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Flying away is the same. We drive away from Riverside; 91, 605, 105 and park at LAX. We check in at the Tom Bradley terminal; number 4. Lufthansa is the same, the stewardess are the same in navy blue suits and pops of yellow scarfs. The airplan food is the same. Take off, sleeping, movies, engines droning, landing; they are all the same.

Leaving is different. We aren’t coming back right away; we aren’t staying long when we do. My mother weeps, my father is cracked. My niece asks why we are going so far away. Paul’s parents are brave and I know his dad is paying for it later. Friends wish us well, Paul and I sometimes wonder if we’re attending our own funeral. I sit in my seat on the plane and I’m not sure if I want to throw up, cry or just sleep it all away. Excitement boils with angst of what comes next.

The welcoming is the same. We arrive and are delivered to the Bätcke’s home. They are happy to see us and a table is laid out with sandwiches. We are offered whatever we want to eat or drink; the children fawn over Sabine. They keep insisting that we tell them if we need something; suspicious we are holding out on them a need they can fill.

The people are different. They are new but they are not strangers. Birger sits with a perpetual grin on his face, Evelyn translates for her daughter Carla who wants Sabine to sleep in her bed. Johannes, who speaks very good english for an 11 year old boy, asks about funny idioms and if they translate directly from German into English. Things like rooster water and atom mushroom. Carla wants to know if I watch the OC.

The streets are the same. Interlocking pavers give way to square stones and my feet fall in the same rythem they always do. Houses sit along the sidewalks with small gardens full of things which will grow even when you don’t want them to. Moss taints tree bark and the liter of leaves from oaks and wild berry bushes contrast yellow with grey. Rain drops fall on my head as traffic speeds past me.

The way is different. I walk into a city I don’t know and I get lost. I wander until I find the Rhein, flowing towards me lazy, green and massive to my desert eyes. I follow it until I see something familiar and then I stop to ask for directions. I am on my way again but unsure of these new streets which seem to shift when I’m not looking. The ease of walking in Trier is gone.

God is the same.

I am different. I’m on an adventure.

 

 

 

We only have nine days left stateside and still a lot to do. Sometimes it feels a little like there is an invisible mountain somewhere nearby, all we can feel is its gravity and aren’t sure why we’re falling.

So here are some of the things which need prayer so we can get the mountain moved:

1. Our Marriage. Paul and I are doing fine, but the hustle and bustle of getting ready can sometimes kill the romance and adventure of what we are doing. We are working together really well, but I don’t want to trade my husband for a co-worker. Please pray we would continue falling in love over and over again, and we would keep God as our focus.

2. My Depression. Admitedly, I have not been taking care of myself properly. I haven’t been eating well, exercising, or taking my vitamines. Combined with the recent wonky weather and specter of stress, I have all the ingredients for a major pitfall. I haven’t hit it yet, but I can see the cliff. Please pray I would be mindful of how I treat my body and I would spend time doing things which refresh my spirit.

3. Our Verizon Contract. When Paul and I purchased our Droid phones and extended our contracts, we contacted Verizon and asked them what would happen if we left the country and moved to a place where Verizon service is not offered. At the time we were told it wouldn’t be a problem. The person we spoke with said to simply call them up and they would cancel our contract without any early termination fees. It apears either the person we were speaking with made a mistake or since then Verizon has updated their exceptions because when we tried to call in yesterday to set up the end of our contract, we were informed to cancel our contract we would be charged $520. We have the option of putting our contract on hold, but that would be $10 a month for a total of $240 and it extends our contract every month it is on hold. Frankly, I’ve learned not to assume I know where I will be in two years. It appears our only options to get out of our contract is to either have someone take it over or die. Death isn’t a very good option.  We may try to battle it out again with Verizon on Monday, but after spending an hour on the phone with them and getting nowhere, we gave up for now. Please pray a solution would be made apparent.

4. Sabine’s Paper Work. This has been a lot easier and more complicated than we thought at the same time. It seems all her microchips and innoculations are in order now, but there is still a few forms which we need to get filled out before we leave. German’s can be pretty particular about getting all the correct forms signed, with i’s dotted and t’s crossed. Please pray everything would be done correctly the first time and going through customs will be smooth.

