Day Sixty-one The Beginning of Our Last Week Day

Happy Sunday, everyone. This begins our final week in Oxford and we certainly plan to use our time wisely. We have tours, meetings, lectures, dinners, and more on the calendar for the week, so it should prove to go quickly, which will suit me just fine.
Yesterday was a busy day as we wanted to show Ryan a few more things around Oxford before he met the 3:00 bus. I had loaded his suitcase and the extra one he brought with clothes I don’t plan to wear this last week to make room in our suitcases for souvenirs and Christmas gifts. 2 Papa took him to the bus station and all seemed to be on schedule for him to catch an early flight this (Sunday) morning, but we’ve already heard from him and he’s had a two hour delay. Since he has a six hour layover in Houston, he should still be home as scheduled tonight around 9:15. Please say a prayer for his safe travels today.
We met Kelly at 4:00 yesterday and went for tea at a nice little café. They had tea and I had hot chocolate. It was definitely colder this past weekend and I was freezing! The wind chill all weekend was around 32 degrees so walking around is quite COLD! BURRRRRRR. I also had a hot buttered tea cake, which probably isn’t anything like you think it would be or at least it wasn’t for me. It was like a toasted raisin bagel with butter. It was very good, just not what I thought a tea cake would be.
After tea we walked to Christ Church College for another Evensong service. A friend at our college had gotten us tickets as last night begins the Advent services and are so popular that it’s better to have a ticket to attend. If you don’t have a ticket, you will not be turned down; you just won’t have a good seat. The service is very mechanical in that it consists of Bible readings, songs by the choir, hymns sung by the congregation, and prayers. This is all written out in a little book telling the congregation exactly what to do---when to stand, sit, kneel, and sing. So, indeed, very mechanical. But, it’s also very moving as the singing is heavenly and the readings, all done with these beautiful British accents, are inspirational. The boy choir has boys as young as six in it and watching their faces was worth being there. One adorable little blond headed boy, who looked to be around eight (judging by his teeth), was so precious to watch. He opened his mouth super wide and swayed and bobbed with every changing beat of the music. He was definitely a very serious musician. Very cute. We were grateful to be able to attend. We also got to see the dining hall at Christ Church College which is the one used in the Harry Potter movies. Christ Church was founded by Henry VIII so his portrait takes center stage. (See photos above.)
We had dinner reservations after Evensong at the new, upscale, quite trendy, Ashmolean Dining Room in the newly remodeled Ashmolean Museum. It was raining again so we quickly made our way across the city huddled under umbrellas for our next adventure. We were thrilled to get reservations as this new dining experience as it is all the rage in Oxford. Not to be name dropping or anything, but the Queen will be here on Wednesday to take her place at one of the ultra modern tables. Certainly we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to experience it as well. After all, what’s good for the Queen is good for us. The restaurant is on the rooftop of the Ashmolean with a spectacular view of the city; however, since it was so dark, this is only hearsay to us. But, the food and the service were both spectacular and we were sitting next to the rock group, Radiohead. At the end of our dinner, Kelly asked our waiter if he would get lead singer, Thom Yorke’s, autograph. So he did. Cool. 2 Papa tried to discreetly get a picture of him as he signed his autograph, but the lighting wasn’t good. Oh, well. Life will still go on.
That’s it for Saturday on the 2 Mama and 2 Papa Oxford train that’s moving pretty quickly now and will soon arrive in West Monroe.
As I listened last night to those beautiful young voices singing the Psalms and other hymns, I thought of our family members who are in Heaven and how they must thrill at the heavenly songs being sung to them and for them.
“Your God is present among you, a strong Warrior there to save you. Happy to have you back, he'll calm you with his love and delight you with his songs.” Zephaniah 3:16
Have a blessed Sunday.
Hugs, 2 Mama

Day Fifty-nine No Black Friday in Oxford Day

No black Friday in England since there is no Thanksgiving holiday, but we’ve certainly done our part to boost the struggling British economy during our last eight weeks here. So, today we didn’t shop, but instead took Ryan to Blenheim Palace. Even though we did the tour with Mom and John Luke, it was different today as it was decorated for Christmas. Absolutely beautiful!! It made me all the more eager to get my trees up and decorated. The Palace had more decorated trees that I could count and every table was topped with a Christmas arrangement. Antique toys were scattered beneath the trees and garland draped the staircases and wrapped the edges of dressers and cabinets. Even the busts of famous people were adorned with green wreaths wrapped around their heads (kind of a little strange looking, but I guess if you have a bust in your home, it works). There was evidence of spectacular lighting, but since we were there in daylight hours, we weren’t able to see it first- hand. Ryan’s attention span rivals a busy three- year-old’s and he was even impressed with the tour.
After we returned to Oxford, Ryan and 2 Papa went on down to the Oxford Castle for another tour. This was 2 Papa’s third trip up and down the 101 winding stairs of this former prison which dates back to 1071. Prisoners were kept there until 1996, which is so hard to believe as it’s so archaic. 2 Papa loves learning so he never tires of listening to the tour guides. Someone told him today he could probably guide the tours now. (I’m thinking---don’t tempt him! I’m ready to get home.) While they toured, I did a little laundry and ironed Ryan’s shirt for formal dinner tonight. That’s the first ironing I’ve done in eight weeks. So, I’ve cooked and ironed all in one week. Just call me Suzy Homemaker.
Formal dinner was as usual—good company and good food. Ryan, who never finishes a dessert, loved tonight’s creation and ate the whole thing. Apparently, it is a Regent’s Park tradition and the recipe has been handed down through the years. It was a square, caramel cream, whipped cream and almonds on top, kind-of- pie-thing. Very good. We met another American who was also the speaker at chapel tonight which we always go to before dinner on Friday. It turns out she was one of Kelly’s students at Calvin College. Both were shocked to discover the connection. Speaking of connections, and it’s a small world (we were kind of talking about that, weren’t we?), today I added Sherry (remember the American friends we had Thanksgiving dinner with last night) as a facebook friend. I noticed that one of her friends went to Harding and then I discovered that that friend is a friend of my niece, Jenna Owen. Talk about seven degrees of separation!!!! Whoa, too cool!
Well, my great news for the day is we were able to change our flight home to arrive in Saturday evening instead of Monday morning. That is huge news!! We’ll be able to attend church on Sunday and get lots of hugs and kisses two days sooner from our grandkids. Plus get all the Christmas decorations up on Sunday afternoon. Can’t wait!!
Better go. It’s almost ten o’clock and I have to sort through all our purchases to see what can go back with Ryan. He will go on to London tomorrow afternoon for an early flight out on Sunday. I’m so thankful he was able to bring an extra suitcase. Perfect!
Tonight at chapel, the message was about being content with today, not worrying about yesterday or tomorrow. We just have seven more days in Oxford. I want to enjoy every day and not be so anxious to get home that I don’t appreciate all the many blessings I have gained from being here.
“When you take it all in and settle down, pleased and content, make sure you don't forget how you got there...” Deuteronomy 6:10
Love and see you soon.
Hugs, 2 Mama

