"The Things I Thought I Knew", by Erik H.

I wanted to share this post by one of our seminary friends, Erik, who moved this summer to his wife's home country, the United Arab Emirates. Every post by this brilliant man is profound and thought provoking, and this one resonated with Logan and my own experiences of living overseas and even living cross-culturally in our own country. Our question has been how much of our 'knowledge' of Christianity comes from our cultural expression of faith, for which we attach so much value? I need to heed Erik's advice to reason less and pray more. I wish everyone in church leadership could live overseas or in another region of their own country and embrace another culture for awhile. It would be a wonderful way to experience another piece of God's beautiful world and come to appreciate other expressions of faith other than your own, as well as to grow in your knowledge of God and his people.

Also, I've known people who have travelled to the same country several times who believe that they 'know' that area and its culture and needs. We need to give credit and support to those who move for the long haul, who are willing to humbly learn from their new home and be changed. These cross-cultural experiences are profoundly difficult and eye-opening. I think of my dear friend Tricia, serving with the PeaceCorps in Rwanda for two years, assigned to a lonely, overwhelmingly needy post. I am excited for my friends Mark and Charis, moving to Spain this winter, and L. and C., moving to Baghdad in 2011, and for Erik and Raina, whose blog gives you a window into the experiences of learning from and adapting to a new homeland. I am so proud of my friends who are willing to "Go into all the world." And I am proud of those here who have a love for the global church, who do not attach undo value to a particular denomination or church. It is easy to forget that God delights in all expression of faith, not just our own.

Humility is not an easy thing. I do not have it myself. I rely so much on my own 'knowledge' and ideaology. But we should all be striving to see ourselves as we truly are: sinners, flawed human beings who will not see things clearly until we are with our Gracious Heavenly Father. As Bonhoeffer instructs us, we must always strive to see Christ and follow Him, and in so doing, we will see the world more clearly through His perspective rather than our own. My favorite epitaph is on the tombstone of the great missionary, Dr. Carey: “A wretched, poor, and helpless worm, On Thy kind arms I fall"

Good Things

Highlights from a good week:

-"Uncle" Ryan entertained the boys Monday morning. Josiah asked for help fixing his boat:

-A day to myself! Papa took the boys Tuesday for a long drive to pick up Nana.

-Big savings at the grocery store (as I have every week now with http://www.grocerygame.com/)

-A day at the park with new friends, the Carters! We had a blast:

-Celebrating two birthdays at Bible Study: Pam T. and Rusty G. The boys helped blow out the candles, and there were a lot of them! The cake is blinding in this picture, lol!:

-Lots of mooching at the coffee shop, as usual! Josiah and Benji loooooove visiting Papa and Grandma, almost every day.

-The boys stayed with Papa and Grandma Thursday so I could go to the Rummage Sale in Damariscotta. So much fun! I'm getting used to this not-having-little-ones-tagging-along...:)

-Story Time at the library every Friday is tons of fun! Benji impressed with his dance moves this week. And the library books are far more intersting to the boys than their own.

-A fun playdate with Lisa, Kole and Tanner today! Rainy days are perfect for having friends over, and for long naps afterward!

-Logan is working a lot, taking on some smaller jobs on top of his Squirrel Island work. Although exhausting for Logan, we are blessed by God's provision! This weekend, Logan is painting in MA for one of my aunts.

-Dinner and a movie tonight with Mom and Dad...which reminds me.....it's time to start making that!

Join the Grocery Game!

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You heard it here, so please use my email for a reference! I earn free weeks when my friends join. lperry48249@roadrunner.com

You're welcome. :)

Uncle Ryan

Logan's old seminary roommate and dear friend Ryan came to visit this weekend. Josiah was a little wary of him at first, but soon wanted to sleep downstairs with him (we wouldn't subject Ryan to our little bed hog, of course)! The boys had a lot of fun showing off and playing with "Uncle" Ryan. We took him out to Pemaquid Point yesterday. It was freeeeeeezing cold, but still fun. In the museum, Josiah found an old make-and-break engine just like Burt Dow, Deep Water Man's (Josiah's favorite book): The crashing waves were beautiful:

Standing near where Ryan is in this picture, a huge wave crashed behind me and scared me to death! Ryan is tempting fate, trying to get some cool shots of the lighthouse:

I realized I hadn't taken and 'good' pictures of Ryan, so I had Logan and him pose at midnight last night. Not necessarily the best picture ever of these two:

Birthday Buddies

Josiah and Benjamin were invited to two birthday parties this Saturday, so they were beside themselves with excitement! Little Cole was turning one, and his Mommy and Grandma threw a wonderful lion party:

And Kole, who turned 5, had a party at the bowling alley! The boys had a fabulous time learning how to bowl.

