Mid-Week Joy Report

There is so much to be joyful about this week. It has been a FANTASTIC week!

My husband was actually gone for 8 days (Monday through Monday). He went on a mission trip to the Dominican Republic. While he was gone, I was everything to our son Brock. (Well, not everything. Brock does love his "Kelly" from work, and "Tiffany" too... but I was the one made sure his needs were met, took him to the park to feed his ducks, and even took him to McDonald's...

Brock and I did fine! That's something to be joyful about.

And my husband's trip went very well. He came home exhausted, but happy. Some became Christians while he was in the Dominican. Some were baptized. He got to preach numerous times. It was a good week.

He came home with a suitcase nearly full of dirty/smelly clothes for me to launder, but nestled in that suitcase was also a treasure for me...

I love my new kettle. I have fond memories of my own mission trip to the Dominican Republic a couple of years ago. It was a great experience! One of my memories is of kettles similar to this one - only much MUCH larger! The Dominicans cooked in them on an open fire... the most delicious rice and other dishes you can imagine.

My husband brought me my very own! How fun!!! I'm super excited and am already trying to figure out what to cook in it.

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This is week 7 of My 50 Truths Challenge. I don't know if others are enjoying reading about the chapter/excerpt in the book, or seeing the cards I create based on that chapter/excerpt... but I am thoroughly enjoying the process. So far this personal challenge has been a great experience for me.

Chapter 7 

Kindness is a Language the Whole World Speaks

A job opportunity moved Maria and her family out of their Washington DC townhouse and transported them to Germany, where they spent 3 1/2 years. One of the biggest challenges for Maria was the language barrier, since she didn't speak German and English was not spoken - much - in her new homeland.

Neighbors tutored she and her family. More than that, they embraced Maria and her family. They shared homemade studded or onion pie. They took Maria's children to the farm where they got to drive the old tractor. They invited Maria's family to Sunday dinners. And when 9/11 happened the received a heartfelt letter from the mayor, expressing solidarity and sympathy.

Maria says the language difference was challenge, but it paled in comparison to the lessons she learned about living as a foreigner in a strange land.

Her new neighbors always - ALWAYS - treated her with kindness. And with each gesture of acceptance they offered her, she felt a pang of guilt. She remembered the many times when she still lived in Washington DC that she had failed to be "friendly" to those of ethnicity that entered her circle of influence. The play dates she didn't invite them to, the dinners and movies they didn't embrace together, the failure to offer a friendly greeting or invitation.

She noted if her German neighbors had treated her the way she treated others in Washington DC, she would not have had nearly as grand an adventure in this new land as she did. The German experience changed her. In her words, "I hope I always remember that I have what it takes to speak volumes with anyone. Even if I can't use many words."

Obviously my card does not feature a German image - that little penguin is Asian. I know that. But this card communicates what I took away from Maria's story - she's sorry she didn't embrace those of ethnicity when she had opportunities to do so.

Thanks for stopping  by my blog today!

Image/Sentiment: Sugar Pea Designs Rice Rice Baby stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black Ink and colored with Copic Markers

Papers: PaperTrey Ink White and Recollections Blue Cardstock and DP from my scrap file

Embellishments: Your Next Stamp Gum Drops