I hope this has been a day of great thanksgiving from east to west and north to south in all of America. I know from the Americans living in England, we did our share of eating and thanks giving and with the six hour time difference, I guessed we were all celebrating at the same time—us at supper time, you at lunch time. Pretty cool, don’t you think?
I was so proud that I had all my ingredients bought last night, eager to get up this morning and smell the smells of home cooking. However, I opened the refrigerator to get the eggs for the cake and discovered the eggs had never been bought. SO…off to the market. Here’s where a car comes in really handy. Oh well, umbrella up and off I went---walking. Also, I noticed that I had no measuring spoons or measuring cups. Now, that works well if you’re Mamaw Jo or Willie Jess, but for me, I NEED to measure. Those items are not usually in the grocery store so I was a little concerned, but I did find a large one that measures liters. I decided to make do and Google the conversion to cups and half cups. Soon, the smell of chocolate cake filled our little flat and it felt like a holiday. Except, I was sniffing all alone—not a normal holiday, for sure. Ryan and 2 Papa had gone on a tour and wouldn’t return until 4:00 so it was pretty quiet. I was able to do some computer work between cooking, but basically I just figured out how to mash sweet potatoes with no mixer or masher thing, measure milk, oil and water with liters, cook in an oven that is in centigrade and figure out how to get five hot dishes of food in a taxi. Korie did bless me with a Sykpe call so that was fantastic!!
Ryan and 2 Papa arrived home on schedule and had had a great time. I asked them if the tour guide got to talk at all, knowing the two of them can say several, like a million, words themselves. They both said they listened to the tour guide and learned a lot. Good job guys! They went to an outdoor flea market and Ryan ate a pig sandwich from a whole pig being cooked right in front of them. 2 Papa keeps saying they took the meat from the snout, Ryan denies it. You be the judge.
Once the sweet potato casserole heated up, it really smelled like Thanksgiving and it was time to go to Justin and Sherry’s house. Ryan brought Thanksgiving paper goods (not found anywhere here) which I gave to Sherry yesterday and the tables looked so cute. Sherry had moved things around in her small living room so we were all seated around two tables. In total, we had fourteen—two other Americans, besides Sherry’s family, and one British family. See photo above. It really was as perfect as you could get without being home. Justin made turkey and dressing that was truly as good as any I’ve ever had and all the other food was fantastic too. No one had ever had a sweet potato casserole and everyone loved it. You can’t go wrong with butter, brown sugar, and pecans. Right?
After dinner, it was time for the Duck Commander Thanksgiving show. We put on episode eight, which was the Christmas episode and the episode where Phil talks about men who wear a piece of cloth tied around their neck in the name of fashion. We all looked at our British friend, a very proper Engineering professor, still dressed in his suit and tie. whew! He was laughing just like the rest of us were. They all loved it and laughed and laughed at the crazy southerners who hunt ducks for a living. Korie had sent t-shirts and hats for the kids and they were thrilled. It was such fun! But, it made me more homesick to see all the faces of our family and friends. They all looked so cute---even Willie Jess!
Well, that was our day. Not a typical Thanksgiving, but still great as we shared it with new friends. Johnny even read some of his famous Laffy-Taffy jokes about Thanksgiving. The jokes may have actually gone over better here than they do at home.
I don’t know about your celebration, but we went around the room and shared something we are thankful for. Of course, family was on the top of my list and then our new friends. Others said having a car (I agree with that one for sure), their friends, their children, new opportunities, plenty of food and so on. Yes, we are blessed.
“God can pour on the blessings in astonishing ways so that you're ready for anything and everything, more than just ready to do what needs to be done.” 2 Corinthians 9:8
Now, enjoy your turkey sandwich.
Love you all.
Hugs, 2 Mama

Day Fifty-seven London Update Day

Happy Thanksgiving! I can just see all of you scurrying to the grocery store for last minute cans of mushroom soup, fresh fruit, bread, salad fixings... What fun!! How I will miss my mom’s dressing!!
I made my grocery run a few minutes ago and think I have enough stuff to pull off a fairly accurate Thanksgiving meal in England. I know this for sure, if the meal isn’t perfect, the Thanksgiving part will be. I am so thankful for the many blessings I have. In our worst of times, we are so blessed! We will be celebrating with about twelve other Americans and one British family. Since there will be no American football game to watch, we are showing an episode of Duck Commander that we brought with us. Oddly enough, everyone over here can’t wait! It should be fun.
London with Ryan was great. He was here about ten years ago and saw a lot of the tourist attractions at that time, so we didn’t have to repeat the places we went to with mom and John Luke. He got here on Monday around noon and was starving. Since our room wasn’t ready we stored our luggage and headed to another new restaurant! (I’m just saying, how can we still be finding NEW restaurants? Oh well, if it weren’t for all the walking I would be rolling Johnny off the plane in Monroe next week.) Back to London. After lunch we went back to our hotel and unloaded and let Ryan rest for a couple of hours, then we went to Piccadilly Circus for dinner and a fun night at Mama Mia. We were on the FRONT row, which I love. At one point the actors sat on the stage with their feet dangling right in front us. It was very cool. Five girls sat next to us and sang almost every word. It was fun to watch it with them and share their excitement.
The next day we boarded the tour bus and headed to Harrods, which is like a shopping Disneyworld. This “small” store occupies 4.5-acres and has over one million square feet of selling space in over 330 departments. That is larger than Pecanland Mall in Monroe in one store! It was decorated for Christmas which made it doubly, triplely, special. For the most part we kept our spending down and enjoyed just looking. Ryan played a piano that costs $110,000. (See photo above) He managed to play beautifully in spite of such a shabby instrument. HA! HA! Ryan and I went on to Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum since he has never done that and 2Papa took the bags back to the hotel. (See photo above of Ryan and Brittany) That night we went to see Les Miserable. I’ve seen this musical three times and it is always mesmerizing. The music, the script, the message, everything…WOW!
That was it for our time in London. This morning we boarded the bus back to our home away from home. I quickly surveyed our pots and pans so I could cook tomorrow for Thanksgiving and discovered I had one pan. So while Ryan and 2Papa took the tour bus, I searched for foil disposable pans. I found them in the basement of a department store, not the grocery store. Who knew? Then we met Kelly for dinner, which was fun, and back to the flat to catch up on emails and write my blog. Now we’re all three typing away. My, how our ancestors would have marveled at our modern day activities!
Here’s wishing you all the best day of Thanksgiving days. Enjoy every second of excellent food and exceptional family time.
“With praise and thanksgiving they sang to the LORD : "He is good; his love to Israel endures forever." And all the people gave a great shout of praise to the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid.” Ezra 3:11
Thanksgiving Blessings to all.
Hugs, 2Mama

Day Fifty-four Sunday Day

Sunday in Oxford was—surprise, surprise—rainy and cold. My battle with my cute Vera Bradley umbrella is just about over. Two spokes (I guess they’re called spokes) broke today and now I have one floppy side trying to fight the blustery weather conditions. I’m still holding out though--with less than two weeks to go maybe I’ll make it.
In spite of the weather, we had a great day beginning with worship at St. Ebbes. This is the same church we have attended before and we really enjoy the singing and the rector. He preached in Luke today and did an excellent job. The church is Anglican, but is not as you imagine Anglican to be. If you didn’t know it’s origin you would think it was Southern Baptist. They have a very strong evangelistic outreach. We are definitely ready for some Mike and Alan at White’s Ferry Road, but it’s been a good substitute.
After church, we ran a few errands and ate lunch. Nothing too exciting. Then, on to home to get a little housework and homework done. 2 Papa finally got his rough draft off to his tutor, after all the internet trouble we had while traveling this past week, and rescheduled his tutoring session for this coming Friday. He’s looking forward to hearing what the tutor has to offer.
Tonight we went to another Evensong service at New College College (really, that’s the name) with Kelly. If you read yesterday’s blog, you know we went to an Evensong service last night as well. Evensong is the name of the service that is sung in many churches, chapels and cathedrals every evening throughout the year. This particular college began their Evensong service in 1489, so since that date an Evensong service has been held six nights of the week. We had to leave early last night, so tonight was pretty amazing getting to see the entire service. I promise, those little boys, and I do mean little, sound exactly like full grown women. Pretty amazing!
After church, we joined Kelly for dinner then on to hear some local musicians. It wasn’t a free-for- all Karaoke night, it was one where the acts are booked in to do three songs each. All the ones we heard were fantastic. It was a fun night.
Now, it’s getting late and I’m ready to pack for our trip to London to pick up Ryan. He leaves at 3:00 this afternoon and arrives in London at 9:30 Monday morning. We’re looking forward to a week with him. I will not take my computer to London tomorrow as we’re staying at the same hotel that gave us internet trouble last time, so I’ll catch up with you all later in the week.
I hope you all had a good Sunday and, for those who are students and teachers, enjoy sleeping in tomorrow and the rest of the week.
Photo above: I loved this. On a store door. Notice opening times for Saturday and Sunday. Pretty cute!
Today was definitely one of those days that would have been so easy to stay in and not join in the fellowship at church this morning. It was so rainy and cold and no one knows us anyway. In fact, we found ourselves debating it right up until time to rush out the door. But, as often happens, we would so glad we went and we so blessed listening to these young people who love the Lord sing praises and declare His name.
“Worship God if you want the best; worship opens doors to all his goodness.” Psalms 34:9
Have a great evening.
Hugs, 2 Mama

