Skip to main content

Day of departure.

So here were are, final hours in Riga, Latvia. It’s been a great weekend. Church was great, although a tad challenging to listen for English in the midst of Latvian and Russian, but wonderful worship and wonderful people!

The weather was cold and church lasted a long time, so we ended up not going the museum. Instead we popped to the cinema, before cooking a delicious pesto and chicken lasagne (which we’re eating the leftovers of for lunch today).

This morning I headed out early to get some fresh croissants and flowers for breakfast since it is Lysette’s birthday (the girl we’re visiting). It was great to be able to have breakfast with her, especially since she has work today and we don’t get to see her much. After breakfast I went to a little cafe close by and had some coffee, tea, and a sweet pastry thing with ricotta cheese and jam inside (it was interesting). I am sharing a bit with a DTS outreach team on Wednesday about intercession and justice, and wanted to start preparing a bit for that. It was really relaxing to sit in the cafe, do my preparation, and in a small way be part of a Monday morning in Riga.

Now I’m packed and hoping my luggage is the right weight. In a minute we’ll have lunch and then in not too long we head off for the bus to the airport. We get in to Amsterdam this evening. It feels like we’ve been here for ages, yet like we just got here. Time has gone so quickly. I am in a bit of a swirl, but that’s ok. It’ll be good to make a schedule for my last two and a bit weeks in Amsterdam, and I hope that that time will bring me clarity and peace about the way I’m to walk.

Popular posts from this blog

Small moments that mean a lot

Walking home on the crunchy snow that lights up a December evening,  I felt so thankful. The revelation that fellowship and being together is the best gift you can give someone, and realising that although it might seem small, it can turn into something big when a person feels seen and valued.  Yesterday I helped out with a crafts workshop for a group of lovely women volunteering for Crux where I worked before (well, in all honesty: they were making angels while I ate Christmas cookies, Quality Street chocolate, and chatted). I love walking alongside people in conversation, and realise sharing life for 2 hours can last so much longer in value and experience.  This evening we had our Christmas dinner for volunteers and people who are part of my current job. It was a delightful evening with many nations gathered around the same table…. eating the same food… and for a few hours creating a small fellowship moment that will become a good memory for the future. Often in my job ...
Read more

Taking in the familiar and a heart connected.

Amsterdam. It still has that muggy feeling in Summer, and a constant flow of people which if you stop to think about it, it's quite amazing that there would even be space to accommodate them all. But then I guess they are not all staying. Just passing through on their way to or from somewhere. It's always good for the heart to visit somewhere that was once home. The familiarity of streets and customs makes it easier to embrace what might be new as well as the joy of being reacquainted with old friends. Friends. So many of them to be found in this city, ready with hugs and good words that are uttered when seeing someone who was away again. Friendship. A treasure that cannot be bought. Cobblestones trodden by many, including myself. Sitting on a bench. Praying. Remembering the first time I stumbled upon this area lined with windows with red lights and curtains. An area which has come to represent no longer windows, but people to me. Some still behind a window. Others who have ...
Read more

So what is new in Kansas City?

“Not much”, I think is the answer. Although, that’s not quite correct, I’ve had quite an adventurous weekend (in the mildest sense of the word). Let me see, where do I start? Well, Thursday when I last wrote was really good. I got to join with a team for a bit in the evening, which was really good fun and it lifted my spirits as I am totally a team person! The whole week had been quite tense because of adjustments with our household and people coming and going. On Saturday two of the girls I shared with were moving out and since Friday night they were packing, my other housemate and I went shopping. We figured it was easier to not get caught up in the chaos that packing to move houses is. It was fun to go shopping, even if we only went to Wall-Mart and HyVee (big grocery and other thing shops). We got a few bits and pieces for the house to make it more homely and generally just had fun looking at all the stuff they have. We’d decided that when the other girls had moved we’d do a big cl...
Read more