A visit home has meant so much to Jon and I! We packed so much into our originally-scheduled time.
I had ANOTHER birthday and had plenty of help from the grandkids in blowing out the candles. Jon and I celebrated our 45th wedding anniversary .....glad that at least we were together. He extended his stay here by one week due to my hip surgery.
This photo, taken from my 'penthouse' room on the 10th floor of the new Providence Towers at the hospital in Everett, shows the Cascade Mts. in the distance. I had the hip replacement on Dec. 12, the day we were scheduled to fly. The surgeon made a spot for me early in his week and recuperation seems to be going very well. I hope to return to Kabul mid-February to say good-bye to our friends there before moving on to Thailand and Nepal.
We can see now why we needed to come home! Nepal would have been impossible without this surgery.
Jon took a picture of our congregation at Snohomish Presbyterian (of which this is half) to show his friends in Kabul what God looks like.
They have truly been God's arms and voice to us these past 35 years as we have lived and grown in faith. Every sabattical enlarges our family of faith, but there is no one like the 'family of origin,' both familial and communal.
Jon flew out the morning of 19 December. We will be separated for at least two months. One month is our previous record for separation. It will pass quickly, but, nevertheless, be lonely for both of us. Jon goes back to a boarding house with only three other people besides himself . Tillamook Cheese and Tuna Helper are going with him, as well as a supply of chocolate candy. And he'll have the computer and camera!
I am living with good friends, Tom and Kathy, who seem to be blessed with few stairs, an extra bedroom, a firm recliner and an extra dose of hospitality. We are grateful for their availability. Other friends are available for 'field trips' and visits.....I am well-supported here.
The blog will continue, although in a conversing manner, as Jon and I experience the next 2 months quite differently. He's missed his doctors in the residency as well as cohorts in service to the Afghans. Snows should fall soon as temperatures dip, revealing yet another layer of Kabul beauty.
No matter where we are, or who we are with, we can celebrate the coming of the baby Jesus who has made all the difference in the world! May your Christmas be especially dear and the New Year promising.
Jon and Marita
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