Long Lost Sarah

To My Most Amiable Readers,

To those who have wondered what befell the disciplined poster of posts...I have been under a monster cold. And it seriously is a cold that only a monster's huge hulking frame could handle. Monster-sized headaches that don't fit in my head, unruly amounts of mucuos requiring alarming yards of toilet paper, coughs that wrack my body and leave me looking half dead. So, that's my excuse, but I haven't been entirely unproductive...

On the "My Albums" link you can see an album of our latest adventures in Argentina with Dustin's parents. We had such a good time, even though we were all under the weather. I tried to go paragliding (only cost $60 bucks!), but they were all booked up...

...but, it's good I didn't.....

...not in my "condition" anyways.....

hee hee heeeeee

Yes, sometime probably in November the newest little Gingrich will come into the world. We covet your prayers for health for baby and mama.

Your Most Devoted,

Sarah

Sweet Moment

Soledad (Solitude)

To My Most Amiable Readers,

Greetings! My scribblings have been scant of late, so I beg your leave to launch upon a patchwork update....

Last week I took a two day retreat on Isla Tenglo. The retreat was a time for solitude, prayer, and meditation on His word and presence. For a busy mother of two to suddenly have nothing to wash, cook, vacuum, scrub, scold, read to, change diaper of, or dust; this was quite a dramatic change. It was just me, a few books and journals, a candle, a tent, and a sleeping bag. Outside of those luxuries, I had creation: birds, flowers, plants, trees, seashells, the ocean, seaweed, horses, oxen, and wide vistas of snow tipped mountains. I had sunsets and sunrises, birds' calls, and the weightless exhilaration of swimming and being held by the muted underwater world, goggles allowing my eyes to enjoy the plants and shells. I had the healthy exhaustion of hiking and swimming. I had the deep peace of sitting in the woods unmoving. When I read the Word, the verses jumped out at me with new life and meaning. Above all, I felt that I had entered His rest. What a time for closeness with our Father.

And He is not without humor. In the middle of the night I awoke to a loud noise. My head was right below the screen door of the tent, and I turned to see what it could be. The moon was shining bright as day and showed me, inches from my own groggy face, the huge oxen peering down at me, breathing big puffs of air which stirred my hair. It licked the tent and slobber smeared across the netting. It's nose dripped as well. Now, oxen are huge to begin with. They're even huge-er when you look at them from the ground up (and all alone on an island in a tent doesn't help much either). I froze. I waited. Eventually he got bored of bathing my tent in vile fluids and starting munching down the grass around my tent. RRRRrrrrriiiiiiiiiipppp! MUNCH MUNCH MUNCH MUNCH RRRRRrrrrrrrrriiiiiiiippppp! MUNCH MUNCH MUNCH MUNCH...and so on. It sounded like each bite cleared half an acre. So I tried to go back to sleep with the "rip-munch" lullaby, but didn't have much success. Then a much more alarming sound broke through the noisy eating. About five horses had gotten startled by something and were crashing through the trees like wild things fleeing a banshee. And I mean crashing; like big branches snapped off as these panic-stricken beasts charged about wildly. Amidst the pounding of the hooves and destruction, I realized they had spooked the two curious oxen grazing by my tent. Immediately my mind read my obituary: "American missionary Sarah Gingrich was killed on Tuesday after being trampled to death by stampeding oxen on an island off of the coast of Chile..."

Fumbling with my matches, I lit my candle. My reasoning was this: If they see my glowing tent as an obstacle, they may just avoid stampeding directly over it. Not one to waste good candle light, I spent my time reading Thomas a Kempis' Imitation of Christ, now and then jerking my head up to attention when the stampeding grew exceptionally close. Eventually man and beast both settled down, and though the first thing I heard on waking was "rip-munch", I held no grudge. I was not trampled...life is good.

If you would like to see recent pictures of our family and doings, click on "My Albums" in my "Links A Plenty" section. Blessings!