Day Fifty-three Window Shopping Day

Well, it’s been a rainy and windy Saturday in Oxford. Like Louisiana has just gone through, parts of England have experienced record rainfall this past week. Scenes of flooding and reports of some deaths have been at the forefront of the news here. So far we have been blessed to avoid the worst of the rain.
We stayed one step ahead of the rain this morning and caught the bus to Bicester (pronounced Beas-tah—as all ers are pronounced as “ah”-- no “r” is pronounced). Since we have spent the last fifty-two days exploring everything old in England, we decided today to find some new stuff. Bicester Village is equivalent to the outlet mall at Foley, except all the 120 stores are designer names. (See the photo above of the line to get in Gucci.) Hugo Boss, Jimmy Choo, 7 for All Mankind, Valentino, Karl Lagerfeld, Dolce & Gabbana are just a few of famous names there. Notice names like Gap, Old Navy, or even, Banana Republic, are not in this list. After about fifteen minutes I knew this would be a “window shopping only” day. The designer names plus the weak dollar meant I was in over my head. I picked up one white cotton blouse that I thought was very cute and it was on the 70% off rail (as they say). But when something is originally 275 pounds, it comes out to $130.00 after the 70% is taken off! Nope--not for me. Oh well, we did find a huge grocery store which was a great find as I’m still collecting food for our Thanksgiving meal. Still, no canned sweet potatoes, but I did find canned fruit to make a fruit salad. Slowly, but surely, my meal is coming together.
This evening we fought the wind and rain and met Kelly, who has just returned from China, for an organ concert and Evensong at Magdalen College and then dinner. Evensong is a part of chapel when the all boy choir participates. This happens every night of a college term except on Tuesday. The choir was founded in 1480 and continues, just as it did then, made up of sixteen boys who are selected and educated at the school and twelve undergraduates of the college. As the young boys walked into this beautiful chapel, dressed in their robes, they looked adorable. I just couldn’t help but think how hard it would be to send a child to boarding school, but here it’s quite accepted. The singing was absolutely astonishing, like you would think angels must sing, so clear and beautiful.
After chapel, we took a taxi to another restaurant we haven’t visited yet. I’m pretty sure this was the fanciest one we’ve been to. A lady sitting at the table next to us had a cockatoo on her shoulder. True story! She sat there, elegantly dressed, with her pet perched up on her shoulder like she worked at the zoo and was about to thrill us a performance. We couldn’t help but ask our waitress about it. She said she comes to that restaurant often since they let her bring the bird and other restaurants don’t. Oh really--I guess not!
Anyway, we had a great visit with Kelly catching up on his trip to China and tellling him about the things we did while he was gone. He’s become a great friend and we’ll miss him when we leave. Speaking of that, we leave two weeks from today. The countdown has begun. This has been an unbelievable experience, but I am eager to see my family. I talked to John Luke on Skype a few minutes ago and loved every second of him trying to be still long enough to talk to me. No one else was at home so he was getting bombarded with questions from me about Jenna’s rehearsal dinner last night and wedding tonight. Needless to say, a fourteen year old boy is NOT into weddings. But, he gave me a few details like my house looked good for the rehearsal dinner last night and he got a big plate of food. Oh well, it’s better than nothing!
The hardest part about being away from home is not being there to help when people need you. I have to remind myself that when I’m not there, God is still on duty and doesn’t really need me anyway.
“Friends, when life gets really difficult, don't jump to the conclusion that God isn't on the job. Instead, be glad that you are in the very thick of what Christ experienced. This is a spiritual refining process, with glory just around the corner.” I Peter 4:12
Enjoy your Saturday. Talk to you tomorrow.
Hugs, 2 Mama

Day Fifty-two Christmas Shopping Day

TGIF everyone. I hope each of you will find time to enjoy your weekend and experience a little relaxation and a lot of fun. Most of our family will be witnessing our niece, Jenna, and the love of her life, Drew, exchange their wedding vows. The festivities began today with the bridesmaid’s luncheon at Joneal's house, the rehersal dinner is tonight at our house, and the grand finale, the wedding, on Saturday night at White's Ferry Road. We are sad to miss this beautiful event with our family, but send our love and prayers for a beautiful wedding and a blessed life together. Also, today was Grandparent’s Day at OCS so you know who is feeling a little sad. But, with modern technology, I will still see the program, just not in person. I have already heard that my little cuties all performed perfectly. Kids, I AM PROUD OF YOU! Now the holiday can begin—schools out for THANKSGIVING!
Back on the ranch in Oxford. Yesterday, we got home from Bath in time for 2 Papa’s meeting at 3:30. That gave me time to get that looooooong blog written and to dress for the evening activities. The first of which was a lecture by Nobel Peace Prize recipient, Dr. Amartya Sen. It was held in the remarkable Sheldonian Theatre. (Just a brief history note that I’ve said before— just read quickly so you won’t be bored: The Sheldonian was finished in 1668 and was built to accommodate all events of the University, including graduations, in order to keep the fun stuff out of the church buildings. Good job!) It seats 1000 people in rows up very steep stairs and all around the semi-circular design. It’s an incredibly impressive sight to see it filled to the top, with everyone basically looking straight down. Last night’s lecture drew such a crowd that the room was completely full and a hundred more were waiting outside. The chancellor did something extremely unusual, as Oxford is very proper about such events, and invited everyone in. People were literally on the floor right in front of the speaker, sitting on steps, and standing in every available space. Dr. Sen has over thirty published works to his credit and has received over eighty honorary degrees. His book, Poverty and Famines: An Essay on Entitlement and Deprivation, demonstrated that starvation wasn’t the absence of food, but the result of ineffective distribution of food. He is credited with changing the world view of famine and mass starvation and many polices have changed based on his findings. Last night’s lecture was concerning social injustice, which is his battle cry. Very interesting!
After the lecture we went to dinner with Tim and Jules Pottle. Tim has been our “main man” since we first arrived. He is the one who picked us up from the airport and continues to be our “go to” person with any question from “Should we take the train or the bus?” to “What’s a jumper?” (By the way, that’s a sweater.) His adorable wife, Jules, teaches school. They have two children. We’ve tried to take them to dinner since our first week to thank Tim for all he’s done for us and it’s taken us this long to find a date that worked for all of us. We were joined by Isabella Bunn and had a fun evening of food and fellowship. I even got to show off grandkid photos and brag about all my sweeties! Such fun!
Today, we just stayed in, which was nice. I did a little laundry (easy to do since our machine is little) and little housework (easy as well, since it’s so little) and a lot of Christmas shopping (easy to do since I have lots of kids). I have never shopped on line, but it seems to be the answer when limited shopping time is the concern. To my surprise, I loved it! WalMart.com was a wonderful website and will deliver to the store nearest me for free. All I have to do is pick up the items when I get home. By picking the toys up, I will feel like I’ve been shopping, but I won’t really have to shop. It’s a WIN-WIN!! 2 Papa has always been the catalog ad ordering junkie, but I may have found my calling.
Briefly--- tonight—formal dinner—conversation with an incredible, multi-talented, multi-tasking woman from India who works with women in need and is also a publisher. Thank you, God, for America. In spite of its imperfections, it’s still a land where opportunity and education are available to all.
Well, better go for the night. It’s after ten, which isn’t too late, but last night I was up until three. I still have a few other things to do this evening, and then, some sleep. Sometimes we forget to thank God for the gift of rejuvenating sleep.
“The wise counsel God gives when I'm awake is confirmed by my sleeping heart. Day and night I'll stick with God; I've got a good thing going and I'm not letting go.” Psalm 16:7
Photos above are from our visit to Bath: Jane Austen center, view fromt the bell tower, and a live scene at the Roman Bath. (That guy really hasn't been here since 70AD, but he looked pretty authentic.)
Have a great weekend!!
Hugs, 2 Mama

