!

If "parties for hosting" is one marker of "the most wonderful time of the year," this must be the most wonderful week of the year. Beginning with yesterday's missionary kid Christmas party and ending with Friday's Dominican ladies' craft night, I will have hosted or co-hosted two parties (and attended a third) within seven days.  Courtney did an amazing job transforming the GEO apartment into something magical for a Saturday morning of merrymaking.   We had various "stations," which she made hand-lettered tags for, happening simultaneously: Christmas Cards, Cookie Decorating, Gingerbread Houses, Cookie Baking, a Christmas Movie ( Polar Express ), and of course, Hot Chocolate... with mini marshmallows, which can be hit or miss in stores.  My friend Kelsey helped me make a double batch of cutout sugar cookies on Friday night, so I hovered mostly around the cookie decorating table.  Tirzah was sporting red and green from antlers to toe.  Gingerbr...

I successfully completed my car registration today! I know, who cares, right? It's one of those cultural moments I can't pass up, though: the process is vastly different than in the US. Proof of vehicle registration here is called a Marbete (a Spanish word meaning "label" or "tag") and comes in the form of a holographic sticker that goes on the righthand side of your car's windshield. Marbetes are purchased from a specific local bank chain for RD$3,000 (a little over $50USD) if your car is newer than 2016. There's no inspection requirement, and certainly no emissions testing!  Typically , they go on sale October 1. Drivers have until December 31 to purchase them; the longer you wait, the longer the lines get. They're good for one year and must be correctly placed by January 1. You can't remove the prior year's Marbete  until  December 31, so everyone simply adds the new one to a gradually lengthening lineup down the side of the windshiel...