Your Most Devoted, Sarah

Summer Fun

To My Most Amiable Readers,
We are in the hot grip of a heat wave here in Puerto Montt, and boy....we're loving it! I don't remember the last time it rained, and that's saying a lot for this rainy region. I've washed everything in the house and watched with joy as the bright sun dried it quickly, freeing up the clothesline for the next load. Now if you're thinking right now that I'm a bit touched in the head for getting giddy about that, then you've never lived without a dryer in a rainy season (which lasts roughly seven months). Here the kids are enjoying some homemade popsicles. We were at Sodimac, the Chilean version of Home Depot, yesterday and Dustin was waiting in line to pay while I tried to find something. Arriving at his side, I spotted these cheap popsicle molds and promptly threw two packs in the cart with a sheepish grin at Dustin. He laughed saying, "I KNEW you were going to buy those! I knew as soon as I saw them!". What can I say? Ever since I was a kid I've loved making popsicles, and I guess I'll never grow out of it. We are excited to receive Dustin's parents tomorrow. They will be staying for a whole month, and we look forward to good times spent with them. Dustin's dad, Dave, will be helping Dustin with the construction of the house on Tenglo, and during their stay we will take some vacation time with them and head either north, east, or south (plans are yet in the works). As most of my readers are in winter right now, I'd just like to share that I have a great tan. Har har har har!

Your Devoted, Sarah

To My Most Amiable Readers;
Greetings from sunshiny Chile! Well, I got real brave one day and made salmon sushi. And braver still, I actually ate it! Hee heee. Sophia liked it a lot! Here's the kids enjoying a snooze on the counter....don't ask me why, we're just weird like that.
After church we went road-tripping up to Puerto Varas where we enjoyed the beach by the lake and picnicked. I also went kayaking with my rowing friends, which was especially fun since we flipped! In bad news....Elizabeth won the kayak race..and she's a ballerina for pete's sake! We rowers were quite scandalized. Here's Sophia enjoying a bungi/trampoline type thingy. Your Most Devoted, Sarah

Skippy at The Halfway House

To My Most Amiable Readers;

Meet Skippy! To truly appreciate him, I must tell you about his miracle mom. His mom, Chacha, an active, bus-chasing, tire-attacking, Chilean street mutt that hangs out at the rowing club, patronized the family of one of the rowing kids (lived under their house). One day they decided to get rid of her. After repeatedly stabbing her with a knife, they threw her in the garbage can. The next day she showed up on their doorstep. They never touched her again.

So, three months ago Chacha had a litter of pups, most of which were given away. Skippy did not get a home. I noticed him at the club because the poor thing would try to nurse from a different mother who had evidently just weaned her own pups. He would nestle in to her when she laid down; his own mom being too preoccupied with terrorizing cars.

He was all skin and bones and very timid. One day, looking at him, I just couldn't stand it anymore. I scooped him up in my arms, to the astonishment of the rowing kids, and declared him either mine or that I'd find him a home. He came home with me, quiet and still on the long bus ride home.

I had to teach him how to eat dog food by getting it wet and mushy and serving it in his water. Gradually as his nutritional needs were met, he began to come alive. He would wag his tail instead of cowering when I came near. He even made it through his first bath with minimal trauma.

Our dog, Sheba, of course loved the company, and they wrestled together late into the night. I wanted to keep him, but knew that our small yard is not enough for two dogs. So, having friends involved in the Animal Protection group; I took Skippy to where they had an event of giving away dogs and educating the public. So hard to give him up. But a lady and her son liked him right away, and after receiving the exhortations on animal care and responsibility, they took Skippy home.
Why do I share all this? I don't know. Dustin would say I'm becoming like Gigi, our beloved friend with a passion for animals. I think it may have another root.

When I was little I loved animals so much. Birds with broken wings, stray kittens, even a bat that I found that was stunned; nothing was below my pity and love. The tears I cried when a broken-winged bird I had been giving convalescent care to finally died. How many shoe-boxes were commandeered to serve as final resting places!