Day Fifty-one Adventures in Bath Day

Good Thursday to all our friends and family. The internet was “iffy” in our hotel in Bath, so I decided it best to get home to Oxford before trying to post a new blog. I’ll warn you up front, this blog is extremely long, so skim or skip as time permits for you.
Our time in Bath was fantastic and I will try to give it “proper service”, as the Brits say, in this blog. The weather is getting more “wintery” with each new day and we continue to play tug of war with our umbrellas. Winter here is mild compared to Colorado or North Dakota, but still with the wind, averaging 50 miles an hour and the temperature, averaging 40 to 50 degrees, combined with the rain, averaging some of every day, it can be fairly uncomfortable and cold.
Our first two stops in Bath were the Roman Baths and the Thermal Spa. I wanted to be sure I had an appointment for a treatment as this is a must in Bath! Dating back to the earliest recordings, the thermal mineral-rich baths were a source of medicinal healing and spiritual renewal. Today the real Roman Baths (see photo above), referring to the great remains, are not used at all except for tourists to view and learn the rich history that lay beneath the ground until 1880. Excavation continues today to uncover the years of history still buried in Bath. But, Thermal Spa makes use of the same natural springs of warm water which run through the Roman Baths and are the only hot springs in Britain. The Celtics and the Romans both record usage of the springs for both healing and spiritual meaning. There is documented evidence of worship to the Celtic god, Sul, and the Roman goddess of healing, Minerva, thinking these gods were the source of the warm water and the healing the water would bring. One theory now is the warmth of the water did relieve such things as arthritis and other aches and pains, leading the people who used them to believe there was healing power in the water when it was probably only temporary.
Also during Roman times, the Roman baths were a social gathering place where men and women bathed in the warm waters without the hindrance of their heavy clothing, if you get my drift, and received treatments of all kinds. Obviously, the Christians fought the whole idea of the Roman baths for the immoral practices going on and for the worship of false gods. It was a moving experience to stand in front of an altar where sheep and other carefully chosen animals were slaughtered as a sacrifice to a false god. It made the ministries of Paul, Timothy, and Silas, who stood up to these very establishments and declared the one true God, seem very real. This particular Roman bath dates back to the exact time of their ministries, just a different part of the world. The Romans left England for good in 407 AD. The tour guides joke that England was too cold and rainy for them. Maybe so.
Now, let’s go to the spa part of the Roman bath story. In Roman days ladies could chose from a number of treatments. They could have their hands and feet groomed, their hair braided or hair extensions added (we just thought this was new), receive massages with various kinds of oils, or, for the very brave, have the hair on their arm pits plucked out one by one. Of those choices, I went with the hand and feet treatments, plus a hot stone massage. I just couldn’t go with the hair plucking thing. It was all incredible and the warm mineral baths were amazing. I’m not sure anything was healed, but it should have been as the water felt so wonderful. The bath was just like a large swimming pool with oodles of noodles (foam) floating around for the comfort of the guests who were, thankfully, all clothed and most resting comfortably on a noodle.
Our next stop was Bath Abbey, which was first established in 1499 from the ruins of a cathedral that dated back to 1090. There is evidence that Christians were in Bath dating back to 300 AD and remains from a monastery were also found prior to 1090. The Abby is another extraordinary place of worship with incredible stained glass windows, a powerful organ, and a steeple that can be seen from all parts of the city. On our tour, we climbed up 212 tiny, spiral, “mind-your-head” steps into the bell tower. I cannot imagine anywhere in America this being allowed. It was incredibly “NOT SAFE!” The steps were so narrow the front part of my foot could only fit and the hand rail was a large rope that hung from the very top of the bell tower to the ground. We made it safely and the view from the top made the climb well worth it, not to mention all the facts we heard about bell towers. Our guide was a missionary from Ohio, so it fun to talk to her as well. On departure, we received a bookmark that says, “I’ve climbed up the 212 steps of Bath Abbey tower and down again.” The coolest thing was finding Rick Warren’s book we that published last year in the small Abbey bookstore.
Other things we saw in Bath include the Jane Austen center, the Fashion Museum and a Georgian house. The Jane Austen center was as expected—a look into Jane Austen’s rather short, but fascinating life. She died at the young age of 42 from Addison’s disease or Hopkins Lymphoma, but her literary mark in history has now spanned over 200 years. She didn’t particularly like the Georgian (during all the King George’s reigns in the 18th century) lifestyle, which was extravagant and showy and on display in Bath where she came to live for five years. She was so distraught about it that she didn’t write until she was moved to a country estate by her brother, where she drew from Bath experience to write many of her later novels. The Fashion Museum featured British fashions over the past 400 years. I always enjoy a look at fashion through the years to see the progression or regression, which both happen quite often, of the stylish. The Georgian house we toured is the only home in the famous Royal Crescent (a semi-circular set of homes designed by the younger John Wood-see photo) which is now open to the public. This John Wood and his father were commissioned to give Bath a unique look and further establish Bath as a social gathering place during the Georgian period. The exterior of the homes were built just as façade to keep the look of the building uniform and elegant. The home buyer would then purchase a certain length of the façade and hire their own architect to complete the home. The back of the home could be any design and was not considered important as no one saw it. It’s very evident that the Georgian Period was all about looks; what was behind the “look” mattered little. As in all cities, there was plenty of poverty in Bath during the Georgian period, but not much is written about that.
All of these things, plus lots of shopping completed our two and a half days in Bath. Bath is a shopping Mecca, as you can imagine, with 100,000 tourists a day in the summer months. I do not know how I will get everything home!
Sorry for the length of this blog. Lots to tell!
So much of England’s history is based on the class system. How thankful I am for Jesus, the great equalizer, who loves us all not for who we are, but because of who He is.
“In Christ's family there can be no division into Jew and non-Jew, slave and free, male and female. Among us you are all equal. That is, we are all in a common relationship with Jesus Christ. Also, since you are Christ's family, then you are Abraham's famous "descendant," heirs according to the covenant promises.” Galatians 3:28
Love you for who you are.
Hugs, 2 Mama

Day Forty-eight Bath Day

I hope you enjoyed Wales as much as we did. With the exception of my working on 2 Papa’s book all morning, today was a travel day. While I worked in the hotel room until time to leave, 2 Papa used the time to walk the streets of Cardiff looking for the Hard Rock Café and some little shops to show me on our walk to the train station. Our train was to leave Cardiff at 1:30 so we planned to head out by 12:00 giving me time to shop a bit. Since Jake and Jamie (Joneal’s son and daughter-in-law) announced a new baby in the family, I’ve been on a mission. Nothing further on that subject except to say, mission accomplished!
The Lord blessed us today with the seat on the train that has a table. WOOHOO! It was perfect and I was able to continue work on the book. Even though the trip was short, it was efficient.
We traveled only one hour to the city of Bath, which is a remarkable city known for its Roman Baths. Located in the south-west part of England, the population is only around 100,000, but in the summer Bath will host that same number in guests per day. The earliest documented high profile inhabitants were the Romans, who of course, took advantage of the unique thermal springs that continue today. Two hundred and fifty thousand gallons a day come up from the thermal springs and the temperature is 109 degrees when it comes out of the ground. It is cooled for people to enjoy it. The Roman remains are said to be the finest in all of Europe. When we told our British friend, Tim, we were going to Bath he said to definitely go to the Roman baths. I said did he mean to actually get in them. He said yes. I said do people wear bathing suits. He laughed and said yes. I said, I wasn’t sure; after all we are in Europe. He said, not that part of Europe. I do plan to visit and wear a bathing suit!
More on Bath. The city’s second high-profile era was the eighteenth century when the town was a popular resort for royalty, aristocracy, and gamblers. They could be found 'taking the waters' at the Pump Rooms, and attending colorful events and parties. When the lifestyle of these rich and famous 18th century folks is described, it almost makes stories of Madonna and Posh seem downright simple. Stories are told of evening walks to display outlandish outfits with hair so high it would often catch on fire as they walked by candle lights and that was the men! Their day started with three hours in the baths followed by lunch, then walking, then tea, then supper, then dancing until late in the night and starting the process all over the next day. Bath’s famous lifestyle was often described by one-time resident Jane Austen, author of Pride and Prejudice for those non-readers out there.
Our hotel looks like a bed and breakfast more than a hotel. It’s actually called a guest house. It’s located in a preserved Georgian townhouse that is connected to what looks like a hundred others. The boulevard it sits on is the widest street in Bath and is said to be the finest Georgian boulevard in Europe. I won’t argue with that. Our room is furnished in beautiful antiques. The look is very cool. If you didn’t see the small TV on the dresser and the blow dryer on the wall in the bathroom, you would think you stepped right into the 18th century.
After we checked into our room, we only had time today for the tour bus. We usually like to do that first anyway in order to understand the city. 2 Papa is the best tour guide. He never forgets anything he’s seen and never gets us lost. After touring, we shopped a little and I had a great conversation with a young shop owner about his life. 2 Papa was very patience as I learned about this young man’s schooling and work experience. We found several fun gifts for the folks at home. Then dinner at Garfunkles and back to the room. Two more hours on 2 Papa’s book and now my blog. Another busy day in Europe!
I tried to show you a photo of a young man in Wales dressed to look exactly like a statue, but for some reason I couldn't upload tonight. In any case, until this young man moved to touch a child, which scared the child to death, he had a crowd gathered, unsure if he was really a statue or a person. I applaud his creativity and this is not really about him personally, but seeing him made me think how often we are fooled by what is not real. We put our faith in things of this world and like this man does, just as we begin to believe it, it will move and our faith will be shaken. If we put our faith in God, He will never change and never disappoint us. .
"The person who believes God, is set right by God—and that's the real life." Galatians 3:11
Talk later.
Hugs, 2 Mama

