Christmas Preparations

     This year, we decorate for Christmas in a new house, figuring out where and how everything is going to go. I have been so excited for this season to truly begin. It feels like it's been a long time coming...the celebratory spirit, anticipation, music.

     Because of allergies, we finally bought an articficial tree (I know, gasp!). We usually are gifted one by my granddad's Christmas Tree Farm. Each year we went to choose it around the time of Thanksgiving. Since we bought the artificial one...which is actually very pretty and is embellished with pine cones, we decided to get a small live one from Granddad to plant and decorate year after year. We have even already named it, hoping that it will go down in perpetuity as reminding us (and in later years, family additions) of our heritage. It will be our Legacy Tree!

       The tree that we just bought is huge! It's a nine-footer. And, since it doesn't have memory wire, it takes a lot of fluffing. (Working in the silks department at a florist's taught me how to do this very well.) 

This is a non-fluffled branch...

So much better after we've done our work.

 

 

    We took a Sunday afternoon to bake up some delicious delicacies (perhaps there will be recipes forthcoming) and decorate it. Parts of the house have already been livened up. Because we don't have a mantel over the fireplace, we're trying the stockings close to the entryway.

    We set up our Christmas village in the old fish tank..the effect is beautiful. I think the look is *just right* for the style of our house.    

  

All our years of planning to actually put fish in there have not yet come to fruition; in the meantime, it serves as a seasonal decorating venue.

     Our antique piano has been graced with poinsettas and white "twinkle" lights. Very romantic.   

 

     The best stockings I've ever seen and made with love by Mom. The hangers come from Target and are part of a very cute collection.   

   













   

     Finally, we wound garlands with bows around the front porch railing and columns. I enjoy the simple elegance of this place.      

     

Join the Club

     So I recently, finally, went to be allergy tested. I had been experiencing symptoms for a while that were only increasing in intensity and frequency. It was a comprehensive outdoor/indoor/food exam. 130 substances. The result was both encouraging and frustrating. Outdoor allergies are the most easily treatable. I am allergic to 2/3 of everything outside/inside that was on the list...trees, grasses, molds...you name it. (Thankfully, most flowers weren't on the list...)  I'll be receiving immunizations for a bit. Once I'm off them, my system will be good for 10-12 years!

      The food side is a little trickier. I am very blessed to not be allergic to wheat! I know a few people who are, including my amazing mother, and have seen how challenging it can be to avoid it. Thankfully, the market is responding to the growing awareness of these kinds of allergies and is producing good products. As my mom told me, " Having food allergies is just another way to learn to express your creativity. Though somewhat limited in food choices, it opens doors to explore and try new things."

      Evading and substituting...pretty much the rule of thumb for the first six months in letting one's system heal. After that, foods can be added back in the diet, one at a time. Speaking of substitutions, one of the things that I'm allergic to are eggs-both yolk and white. There's a handy product called, incidentally, Egg Replacer. Lately, I've been experimenting with this. I made a birthday cake (gluten-free) for my mom. The trick with Egg Replacer seems to be to use more than the substitutions figured out on the box. Although I don't have a picture of how beautifully light the cake turned out (gluten-free food tends to be dense and heavy) I do have a snapshot of banana bread made the same day. It's made with wheat flour, but I would never have known that it didn't have egg in it if I didn't make it myself. I put a little cinnamon in the dough, added raisins, and then lightly sprinkled a cinnamon-brown sugar mix on the top. I tell you, this is scrumptious! 

  

    
     It should be fun in learning to be creative with how I eat. I'll learn many neat culinary tricks and I'll probably eat better since there are things I will need to avoid. Most cakes and cookies will have to be sidestepped unless I bake them myself. I'm sure there will be more posts as I learn how to cook around allergies-what to do, what not to do. Hmm, there should be a club...

     