Over the years my love of animals has faded. I can't really pinpoint the reason why; but perhaps it's a symptom of the hardening of heart that sometimes affects us as we age. Perhaps it's the hopelessness that comes from seeing so many sufferings in the world.

But, I think happier people we will be if we never stop jumping in puddles, swinging as high as we can on the swings at the park, stopping to enjoy the spray of a fountain (or jumping in it), actually playing Play-Doh with the kids instead of just doing damage-control, and yes, caring about animals and interacting with them. Because their real or imagined personalities are gifts to us from God; they are our companions in a beautiful, uncomplicated way.

So...that's all then, really. Here's a picture of Edison being his silly, affectionate self. Blessings my friends!

Your Most Devoted, Sarah

A Lesson In The City

Bound and determined to get out and about, Sophia, Edison, and I hurriedly finished our breakfast, and after much scampering about looking for shoes, hats, and keys, we boarded a bus for downtown.

You see, when Dustin is in the mountains for a whole week with the truck, we don't get out much. Maybe that's my fault; it's kind of nerve-wracking shuffling two energetic little children on and off of buses, so I often find it easier just to do walks to the local parks.

But necessity is the mother of courage too, and needing some thread to do some much-needed mending, we set out.

Our first stop was to admire the beautiful Alerce church in the plaza. I pointed out the angels, the carving of Jesus, and the cross on the high steeple. In toddlerese I tried to tie-in what all the symbols meant, while restraining Sophia from terrorizing the pigeons. Onward to the post office where we sent off some thank-yous and cards while Sophia coquettishly waved at each person within eye contact and Edison yelled "CA CA CA CA GA GA LA!" as he stared at a poster featuring a bright mail truck. He's learning the word "car", go figure with a Nascar dad; unfortunately "caca" is the spanish word for, well, poo. I didn't blush too badly.

Roving about to find the elusive yarn store, we came across a man lying face down on the ground. At first glance I thought he was a drunk, passed out on the sidewalk. Looking further I saw that his hand was extended forward, grasping a little cardboard box with a few pesos in it. I was confused at this manner of begging until I saw his legs, or lack of them really. They ended mid-thigh. I don't know if this was the only comfortable position for him or it was more effective in eliciting sympathy, but the scene captured my attention. Around him cheerful, well-dressed professionals, yacking into cell phones or just striding importantly, walked right by him. What a strange world we have.

I gave Sophia some money and together we walked to the man. Sophia put the coins in the box and tried to smile at him, but it was very hard for him to lift up his head. I asked her if she wanted to pray for him, and she did. He looked up then, with a touched expression and a murmered "gracias".

Our outing continued, subdued but steadily joyful. Sophia kept bringing up the "sad man with no legs", and we'd pray for him again. After supper that night, I was holding and drying Sophia from her bath, when she brought him up again: "Mommy, Jesus will help that man with no legs?"
"Yes, Sophia, Jesus will help him."
"And Sophie help him too? And Mommy, and Daddy, and Edison, and Sophie?"

Yes, it's our job. We cannot become calloused to the suffering, the real suffering, of others. Our first step is to stop complaining. Are you reading this on your own computer? You are wealthy. Did you eat today? You are blessed. Do you know Christ as Saviour? You have riches beyond number. We cannot allow the magnitude of suffering is this world to numb us; to keep us locked in complacency. Do what you can; do more than you want to.

Did you know that for $250.00 a child with cleft palate can smile for the first time and live a normal life? (SmileTrain website) Did you know you can support an AIDS orphan in sub-saharan Africa for $12 a month, providing healthcare and schooling? (AIDS orphans website) We can change the world, we're called to.