Day Forty-seven Castles and Turkeys Day

What a blessed Sunday we have had. The sun came out early this morning so we headed to our first sight-seeing destination, Cardiff Castle. We are in Cardiff, which is the capital city of Wales. The city, once the biggest coal exporting port in the world, is now a thriving waterside development of 300,000 people. One of its many attractions is Millennium Stadium (seats 75,000) which hosts numerous sporting events and is scheduled to host the football matches during the 2012 London Olympic Games. Another of Cardiff’s biggest attractions is the Castle (see photo above). Our hotel is right across the street from the castle, so transportation wasn’t a problem this morning. We were just praying for no rain and we were blessed to not have any for most of the day. Upfront warning: The blog is very historical today, so skip over the parts you’re not interested in.
You would think when you’ve seen one castle, you’ve seen them all, but it’s not true. True they all look castle-y with stone walls and flags flying, but they are very different once inside. The Romans were the first to arrive and built a fortification in the first century, but in more modern history, the 11th century, Cardiff Castle was in the hands of William the Conqueror. In the 12th century, it was rebuilt in stone. Skipping way ahead in history, it fell in the hands of the Earls of Bute and for years more renovations continued to be made, including finding the original Roman walls and restoring it back to its early days. We had the best tour guide who gave us the most interesting facts. Did you ever wonder why you can’t tell the girls from the boys in old photographs? I just assumed it was the custom of the day and that may be true in America, but our tour guide said that in Europe disease was rampant and little boys were dying more than the little girls. Hoping to trick the devil, parents put their boys in dresses. She said apparently in those day, the devil was confused by cross-dressers. :) Since boys were not considered big boys until they were eight years of age, it didn’t seem to matter to them. Now you know the rest of that story (at least Europe’s story). The living quarters of this castle were magnificent; most rooms were decorated with ornate furnishings and 18 carat gold leaf on the ceilings. One room has a small round dining table worth $680,000 today. Another gold leafed 10 by10 foot room is estimated to be valued at $34,000,000. It’s hard to even imagine, isn’t it? The last guest to stay in one of the bedrooms we visited was King Edward VIII. He is said to have come to the castle to ponder his decision to renounce the throne and marry his love, a divorced American socialite, which he did in 1936. We also saw the painting of one of the lady’s of the house who was considered to be one of the richest and the ugliest women in Europe (can you imagine having that reputation?). Her painting is said to be the castle’s best alarm system as intruders would run when they saw her face. How sad is that? She really wasn’t that bad. Okay, her eyebrows needed plucking, but other than that…
After a lunch break, we went to St. Fagan’s. St. Fagan’s is an open-air museum that features forty original Welsh buildings that have been re-erected in a 100-acre parkland that looks like the grounds at Camp Ch-Yo-Ca. The different buildings range from a Celtic round hut (see photo above, the purse is not a European man-purse, 2 Papa was helping me) to a 1952 pre-fab home that was built to help with housing after the war and only intended to last ten years. People are still living in some of these homes today so they proved to be quite sturdy. The amazing thing about this display of building is how they moved them. They took them apart numbering each piece and then reconstructed them exactly as they were taken apart, like a numbered puzzle. It’s just incredible. I’ve also included a photo of a very happy Turkey whose glad he lives in Wales instead of America as Thanksgiving is approaching.
I do have to tell you one more thing we, or 2 Papa, did today. The grounds around the buildings were extremely muddy after all the rain we’ve had. At one point, 2 Papa was coming down a really small hill when his feet slipped out from under him and down he went—right in the mud. He spent the rest of the day with his entire right side covered in mud. I’m talking coat, jeans, shirt—covered. Since he’s a frugal packer, he only brought one pair of jeans and two shirts. He’s down to one shirt and no jeans for three more days of travel. Thankfully, he has a pair of slacks he can wear. I wanted to snap a photo, but I felt bad as people were walking by and asking to help. :) Well, that’s it for Wales. Tomorrow we go to Bath.
When I saw the above-pictured turkey, my very first thought was Thanksgiving is next week (sorry, Mr. Turkey, it’s an American thing). It will be sad to miss this special holiday with our family and friends, but being here has made me so much more appreciative of all the events that lead to our freedom.
“It is absolutely clear that God has called you to a free life. Just make sure that you don't use this freedom as an excuse to do whatever you want to do and destroy your freedom. Rather, use your freedom to serve one another in love; that's how freedom grows. For everything we know about God's Word is summed up in a single sentence: Love others as you love yourself. That's an act of true freedom.” Galatians 5:13
Have a blessed Sunday evening. Love you all.
Hugs, 2 Mama

Day Fory-six Wales and Rain Day

Good Saturday everyone. I wasn’t going to blog today as we’re in Wales and the hotel has limited internet access, but I’m up and running for a few minutes so here I am.
We left Oxford in the rain this morning and managed the train system to Wales easily. I do have to say that I’m blaming movies for my unreal expectations of train travel. I’ve always believed that a train ride would be the most glamorous way to travel when in fact it’s not glamorous at all unless you’re James Bond or one of his girls. People are running everywhere as the trains do not stop for long. When the doors open, everyone scrambles to get their luggage on before the doors shut. Once your luggage is on, there is a limited amount of space for it. The seats are too close together. You’re given a seat assignment, but no one pays attention to it and someone is always in your seat, forcing you to ride backwards since you can’t be mean to the person who is in your seat. BUT, it’s very dependable and a faster way to travel than bus. And we made it just fine.
Wales is so far--rainy and cold. We spent the afternoon trying to see the sights while in a war with our umbrellas. It was a love/hate relationship day for all umbrellas. You love them for the protection they bring until the wind gusts and then you hate them because they are turned inside out and you’re getting soaked. We saw many umbrellas abandoned on the sidewalks after the wind had taken away their power. Sad. Ours survived, but it was a struggle. We heard on the news tonight that some gusts of wind reached 100 miles an hour. It was rough, for sure. We took the tour bus ride since it was undercover and then ran to the nearest museum. It was probably the best museum we’ve seen so far. We saw artwork such as Monet and Rodin, plus exhibits on the history of Wales. I told 2 Papa he and this wooly bison he stood next to at the museum had the same hairdo. (You'll want to click the photo and make it big so you can get a good look at the hair.)
Technically, Wales is a principality. This means that it is ruled by a prince. Traditionally the Prince of Wales is the eldest son of the English monarch. Wales is one of the four parts of the United Kingdom (along with England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.) Wales has not been politically independent since 1282, when it was conquered by King Edward I of England. Wales does not issue its own currency and is not in control of any armed forces. These are the powers of the national government of the UK. The national game of Wales is Rugby. In fact, Wales played the Samoan team last night who are staying at our hotel and are huge men! Scotland played today which is why 2 Papa is surrounded by kilts in the photo above. Wales also speaks its own language so all signs are in Welsh and English. Today all students take Welsh as a second language all the way through school, but less than 20% of the population use it daily.
The rain has stopped tonight, so tomorrow we hope to actually see the country. I hope you all have a great night.
I’ll leave you with this thought for tonight. I hope it blesses you.
“God is love. When we take up permanent residence in a life of love, we live in God and God lives in us. This way, love has the run of the house, becomes at home and mature in us, so that we're free of worry on Judgment Day—our standing in the world is identical with Christ's. There is no room in love for fear. Well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life—fear of death, fear of judgment—is one not yet fully formed in love.” I John 4:17
Hugs, 2 Mama