Catching Up

     Well, I had planned to post more about the great beach trip, but I think the time has passed. I will say it was the most relaxed vacation I have ever had, God gave us great weather, and both Liz and I had so much fun at the beach and on several explorations. We also passed a memorable evening with a couple who have been like aunt and uncle to me, touring Charleston and eating dinner at a delicious restaurant. We also managed to finish the audio cd series of both Anne of Green Gables and Anne of Avonlea during the many hours we clocked driving. Ha!
     Recently, all of Harvest was invited to attend the 50th wedding anniversary celebration of a couple in our church. It was such a sweet time! Believe me, we celebrated. After all, it's not every day a couple attains 50 years of marriage. When they do, it's cause to gussy yourself up, bring out the confetti, and break out the dancing shoes. What an honor to share it with them!
     Here at the (almost) ranch, we've been unpacking boxes (my room is actually and finally clean and unpacked although there are more boxes calling my name in the garage [eek!]), painting, cleaning, and generally trying to settle in. God has given us a beautiful and peaceful new place to live. It's quiet and nestled in the country, hidden away in the woods. I have dreamed of living in a place like this that feels expansive and where there is land to call our own. I am taken with the country feel and attitude surrounding us.
     We had a whole passel of friends from Lee and from church spending time with us this weekend, and it was good. Whether trying to navigate through the Echo Valley corn mazes, losing and then regaining an earring, petting animals, creeping through hay tunnels, flying down 60 foot slides, or trekking to find a river trailed by three neighborhood dogs, wading in almost crystal clear water and trying (unsuccesfully for most-including me!) to skip stones, and sitting around a firepit singing our hearts out (after and while antivirus protection was added by a computer-savvy friend), I enjoyed it all!
    

Vacation Road Trip

Two girls, giddy with excitement, setting off on a long road trip destined to become even longer…

  

     This was how the vacation started: my good friend Liz Overton invited me to share her vacation and head to the beach at Amelia Island. Liz had not been to the beach in many years nor been on vacation in a while. As for myself, I am always ready to be beach-bound. The timing worked out so that I came back from Chile shortly before taking off again. So we started from my house, almost an hour later than planned, on a unique adventure. Oh the blessing of girl-friends!

      Though we began the trip using only an atlas, we plugged in the GPS within a couple of hours. Unbeknownst to us, it must have been set on the shortest distance route—which happened to be the longest in time. We didn’t really suspect this until driving away from Savannah and a short sight-seeing peek around the welcome center and historic district (Liz and I are both history lovers). 

A little bit of old-timey southern-ness

At the diner inside the old train

    After escaping a traffic snarl we still travelled another couple hours before taking a misguided and circuitous route to stop by the ocean and stick our feet in the water and then arrive at the (ritzy music) Marriot Hotel in which we were to stay at a discounted rate thanks to Liz’s Uncle. Almost 12 hours from our starting time, we had finally reached our destination. What a road trip!

Liz at the Whistle Stop Cafe 

 

Goodbye for Now, Chile

     Forgive the lateness of this last post of my time in Chile. I had hoped to write it before I left- that falling through when I came home. However, I encountered an unexected obstacle to this: no wireless in the home. So now, more than two weeks later, I am wrapping up my last week there.

     My last church service was precious. Isa made sure I stayed in the service to enjoy a final message before leaving. One of her sisters called me up to say goodbye. How is it that the moment you stand in front of a crowd, the words you wish to say suddenly fail you and all you can say is, "this time has been such a blessing to me. I am so glad to know you. I don't have words to say all that is in my heart. I love you all and God bless you." I would have spoken of all the times with the youth...the birthday parties, the fun outings, the meetings. I would have mentioned how glad I was to spend time with specific families in the church and how I wished I had been able to meet more of them. I would have said how much the children had blessed me and how challenging, but rewarding it had been to work with them in children's church. Lastly, but perhaps most importantly, I would have emphasized more how grateful I am that the Diaz family took me in as one of their own and how God knit my heart to Chile and its people.

      Though my farewell was short and simple, I do hope the people from Antiochia gained a sense that I truly enjoyed my time with them and had learned much in my brief stay.

     Tuesday saw me packing and Wednesday, shopping. Thursday, shopping. A fun, but frustrating time. Isa's mom was, unfortunately sick, and I was sad that the three of us were unable to shop together as planned. Thursday afternoon/evening I shopped with Cony, cousin to one of Isa's nieces, ate once with her family (in which her sister recorded a terribly flustered farewell message to the youth...ACK!) and arrived late to service. It began raining while we shopped so it was quite an adventure dodging puddles and trying to keep ourselves and our purchases dry. Ha! Thankfully we were able to don new clothes at Cony's house. The service was good and a few of the girls made plans to come see me before I left the next day.

     A last load of laundry hanging to dry, I wrote letters to my family and friends (in Spanish, of course) to thank them for our time together. The end was a little busy as I crammed all sorts of knick-knacks into suitcases and backpacks. True to their word, some of the girls came over to Isa's house and so I saw them right before I left. One sent me off with a letter in which she included some of the slang she had taught me. She even called Isa because she had forgotten to include a parting salutation from Remember the Titans (the song that has the line "na na na nana , na na na nana, hey, hey, hey, goodbye"... which we used to sing together). So thoughtful of her. Another friend had tried to come, but was unable and so called me to let me know she couldn't and to say farewell. What a blessing!