"What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, "Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed, but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead."
James 2:14-16

Shutterbug Around the House

What did Mommy make this time?? Asian wraps....tuna tossed with spring onions, soy sauce, and wasabi; all embraced by baby spinach and tortillas....ginger sesame noodles....and fresh kiwi, por supuesto! Being always the family photographer, I turned the camera around on me and had some fun. We just got back from "once", which is a late dinner, at our Ecuadoran neighbors house. Sophia joined a massive pillow fight while we sipped down coffee shakes and empanadas. With coffee in my system, there's either laying in bed wide awake or writing disjointed blogs at 1:51 in the morning. I chose the latter, lucky you. Hee hee. Blessings!
Your Most Devoted, Highly Caffeinated,
Sarah

Works In Progress

To My Most Amiable Readers,

Greetings from sunny, for today at least, Chile! We are in the swing of summer and are enjoying the fruits and fresh air. I especially delight that my clothes are drying in one day instead of four or five : ). This has been perfect weather for the flurry of activity on Tenglo Island.

A team of four guys associated with Weaverland Mennonite Church in Pennsylvania are down here helping to construct the house which lies at the rear of the property. Dustin has been absolutely delighted by their willingness to work hard and their knowledge of construction. He also doesn't mind getting to speak English all day long! As I write this, he is contentedly crunching down some of the hard pretzels they brought us.

As for me, I've started a more intense rowing schedule; going three times a week for about two and a half hours in the mornings. I hope to be in good racing form for the Chilean National Rowing Finals in February. I pray that God will use this extra time around my friends at rowing to strengthen and deepen those relationships for the kingdom!

The kids are doing great; I'm really amazed at how fast they grow! A few months ago Edison couldn't walk by himself, now he runs, climbs the playground equipment and goes down the slides alone! Sophia loves to be a "little Mommy" to him, correcting him, feeding him (even though he can do it himself), carrying him, and generally bossing him around. Both kids are terrorized by our lab pup who thinks Edison is a walking chew-toy and that Sophia's screams mean "chase me faster".

So, that's a bit of an update on us, how are you?

Your Most Devoted, Sarah

Hope You Had a Jolly Good One

Dear Friends, Family, and Voyeuristic Blog Browsers,

We sincerely hope you had a great Christmas; full of joy and cheer and memories made.

Blessings!!

Dustin, Sarah, Sophia, Edison, Sheba, and Mittens

Edison's Say

At long last I will make my voice heard! Frankly, I'm surprised there hasn't been more of an uproar; Mommy goes on and on about the ballet, Sophia, and of course...rowing, as if there was anything hard about it. And all the while I'm sure you were thinking; but what of the little prince? Well, let me fill you in. I've come a long way from my early days of slothful indulgence and obesity (see photo). I'm a biped now and prefer cowboy boots and jammies for attire (see other photo). I can now scale my throne (a.k.a. high chair) all by myself through a series of physically demanding contortions and many grunts. I do my part to keep Mommy busy; spilling stuff, playing in the toilet, dumping out everything that is inside of anything, and whatnot. Daddy is very impressed at how I can operate a laptop; whenever I climb up the desk chair and start tapping away, he comes in with such a wide-eyed expression and says a bunch of words that I assume are praise. I'm really into carbs, which makes me a fine Chilean; bread, pasta, crackers, tortillas, and cookies. I'm also an early-riser; I'm up and ready to go at 6:00 which I'm sure my parents love; more quality time together. Though, to expound on that a bit, I hardly recognize them at that fine hour. They're puffy-faced, wild-haired and grumpy for some reason, but fortunately, after Dad has a mug of hot stuff he seems more human. My sister thinks she's a little Mommy; she's always bossing me around and tattling, and even runs commentary during my diaper changes; as if my natural products are THAT gross. I hate baths and scream the whole way through them which is really fun because my voice echoes off the tile walls for good dramatic effect. Beyond all this; my Mommy would insist that I am a sweet little boy who give kisses and darling smiles and hugs, and that I am her precious "little man". I wouldn't say it, but that's what people say, you know.

Be sure to comment, I love attention!