Day Forty-five Beauty Shop Day

With my blue, paisley Vera Bradley umbrella up to shield me from the wind and rain, I nervously walked down to Summertown where the fate of my hair color rest with a young hairdresser named Becky. The salon was very upscale and I was greeted by a receptionist who took my coat and replaced it with a black cape. My nerves were calming as she seated me in a futuristic beauty chair complete with the dryer that drops down from the ceiling. She politely told me that Becky would be there soon. Becky turned out to be the most precious young lady. She listened as I explained my gold, not ash, blond hair coloring and then called over the big dog, the manager. Mark listened as I again explained my hair color and I watched him mentally take notes. He excused himself to discuss as he said “rather technical hair coloring terms” with Becky and together they formulated a plan of action. Becky was so incredibly sweet the entire time that I think I would have tipped her if my hair had turned out blue. Use your best sweet, English accent (think Mary Poppins) and say these sentences: “Would you like something to eat?” “Do you mind if I lift your chair up?” “Is the water warm enough?” You get the picture. As if that wasn’t enough, after she washed my hair, while the conditioner was still on, she gave me an incredible head massage. She was definitely getting a tip! As you can see from the picture, Becky did a fabulous job and got Mark’s approval. It’s a little blonder than I usually wear it, but it’s not blue, so all is good. However, it’s 10:30 at night and 2 Papa has yet to say a word about it (as if he didn’t know I walked to the beauty shop—for goodness sake, we live in each other’s pocket—but, I'm fine with that) so maybe I should have gone with blue. A lady at formal dinner did tell me it looked great, without prompting, thank you very much. (As 2 Papa read this, he guiltily looked up and said, “You look gorgeous!” Note to young married’s: Not the way to do it.)
I got in a little souvenir buying after I left the beauty shop. It’s hard to shop or rather, to buy, with such limited packing space and the exchange rate being so poor, but somehow I’m managing. I found some really cute “little” things for all the kids today. We have twenty-five more days here, which seems like an eternity to me right now, but our calendar is booked almost every day from now until we leave. Besides the activities we have scheduled for the next three weeks, 2 Papa finished a rough draft of his book which I have to edit before he meets with his tutor next Friday. Wow, the pressure is on now! When I look at the calendar, I get a little panicky that I won’t have time to buy souvenirs for all.
It rained all day again with more forecasted for tomorrow. We had to take the bus to chapel and formal dinner tonight which means no exercise today. I guess we’ll survive. 2 Papa was asked to read the Bible passage for chapel service. He prefaced his reading by saying he would not use the Queen’s English, but a southern American derivative thereof. A slight chuckle could be heard round the room. Of course, I warned him before we walked in to speak slowly and enunciate carefully, which was received like a teenager being told to not chew with their mouth open. I think I even saw him roll his eyes. But, he obviously listened (yeah, right) as he did an excellent job! It was a long passage and he didn’t stumble one time. I was very proud of him. It was a contemporary service tonight, so I loved the “recognizable” music. Formal dinner was “kid” night where students and faculty could bring their younger siblings or children. We got to meet Justin and Sherry’s kids. Remember, Sherry entertained John Luke last week so meeting her kids was great.
Our flat is a total disaster. We have gone downhill since mom left. Back to looking like a college dorm room. 2 Papa’s makeshift ironing board closet is now piled high with everything he brought over here, with the exception of underwear, which he does put in the drawer I alloted him. We leave early in the morning for Wales, so I’m not seeing cleaning in the future, the future being later tonight. It’s already 11:00 now and we still have to pack and talk to family. No…not happening tonight.
Today’s lesson in chapel was appropriate in that the speaker talked about traveling light, which is how we are all forced to do when taking an airplane these days. But what we soon learn it that all of us can get along on much less than we do. In our walk with God, our bags need only be packed with three things. Like in life, we tend to pile so many things in our “Christian” bag that the important things get stuffed in the very bottom of the pile. “But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love.” I Corinthians 1:13 The Message
Praying for a blessed day for each of you.
Love and Hugs,
2 Mama

Day Forty-four Marmalade Day

Good Thursday to my faithful followers. I hope you are all well and the sun is shining where you are.
I mentioned in yesterday’s blog that we would be attending another lecture last night. This one was a dinner/lecture at the college, one they hold each year in a small room seating only forty people. It cost ten pounds to attend. The tables, covered in white tablecloths and decorated with long-stemmed candles, were set banquet style with a head table for the speaker, the president of the college and a few other important folks. We knew very little about the event, but fortunately I wore a dress and 2 Papa a suit, which proved to be good choices as everyone was dressed as if attending a party. The speaker was Professor Nigel Biggar who studied in Oxford, as well as Vancouver, and then received his PhD from the University of Chicago. He is currently Regius Professor of Moral and Pastoral Theology at Christ Church College. His topic for the evening was “Was the War in Iraq Justified?” He did a brilliant job with his presentation. (Even I could easily follow it.) The question and answer period was very exciting as many in the room disagreed with his conclusion which was, yes, the war in Iraq was justified---polite disagreement, of course, as we are in England. It was extremely interesting to hear so many different opinions, but he had an answer for all of them. He said he gave the same talk the night before and he managed to change the minds of 40% in the room to his way of thinking. But, last night no one changed from their original mindset as they entered the room. My thinking is the majority of our audience was young students and young people are for the most part, against war. But, who knows? Certainly, not me. I’m just happy to hang out here.
On to something not so heavy—marmalade making. I signed up for the project for two reasons, well three. 1. Learn something new 2. See a real English person’s house (I know, it’s kind of not the most admirable reason) 3. Get to know, more closely, people from different parts of the world. All three of these were accomplished. First of all, Jenny, the host of the marmalade project, just lives down the block from our flat, so walking was easy. Unlike our street, which is all college owned homes; she lives on a street that is all residential. Her home is just beautiful and now I wish I had asked its origin. The picture above is her garden. My verbal blunder for the day happened just after I arrived. I looked out of her large picture window and commented on her beautiful back yard. To which she corrected me, very sweetly, “In England, a yard is only concrete. We have gardens.” Whoops! Sorry. Later in the morning as I described our home with a backyard large enough to have a pond and lots of trees and flowers, she said “What do you call your garden?” The other American spoke up and said, “A garden.” Pretty good answer. I did go on to explain that Americans might have a garden, perhaps flowers or vegetables, in our yards. Everyone is learning. The other women there today: Elizabeth, an author and illustrator of children’s books from Australia, Karen, a nurse from South Africa, Lily, a young woman from San Francisco. They are here with their husband, partner, and boyfriend, respectively who are studying at the university. The marmalade making really was secondary to getting to see Jenny’s wonderful home and hearing the lives of these remarkable women. Oh yeah, Jenny our host, is a retired tutor in medicine, specializing in lung disorders. So interesting! (How many times can I say that word?) But, we did make marmalade. As you can see from the photo above, Jenny did a great job teaching us the tricks of the trade in making the perfect orange marmalade. However, don’t get your hopes up for Christmas, it’s quite complicated and something I’m not sure I can repeat on my own. In any case, Jenny let us buy a jar for one pound fifty. I had no money so one of my new friends loaned me the money. At least I have one homemade jar for proof.
San Francisco and Louisiana are worlds apart when we are at home in America. But here, Lily, from San Francisco, might as well have lived next door to me as we talked in common about all things American as if we had been friends our whole lives. We both sat in awe as the ladies from other countries shared their daily lives with us. They did the same as we shared ours. They were fascinated as I told of my eleven grandchildren, my work, attending ballgames and school events, going overseas for mission efforts, playing tennis—all things you and I do as a part of daily life in America. If you ever doubt whether your life is interesting, share it verbally with someone from another country. You will be convicted that your life is very blessed and what you do makes a difference in the world.
“God's kingdom isn't a matter of what you put in your stomach, for goodness' sake. It's what God does with your life as he sets it right, puts it together, and completes it with joy. Your task is to single-mindedly serve Christ. Do that and you'll kill two birds with one stone: pleasing the God above you and proving your worth to the people around you.” Romans 14:17
Enjoy your day.
Hugs, 2 Mama

