well, we're on vacation ... and i feel disconnected. i guess in a way that's the whole POINT of going on vacation - TO disconnect. to disengage from the stuff of everyday life and relax ... refresh yourself, as it were.

what makes it odd is that, i don't really WANT to disconnect. i don't WANT to disengage from the lives that i'm involved with back home. i wonder how Cindy is doing, how William is spending his first christmas without Margaret in ... probably over 60 years, how Jack is feeling, how Jose did in his therapy yesterday and this morning, how Karen is doing - still fairly stunned at the gifts she brought over on Friday afternoon ... STILL AMAZED at the generosity of the folks at Jerusalem ...

of course, a part of me is perking the message for sunday ...

we had a wonderful sunday - went to thalia lynn, saw a lot of people we'd not seen in a long time, though not everyone - it snowed here, something fairly unusual in virginia beach - we still have an inch or two on the ground, though thankfully the roads have mostly been cleared. Hannah's 1st grade teacher came by to visit this afternoon - Louise Powell has the gift of encouragement. she is such a sweet spirit. Leslie went to breakfast with Julie, her best friend, and has left a phone tag message for donna, hopefully we'll be able to hook up later in the week.

all in all, i suppose i'll be settling into vacationing more and more as the week progresses, in time to get back into the swing of things when we get back to emmerton sometime saturday.

i'm still trying to wrap my brain around the horrible events in indonesia, malaysia, sri lanka, thailand (i had nightmares about that happening as a boy in antofagasta), and ... somalia???

O God, give us hearts and hands to reach out and lift up, and help, and provide comfort and sustenance to our brothers and sisters across the world.

so it's been ... a week and a day ...

http://www.fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2004/122004/12202004/1605450

but it WAS certainly memorable.

feliz navidad, y feliz año

merry christmas, y'all! (yeah, i know it's a little early, but with the way things have been ramping up here, i may not get a chance to post anything else before then ... WILL try to, though.)

grace & peace,
in the season of
grace
and
peace