Love, Edison James Gingrich

Girl's Night Out

To My Most Amiable Readers,

Last night I had the wonderful opportunity to bring my little girl to her first ballet, The Nutcracker. We got all dressed up in black and white with matching bracelets, and one beaded purse full of "chew-chew gum" and "lips" (lip gloss). Friends helped us find good seats right in the middle and then began the magic.
Sophia was rapt with attention as the dark red curtains parted and the music swelled. Then out of all directions burst forth little ballerinas in butterfly costumes. I've never seen her attention so fixed. Then came bears and then cats with long tails and claws, stretching and prowling all over the stage. And this was just the pre-presentation!
She was especially overcome to see that four of her friends were up there dancing; our coworker's children. Sophia was always the first to start clapping when anyone bowed, and she barely restrained herself from standing on her seat.
One thing did confuse her though; each time she got off her seat it went sailing up into itself. She would look at me accusingly and tell me "No Mommy! Don't do that!". This much amused an elderly lady seated next to her.
Sophia had such a good time, and it was fun for me to see the ballet through her child's eyes and reactions. She was especially astounded with my generosity of "chew-chew gum". Each time it lost flavor I'd give her a "fresh" one. Sometimes you've got to spoil them.
As the performance came to an end, they had a time for passing out awards and graduation certificates to the ballerinas. There had to have been more than seven "Sophias" that were called forth, and each time Sophia would turn to me wide-eyed and asked if she could go up. As we got up to leave a veritable storm cloud fell over my little one's countenance....
"NO MOMMY! I'm not going home! I'm going to go up there! And dancing, ME, Sophia!" Oh how mad she was; she had figured in her mind that she would get a turn too. I tried to explain that you have to take classes first before you can dance in the ballet, but to no avail. On the verge of tears she trudged along behind me. She perked up a bit in the lobby while we waited for Daddy to pick us up. Why? Because I asked her to dance for me.

Your Most Devoted, Sarah

Dance dance dance....

To My Most Amiable Readers,

Here we are at the reception of our first Chilean wedding. Highlights of the evening for me were the ceviche de salmon, wearing a fun spinny skirt and toting a fun old-fashioned looking beaded purse, and of course, the dancing!!! Latin Americans know how to pick dance music, and every song makes your toes tap and suckers you into kicking up your heels. Wedding receptions generally go well into the morning; so we missed the cake cutting, which would've happened around four a.m. We collapsed into bed at two in the morning, exhausted, happy, and glad to have enjoyed an evening of such festive fun.

Your Most Devoted, Sarah

"Rogue Sea Lions"

Today on cnn.com: "In the most frightening of the recent episodes, a rogue sea lion bit 14 swimmers this month and chased 10 more out of the water at San Francisco's Aquatic Park, a sheltered lagoon near the bay. At least one victim suffered puncture wounds.
Some scientists speculate that the animals' aggressive behavior is being caused by eating fish contaminated by toxic algae, or by a shortage of food off the coast. But wildlife experts say even healthy sea lions are best left alone.
In Southern California in June, a sea lion charged several people on Manhattan Beach and bit a man before waddling into the water and swimming away. In Berkeley, a woman was hospitalized last spring after a sea lion took a chunk out of her leg.
Last year, a group of sea lions took over a Newport Beach marina and caused a vintage 50-foot yacht to capsize when they boarded it. And a lifeguard in Santa Barbara was bitten three times while swimming off El Capitan State Beach.
In Alaska, a huge sea lion jumped onto a fisherman's boat in 2004, knocked him overboard and pulled him underwater; he escaped without serious injury."

Ironically I just got back from rowing where I was pestering a huge sea lion lounging on a buoy! I would row closer and closer and he would sit up and sniff at me, indolently swaying towards the side as if planning his escape route if I got too close. Then with the agility of an Olympic diver, but with the figure of a sumo wrestler, he slipped into the water with nary a splash. I did that two or three times during my assigned fifteen kilometers, then came home and read that article. Guess I'll keep a little more distance : ).