Day Forty-three Errand Day

“When first the Fox saw the Lion he was terribly frightened, and ran away and hid himself in the wood. Next time however he came near the King of Beasts he stopped at a safe distance and watched him pass by. The third time they came near one another the Fox went straight up to the Lion and passed the time of day with him, asking him how his family were, and when he should have the pleasure of seeing him again; then turning his tail, he parted from the Lion without much ceremony. ‘Familiarity Breeds Contempt.’”
I thought of this excerpt from one of Aesop’s Fables as I blended in with the other Europeans and made my way through tiny alleyways, dodging both large buses and small bikes and never making eye contact with those approaching me. Very European, I must say. But for me, familiarity doesn’t breed contempt, more likely it breeds a sense of security. All the errands I had planned to run yesterday were checked off my list today and I couldn’t help but feel more secure as I knew exactly where I was going for every errand. Familiarity breeds security…
The rain had stopped and though cold, it was a bearable day to be out walking. I started the day at 10:00 at the Newcomer’s gathering. It’s a twenty minute walk from our flat, but it passes a beautiful park that we rarely see so through tears I enjoyed the beauty of changing colors once again. I was not crying, but I’ve discovered that my eyes pour as if I’m crying every time we walk in the cold. The only other time I have experienced this is when we ski down a mountain in Colorado, so I’m positive it’s just that I don’t walk in the cold enough at home for this to happen. I will put this to the test when I get home to see what happens. The gathering was fun today and I visited with Lily, a precious young mom who has only been here for eight days. She had her eight year old son and five year old daughter with her as the kids haven’t been admitted to a school yet. She was very eager to get them started. I could see “cabin fever” written all over her face. She’s of Chinese decent living in Australia, but will be in England until next spring. I signed (you never say signed up) for a service project tomorrow. I’m going to make marmalade. I’ll let you know how that goes. It’s never been anywhere on my radar in the past, but if all goes while, you’re likely to get marmalade for Christmas.
After the meeting, I walked on to town and straight to Zara, my favorite store here and in the states. I went for one more turtleneck and walked away with a pair of pants and a cute shirt. Even with the weak dollar, the prices are great. I’m sure that won’t be my last trip. Then, to Mark and Spencers for tights. You hardly see young people in jeans over here. For the most part, they wear thick tights and short skirts or short shorts. I may have told you this before, if so, forgive me. Not that I plan to take to wearing short shorts, but with the temperatures dropping, I did want some of the thicker tights. The salesclerk showed me how to tell the thickness of the tights. She said a school girl’s tights would be 100 denier, but for everyday use 40 or 60 would be fine. I got one of each.
Next, on to the college for lunch and a great visit with Justin and Andrew. Justin is the American I’ve mentioned before and Andrew is British. Andrew began to tell us about deer stalkers. To which I replied, “Do they only stalk the deer or do they kill them?” The entire common’s room laughed. Oh well, we’re not totally English entrenched! I did think that Willie Jess could go with The Deer Stalker, if things seem to not work out with Buck Commander.
Then, we did something rare for us and went to see a film, as they say over here. The film is titled Brightstar, a love story from the life of poet John Keats. It’s very well done, but don’t go expecting an exciting film. It is very true to the time period of early 19th century including its pace. It moves very slowly, but it’s a beautiful movie if you like period films like I do. Films are not well attended over here, from what we can see. We’ve been to both theaters and, unlike Tinseltown at home, there is never a crowd. I’m sure the competition with other amazing events makes a film not so inviting. Or it could be the cost, which I’m sure plays a part as well.
Not yet done with my errands, I took the bus to Summertown, a small little village just a five minute walk from our flat, but since I was at City Center, I took the bus. My goal in Summertown---find a beauty shop. Someone at Newcomers suggested one, so I went straight there. My appointment is at 11:20 on Friday. If it goes bad, I’ll let you know where to send the flowers.
Tonight we’re going to a dinner and lecture starting at 7:45. It will be a late night. I’ll have to blog about it with tomorrow’s blog as it will be too late tonight.
Back to the familiarity breeds contempt quote. I was thinking that familiarity doesn’t just breed security about our surroundings, but also familiarity breeds security with those people surrounding us. The more we get to know someone, even someone great, like Jesus, the more we’re able to feel comfortable around them and know they love us and will protect us. When someone is great for some reason, like a rock star or a great lecturer, those who don’t know them, stand in awe, but those who know them stand beside them as friends and confidants.
“That's why, when I heard of the solid trust you have in the Master Jesus and your outpouring of love to all the followers of Jesus, I couldn't stop thanking God for you—every time I prayed, I'd think of you and give thanks. But I do more than thank. I ask—ask the God of our Master, Jesus Christ, the God of glory—to make you intelligent and discerning in knowing him personally, your eyes focused and clear, so that you can see exactly what it is he is calling you to do, grasp the immensity of this glorious way of life he has for his followers, oh, the utter extravagance of his work in us who trust him—endless energy, boundless strength!”
Ephesians 1:16

Love you all.
Hugs, 2 Mama

Day Forty-two Work and Lecture Day

Good Tuesday, everyone! I have to tell you that today I would have traded my beloved peanut butter for one day with a car. It rained all day long. Now…. rain is one thing, but rain and cold is another. I had so many things on my list to do today, but I just wasn’t willing to do them in the rain and cold. Even finding the cure for my dark roots wasn’t enough to lure me out of my comfy pajamas and out in the cold. But, had I had a car…no problem, it would have been just like at home. Here, even though the bus system is fantastic, it still requires getting to the bus stop and waiting for one to come by.
So, this was one of those days when we pounded away on our dueling computers. Nothing else accomplished, but projects moved forward. My fingers found their way to page 48 of 304 pages (Did I just say 304 pages? Oh, my!) in my great-grandfather’s historical records. Barely a dent! Have you ever gone to look for one photo of a family member and three or four hours later, after you’ve smiled and cried over hundreds of pictures, you drag yourself away? The photo you were looking for may or may not be in your hand, but who cares? You just had a few hours of seeing your precious children or parents or siblings as they were in the past making the present seem all the more precious. I’m finding that recording my great-grandpas words has opened the door to an unlimited amount of history and my new best friend, Google, is always a willing accomplice in helping me. Truly, one “googled” name can lead to hours of reading and researching as I check spelling and confirm facts.
We did get in our last episode of Harry Potter last night. (Remember we stay up late to hear from our kids who are six hours earlier at home. Kids, call us.) I had to facebook a true Harry Potter fan, Dena Leasure, (her husband’s name is Harry, maybe that’s why she’s such a fan:)) to see when the rest of the movies will come out. Apparently, we’ve got a few weeks to wait for the grand finale.
Tonight’s activity was a lecture at the college. I told you guys in an earlier email that lectures are typically forty-five minutes of a professor reading a paper he has written and this one was exactly that. The topic was The Danger of Just Reading the Bible: Orthodoxy and Christology by Dr. Stephen Holmes from the University of St. Andrews. His paper was very enlightening, but it was extremely hard to pay attention to. Besides the use of unfamiliar terminology, the lack of any jokes, the absence of anything interactive like a power point, his British accent was so pretty it was distracting. I thought I was listening to Shakespeare and could have easily been lulled to sleep. I had to take notes to force myself to pay attention to the topic. The question and answer session after the lecture was better for my busy brain. I knew I might be in trouble tonight as before the lecture I found myself in a discussion in the common room with three brilliant people, one a scientist and one a theologian and the other a lawyer, over the need for daylight saving time. Believe me, there were no comments like, “It gets dark too early.” or “Do you spring forward or spring backward?” That I could have handled. This discussion involved time travel and the theory of relativity. Way over my head! Fortunately it was soon time for the lecture, so the discussion ended and all I did was smile appropriately.
Korie and Bella just called and Bella has the flu—again! She looked so cute with her little snaggle-tooth grin--coughing like crazy. Pray for her to heal quickly and not pass it on to others. Korie got to tell us about mom and John Luke’s trip from their perspective back to her and sounds like they had a great time.
One point that continues to come up in our tours over here is how uneducated the common people were until somewhere in the middle of the 18th century. The lecturer stated tonight that people had a hard time resisting whatever was the idea of day in religious beliefs as they had no other source to rely on than the more educated person telling them what the Bible said. How thankful I am that we have the ability to read for ourselves what God’s word says. How sad that many times we don’t take advantage of that privilege.
“We're ready to study God, eager for God-knowledge. As sure as dawn breaks, so sure is his daily arrival. He comes as rain comes, as spring rain refreshing the ground." Hosea 6:1
No new photos, just one more from our time with John Luke.