A Carrot, An Egg, and Coffee

My brother Jonathan sent this story. I thought it was profound.

A carrot, an egg, and a cup of coffee…You will never look at a cup of coffee the same way again.

A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose.

Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire Soon the pots came to boil. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil; without saying a word.
In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her daughter, she asked, “Tell me what you see.”

“Carrots, eggs, and coffee,” she replied.

Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard boiled egg. Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma.

The daughter then asked, “What does it mean, mother?”

Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity: boiling water. Each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water , they had changed the water.

“Which are you?” she asked her daughter. “When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?

Think of this: Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength? Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart? Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you. When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest, do you elevate yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?

May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human and enough hope to make you happy.

The happiest of people don’t necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way. The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can’t go forward in life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.

When you were born, you were crying and everyone around you was smiling.

Live your life so at the end, you’re the one who is smiling and everyone around you is crying.

*anonymous author

Pumpkinfest

We went to Pumpkinfest in Damariscotta yesterday to take in the pumpkin boat regatta. Needless to say, it was entertaining! There was a huge crowd taking in the competition, so we had the boys on our shoulders most of the time, which was painful. Josiah is a squirmy little guy, and they both are jealous of each other, so we had to keep passing them back and forth. There was a little too much waiting in between races to hold the boys' attention, but it was worth the trip. Plus, there were lots of pumpkin sights to take in on Main Street. Here are some pictures:

Fantastical Fall Fun

There were too many kodak moments this week, so I'm overloading this post with pictures, and I'll even let them do most of the talking.

We barely have enough leaves on the ground to warrant all of the raking, shoveling and plowing that Josiah has done this week. But who's going to stop him? Not me. :)

Josiah has also spent a bit of time "fixing" his tractor:

Benjamin woke up with a mild flu one day, threw up, took an early nap, and has been fine ever since. Here's a picture of him sleeping off this little bug:

He was looking very dapper this morning, on our traditional Saturday morning trip to Papa and Grandma's coffee shop:

Josiah was looking especially good sporting a frosting goatee this week:

We went apple pickin this morning, which was a lot of fun.

I got this cute picture at the orchard shop, where we also purchased a beautiful pumpkin to carve with the boys.

Mom and I brought the boys to the Fall Foliage Festival at the Railway Village today. Josiah kept calling it a circus. I guess he was impressed. :)

Three Benjis!

I let Josiah take Benjamin's leash.....let's just say, they abused this priviledge! They had a game going where Benji would start to run, Josiah would tug on the leash, and Benji would fall, usually in mud. And that is why they are laughing. :)

Every special occasion at the Railway Village means one thing to the boys: Barrell Train Ride!

P.S. I just noticed I've had 100 hits since I added the counter! Thank you for visiting our blog!!! :)

Noula's Pizza

Giannoula gave me two large pizzas for my birthday (THANK YOU!!!), so we all went down this week to partake of this generous gift! The boys LOVE "Noula's pizza house"! :)

Mom and Giannoula

Nana and Dad

Logan with his mouth full of pizza. :)

Josiah was hording all of the chicken wings. :)


Benji showed off some impressive coordination for a 23 month old! I see a future soccer player!

The boys were in rare form.

The whole gang. Thank you again, Giannoula! :)

The View From the Top

Logan headed out to Squirrel Island with the early morning sun shining on the harbor.

Fall leaves.

Logan's been working on the Squirrel Island chapel, primarily from his perch in this lift. Fully extended, it reaches 60 feet up. One of the first days on the lift, the motor ran away and Logan got stuck way up in the air. He kicked the slats out of one of the steeple windows and climbed into the steeple and down to safety!

Here's a view of Squirrel Island from 60 feet up on the lift. Boothbay Harbor is in the far background.