Your Most Devoted, Sarah

Works

-close-up of "dreaming", oil pastel on paper
-"Isla de Paz", "Red House", oil pastels on paper
-"Sun-Fried Daisy", color photo

Water Water Everywhere...

To My Most Amiable Readers,
Greetings!!! Your time of penance is over; I am once more at the helm of a fully hooked-up computer! Let the writings begin!
Our church family here celebrated Christ's redeeming work with three baptisms this Sunday past. This little girl is Victoria, daughter of Voni (the one Chilean who likes country music) and Gigi (my children's Chilean grandma). She's an amazing eight year old; each day like clock-work she reads the Word and keeps a journal of all that God is teaching her through His Word. She's also into animals and drawing and being tickle-tortured by Dustin.
Next we come to Mike and Marcella, the soon to be married parents of a little boy named Alan. Mike plays for the Puerto Montt soccer team; and he and Marcella are new Christians. They were both baptized as well, and eagerly await their upcoming church wedding on December 8 (they were married in a civil union a few weeks ago, as only Catholics are allowed to do both weddings at once). Mike is a vibrant, passionate person with a deep love and appreciation for Jesus' work in his life. Marcella is a flamboyant, wonderful lady that makes a spiffy lemon pie and is really good at tug-of-war.

And then there's me, the kids, the dog (Sheba), and a much-beloved swimming pool. I'm really glad that none of my underwear were hanging on that section of the line (that would have been embarassing), but if you look close there's Sophia's blue ones! Ha ha ha, she's going to rail at me someday for that.
Your Most Devoted,
Sarah

A Rapidfire Update

Okay I have about two minutes to sum up these past few weeks.....we were on vacation, we explored the nooks and crannies of southern chile with Mom and Dad (pictured left)....highlights...Dad bought an ancient cannonball, Dad taught us fly-fishing, and lots of other stuff I don't have time to type...yep, also we went to Valdivia for a rowing competition and the pic on the bottom is us driving there....so sorry so short, but hey at least it's something, your harried devoted Sarah

Ah, to my readers...

To My Most Patient, Amiable Readers,

Due to lack of internet, this blog has caused an uproar with its stagnation so to speak, and this delay of bloggerliness, is deeply regretable but necessary until internet is restored, most likely this coming week....sooooooooooo

Have patience my dears!

Your Most Devoted, Sarah

A Healthy Dose of Here and There

Meet little Satchel, one of ten pups born to Choco, the Hostetter's lab. If he survives he'll be our new dog as our Delgado never returned...

Who are these good looking people getting ready to eat some steaks in Argentina?? Even missionaries can dine on fine fare in Argentina where my steak tenderloin in raspberry sauce cost six dollars....







The scene that bid us farewell as we boarded our bus to head back to Puerto Montt.....ciao to the land of chocolate and steaks!

Chilean Independence Day!

Better known as "Dieziocho", the eighteenth of September is the independence day in Chile. We got together with our "Grupo de Crecimiento" (growth group) from church to observe and participate in the festivities.

In the states we have fireworks, here they fly kites! Mike, a member of our group and local pro soccer player, got one kite to fly so high that the guys tied on three more strings so it could go yet higher! Here our leader and host for the day, Voni, proudly displays his flag.

After a lunch of grilled foods, beans, and vegetable salad we started the fun...
Mike and Marcella won the couples' race with Ricardo and Eliana coming in a close second. Dustin was disgusted with his wife's performance as she fell down as they were rounding the tree to run back. He initially tried to drag her with him, but her laughing form would not get up. A resounding "YOU WIFE!" only served to further her hysterical immobility. Sarah was heard to comment that "I can't laugh and run at the same time, especially when bound to him." Though no one doubted their affection for one another as they danced together on the lawn to country music of all things. Voni is a fan of country music, making him, in his words, "One out of a million Chileans".