Thank you all so much! All your support has been a huge part of our journey and we can’t wait to share what God is doing once we get to Germany!

I wouldn’t claim to know Moi.

Our relationship can best be described as sharing gravity; some of his friends are my friends. When he sees me, he knows he should recognize me from somewhere. I wouldn’t presume to be an intimate friend of his.

However, sharing some of the same rotations of life have given me the privilege to watch him since the earlier stages of his career. The first time I saw Moi was at church. I thought to myself, “Who the heck is this guy?” Since I was a broke 16 year old at the time, my parents were the ones to buy his CD and it became a regular track in our home. As the years went by I would hear tidbits of information about him and his family through the spheres which we shared. When his second CD, Fire On the Mountain came out I decked myself out in Moi T-Shirts and Paul still has a favorite beanie. I watched as Moi and his bandmates got skinnier and their hair bigger (thankfully, it calmed down again). It’s been amazing to watch as their music and skills have evolved over the years.

That is the reminder I took away from the Roxy where I watched them play last night; it has been years. Many people may think he just showed up on The Singoff and killed it, as if he is some kind of overnight success. Those of us who have been watching and waiting know better. Moi has stuck with it; through good times and bad, through highs, lows and moments where success may have seemed to just slip through his fingers. 

As an often times faint of heart artist myself, I have decided I want Moi to be my real life role model. I want to be like him when I grow up; someone who sticks with it. I want to be someone who won’t give up and who keeps on hustling. Someone who keeps going for as long as it takes. 

Continuing the adventure, 

Jessica

Below is a video of kinfolk9 performing “Let It Be” last night at the Roxy.

I love throwing parties.

Like really love throwing them.

So I thought I would give three tips on how to design a really great party.

1. Pick A Theme.

It can be any theme, but pick something; a favorite poem, a cliche, a movie, or maybe your favorite flowers. For the party which I am using as an example, our theme was a German Wine festival. We served brats, hung lots of christmas lights in a star pattern over our dance floor, and asked a friend to make traditional gingerbread heart cookies.

2. Pick A Color Scheme – Stick With It

Find a set of colors which strike your fancy and then stick with them. To facilitate this I often take my inspiriation from some object, maybe a piece of fabric, a napkin pattern or in this instance – a bag of straws. The hardest part of this tip is truly sticking with the colors you picked. It means saying no if something doesn’t match – no matter how cute it might be. A great helper in sticking with your colors is to take your object to your local hardware store and pick out matching paint chips; staple the paint chips together so you can see all your colors in one glance and then carry them with you everywhere.

3. Make It Your Own

Pick something from your theme, and make it your own. For our German Wine festival party, we selected the tradition garden gnome. We thought about searching for gnomes for our center pieces, but wanted to alter them to give them some punch. Originally we thought about spray painting them a single bright color. Then we had a Eureka moment: we decided to make two dimensional silouttes of garden gnomes, paint them and cover them in glitter. With a fake grass runner underneath and lanterns with candles on the other side of the table we created some very original center pieces.

I hope these party design tips are helpful for your next great event!

Below are the pictures from our German Winefest Party.

So we are officially at the two week count down before we leave for Germany. Our time is being spent in the frantic mix of soaking up as much quality time with family and friends as possible while also packing those loose ends of our life up into neat little boxes. It’s a new place of tension to be sure.

It’s having friends start crying while your in the restroom because theyre happy they got to see you one last time.

It’s skyping with the new family who has invited you into their home; seeing their excitement for your arrival and having their young daughter offer you the larger room.

It’s teasing your father that he will be the one who is most unsuspecting of how much he’ll miss you.

It’s sorting, reducing, and packing all your possesions; or at least what’s left of them. And then repeat again. And again. And agian.

It’s trying to work out new skype appointments in order to keep in touch with those who matter most to you.

It’s the excitement of a new adventure.

It’s the unknown.

It’s saying goodbye, and hello.

Continuing the adventure, 

Jessica