               Sweet friends

     Isa's family drove me to the airport shortly thereafter and she accompanied me inside while her father and mother circled outside. The lines were short and in no time at all I was ready to go through security.

  

         The view en route to the airport

  At the airport, I thought I'd break down, but instead it was Isa who was closer to losing it than I was.

      Unhappily for me, the flight was delayed for an hour, but at length we lifted off. Nine or so hours later saw me back stateside. We Damron women had a happy reunion and then headed to the hotel my mom and sister spent the night in for breakfast.

     I was blessed to eat lunch with friends from Lee. How we jabbered on! There was so much to catch up about.

     Finally, after much anticipation, we arrived home. A new home, down a long, windy, gravel driveway to a house on a hill. To top this off, we caught glimpses of wild turkeys in our own yard that homecoming day. What a God-kissed day!

     I believe I will return to Chile some day. The Diaz family has invited my family and I to stay with them in their new home in the South. God has put Chile and its people in my heart. Now I am home again and entering into new adventures here.

A Full Day

Saturdays are one of the busiest days of the week.

      Yesterday, as per usual upon finishing breakfast, we went to la feria to buy fruits and veggies. Isa asked me if I had tried chirimoyos before and as I hadn't promptly bought one. Oh...my...goodness! This fruit is delicious! We researched it and found it was good for diabetics because it contains glucose and sucrose, is great for people who suffer constipation since it contains a high amount of fiber, should be eaten by those with high cholesterol as it binds the bad sort, helps people lose weight, is high in vitamines A and C, and is 70-some % water. Why are we not producing this fruit in large quantities here? The only places it is widely cultivated in the States are in the southern part of Florida and in California. Exporting it is tricky because of pest and sanitation issues. Yet, even though it requires tender care, the taste is worth it and the medicinal benefits much more. In the US, this fruit is known as the custard apple, or alternatively, the sugar apple- although these may also refer to other fruits of the same species.

El chirimoyo

The soft, white inside is sort of akin to a pear with a sweet, yet tangy flavour.

     For lunch Isa made a merengue to top our "tutty-frutty", a mix of fruits. We added cookies on each side and a sprinkling of cinnamon. It looks like something out of a fancy restaurant, but made at home.

Delicious...and healthy

     I completed the English lesson in the afternoon. The last one. I taught the sweetest, shyest youth. It cost him to talk with me in Spanish and much more in English. Because he was so shy, it was a real pleasure to see his progress. Writing things out worked much better for him than speaking. The lesson for the day was often presented first on computer, but I tried to then do more hands-on learning.              

Lessons with Brian

     Immediately after the lesson, we had youth group. A new leader is taking over so yesterday was a groundwork-laying kind of day. We had been studying the art of homiletics. Everyone was to take a turn preaching in first person and then hand in a message written in third person. There were a lot of youth that needed to finish the preaching assignment yesterday. Sadly, only one took her turn...which means, more preachings next week (although I won't be there to hear them). I'm sad to miss out seeing everybody dressed up as a biblical character and presenting a message as much from the person's perspective as possible.

     We didn't take once before youth group so we had to wait until we came home. We started preparing things and then guess who showed up? That's right...all my dear friends in the youth group, by groups, by pairs, and solo. They came to take once with me one last time. Ohhhhh! With an assortment of sweet and salty snacks, we spread out over the living room to watch a movie called Miracle Hands. Good movie. If you haven't seen it, it's about Dr. Carlson, who was a leading brain surgeon at John Hopkins and pioneered the first successful separation of twins conjoined at the brain. Fascinating...although difficult to stomach in some parts. At they end, they sang me goodbye to a sweet song. I'm going to miss this group!

     So, kind reader, this is an account of a full and busy Saturday, my last Saturday (at least in this season) in Santiago, Tennessee.

Simply Sharing

What's cooking...or who?

     

     Even though the tasty treat is long gone by now, I wanted to share with you all a picture from last Sunday, when Isa and I made alfajores to celebrate the good news that the miners were safe and alive. I meant to take a picture of them, but, well...you know how it goes. How blessed I am to have a friend and sister who takes time from her translating to make cookies with me! God has given me a gem in her friendship. 

    I also want to update you on the rambunctious Bodoque. He has grown quite large as you can see. We've now taught him the commands of "sientate" (sit), "toma" (take it), and "al bano" (to the bathroom). "Toma" is the one that works best since he knows there's a treat coming. Bodo loves pant legs (which makes it just a little hard to walk), everything soft or hard that's not his (especially shoes and clothes), and since he's outgrown my backpack, has moved his preferred lounging quarters to my suitcase. Oh Bodoquin, I'll miss him!

The little rascal, all cosy!