MozamWeek

On the way out of England, we sat at the Heathrow Airport gate drinking coffee and nibbling leftovers that I thought suitable for breakfast - raisins and dried cranberries, leftover cereal crumbles and nuts and a handful of chocolate chips. Finally, there were 3 fortune cookies dumped in that Ziploc bag. I opened mine:  "You will succeed because you are not easily impressed." I didn't quite know what to think about that, but it stuck in my head. Maybe that was a fitting note for my departure from England. I think I owe the country an apology. I was a prejudiced little American snob about England. I didn't think it could really be that special. I know, many of my compatriots think England is an epitome of culture and beauty. They think the English do things "right"... even if upon closer examination, we find some things to be just plain "un-American"! I thought the houses would be drafty and somewhat lacking in modernity and that the weather would...

We just spent 4 wonderful days with Mikael's parents and younger sister. It is such a blessing to have family around! In our little community here, filled with students from 15 different countries, there aren't many grandparents hanging around. We live with an intense connection to people we only see every few years. It is a strange life, but I think we get to appreciate each other all the more for it. It helps that I have some pretty awesome in-laws! They arrived on Wednesday in time to pick up Jakob from school on his 11th birthday! He was very excited and felt a little like he was the sole reason for their visit. They came to celebrate him, but also because Irene is turning 70 this month! We had a special dinner and cake and presents from Sweden. It was nice. Since Mikael and I are both taking classes this month, Katie got to entertain them in the mornings. On Thursday we headed to Oxford. We got lost because I wanted to show them the beauty of Oxfordshire... but also be...

Where did YOU grow up? Was it someplace special? I grew up in a very normal place. I spent a week back in there. In the 70's and early 80's we lived in houses within a few miles of where I was born. The last house was on Popp Road at the edge of Grandpa's 40 acres. Mom, my kids and I enjoyed our stay at my aunt's house right next door to our last "Daddy-built" home. Driving down the road with the afternoon sun glowing through golden, green and orange woods I had to think, "There is really no prettier place in the world." I'm so thankful for having a chance to grow up on the edge of a cornfield... on a gravel road lined with trees... just a jog or bike ride from my grandma's house... with a blue sky overhead and fresh air blowing through the leaves. I'm thankful for the closeness of family that provided much perspective on life and shaped my choices for the future. I'm thankful for the ...

I'm in Sweden. I have been for a month now. Deep sigh. The air is clean. My feet are clean! I wear white... and it stays white. Welcome back... ... after years in Africa's throbbing heart I see... The flag is blue crossed with yellow. The grass and trees are green. Lakes shimmer surrounded by pine and birch and oak. Red houses with white trim. Summer... The sky is blue from 4am to 10pm. Another day. The sky is gray with heavy clouds and cool rain. Another day. The sun warms again in the clear sky. In the car... Wheels hum on the black ribbon cutting through the pines. Passing... Fields of green... hay, oats, wheat Fields of yellow... canola flowers. Roadside wildflowers, shoulder-high... white, yellow, blue and pink... nodding in the green. Horses trotting in the pasture. Cows grazing in the pasture. Passing... Campers. Campgrounds. Boats. Canals. Trains. Stations. Crossings with booms. Summer vacation in Sweden... ...

My plan was to update this blog weekly. I have failed. The week after I started this thing we traveled to M's sister's place in a subarctic region of northern Sweden. We stayed for about 5 days with 12 in the house. It was nice to see the kids with their Swedish cousins. K (who is 7) started to imitate her 12 year old cousin's dialect of Swedish. J (who is 6) played non-stop with his cousin who was born exactly a month before him. Little J (who is 3 1/2) enjoyed all the attention that the youngest in the family gets. We drove 72 Swedish miles... that is 720 km... that is about 500 US miles. We traveled through hills and valleys dotted with sparkling lakes. There is lots of forest in Sweden. (On the "globe" in my head Sweden was always green... even before I came here.) The dark green pine forest comes right down to the rocky shore of the lake. There are red cabins and vacation homes at the edge of the lakes. Church spires dominate in even the smallest community. I...