Have a great evening.
Hugs, 2 Mama

Day Forty-one Back to Normal Day

With Mom and John Luke safely back at work and school in West Monroe, we got back to our “new” normal routine. 2 Papa dug back into planning our future travels, the book he’s working on, and sorting through his coupons for dinner tonight. I begin my next project. I’m afraid this one will take the next four weeks in Oxford and then some, but I’m dedicated to it. My great-grandfather, Edmond J. Gardner, left a handwritten ledger of the Choctaw Indians who settled in Southeast Oklahoma after the Trail of Tears. In 1831, the Choctaws were the first Indian tribe to be removed from what was called the Deep South (Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama) and taken to Oklahoma, freeing up land for the mass of incoming white settlers.
Born in 1877, Edmond J. Gardner, passed away at age 59, but his legacy is still felt today as most of his large numbers of proud descendants know his name and his contribution to Indian history. How thrilling it was for me to read his obituary that stated “no one in this section of Oklahoma was better acquainted with the early history of Oklahoma than he.” As you can imagine, the pages of this inspiring project are extremely fragile; some are disintegrating and have to be lifted with great care. I am honored to be given the job of re-recording his words and making them available to all who are interested. It would be a shame for his words to be forever lost.
Today was a burrrr-cold day, but we still walked to college for lunch. As weird as it was five weeks ago, it is now normal to walk everywhere. It’s great exercise and gives us time to soak up the beauty of the day, even with chattering teeth. It wasn’t truly freezing, like below 32 freezing, but it was 39 degrees and for us southerners, that’s cold! Thinking today’s temperature might be what we have until we leave, I felt obligated to go to the mall and buy a couple of turtlenecks. I brought two with me (what was I thinking?) and I wear one every day. Since I’m no Phil Robertson who can wear the same clothes straight through hunting season, I needed a few more. Plus, I’m getting really tired of brown and black.
While I was shopping, 2 Papa went to the train station to finish up our travel plans. All done! He was so excited because he got a special deal on the train fare and had a coupon for dinner tonight. Just like at home, he’s started his coupon collection and loves to hand it to the waiter. Tonight, we saved 20%, which is extremely good. I really am proud of my coupon-clipper and travel planner. He does a great job of both.
Today also found me searching for a beauty shop. When I left Monroe, I knew this day would come, but it’s pretty scary when I see some of the hairdos walking around Oxford, especially since no one over forty even has a hairdo. But, I’m in desperate need of a root touch-up, so the search is on. I didn’t feel comfortable with any of the shops I saw today, so I’m going to a different area of Oxford tomorrow. I’ll keep you posted. I can only remember one awful time when my salon-hairdo came out so badly that my mom actually sent me flowers. I would love to not repeat that tragedy!
You have so diligently followed our journey and know that we have been witness to the history of England in so many different ways. From castles to thatch roof homes, this country is rich is its beauty and heritage. America is the same. From the Native Americans who proudly blazed the earliest trails for future generations to the pilgrims who pioneered against all odds to build homes and a new life, America has as diverse and exciting heritage as England. But, neither country got where they are today without the pain and suffering of war. Yesterday was Remembrance Day in England, which is like as our upcoming Veteran’s Day in America. It seems odd that fighting is the way to peace, but history proves that many wars did bring peace. With both American and British troops at war even today, let’s pray together that peace is right around the corner.
“May the Master of Peace himself give you the gift of getting along with each other at all times, in all ways. May the Master be truly among you!” II Thessalonians 3:16
Have a great Monday.
Hugs, 2 Mama

Day Forty Mom and John Luke Are Gone Day

Mom and John Luke should be somewhere over the ocean heading back to the land where an “a” is pronounced like it sounds and not like “ah” and, unfortunately, where the “t” is changed to a “d.” Such as is “wah-ter” with a strong accent on the “t” in England is very simply “wader” in the southern states where we live (And y’all have had plenty of wader lately!). However, we’ve discovered that the UK has as many different accents as we do in America. We had a tour guide with just a slightly different sound to his speech and John Luke immediately said that he sounded Scottish. He wasn’t from Scotland, but was from northern England which gave him a different accent, closer to a Scot. It’s weird, but I’ve started thinking words in British, but still cannot speak with a British accent. I’ve read a few web links on the evolution of the British language to American language and as you can imagine there are many theories. But, certainly, we are a varied bunch of talkers, from New York City to New Orleans, most Americans can distinguish the area of origin just as Brits can.
Enough rambling on language. We already miss mom and John Luke. Well, I do anyway. 2 Papa might be ready to run around in his underwear again and stretch out in bed. But, I was very sad to hear the knock on the door as the taxi driver came on schedule at 10:00 this morning. Naturally, a little gloomy, I had to play an hour of cell phone solitaire to recover. 2 Papa went straight to the computer (I like to think that’s his therapy because he misses his family, but in truth, it’s just what he does as much as possible) to plan our next trip—Ireland. He’s been talking about Ireland since our first week in England, only to be disappointed today as he discovered that travel to this beautiful country was going to be too difficult to justify the trip over. Instead we’re going to Bath, England and on to Wales. I really do understand how all of us could give up an extra bathroom or a dishwasher, even a curling iron (okay, that would be hard), but to live without Google these days would be disastrous. It’s all about technology, isn’t it? Googling travel to Ireland, Bath, and Wales made our choice very clear. So we leave on Saturday, as this week is already booked with lectures and other things and we’ll return the following Thursday.
After my one hour solitaire-therapy session, I put the apartment back in order and we headed out for a late lunch. Of course, another new restaurant that 2 Papa spotted weeks ago was our destination. It was conveniently next door to the video rental store (note that I had been to the video store twice with JL and never noticed this restaurant, 2 Papa had walked that street once four weeks ago and catalogued it). Since we needed to get the latest Harry Potter to continue our movie-marathon, it really was perfect so I didn’t argue. You might be saying to yourself, “John Luke is gone, why are they still watching Harry Potter?” I confess--we’re now hooked ourselves. The author of these books has an incredible imagination and it’s been fun to recognize the different locations that are just a part of everyday Oxford life on the big screen. Well, now on our the small screen.
Friday night at formal dinner we were able to spend time with Justin and Sherry who are the Americans I’ve told you about who have been here almost four years. We talked about Thanksgiving again and I offered our flat, but Sherry has a house and was happy to have us over. I decided that I needed to start looking for specific ingredients knowing how difficult that can be. Top priority is canned sweet potatoes, which I understand are as rare as American peanut butter. No luck today. My plan is to make Luanne Watts’ incredible sweet potato casserole recipe, so I’ll have to keep searching. I did find the tiniest bag of brown sugar and an even tinier bag of walnuts (the recipe calls for pecans, but beggars can’t be choosy), so I’m off to a little start. I may end up at the covered market at Palm again or have Ryan and Pam bring some from home when they come over. (I’m sure they would love to pack three cans of sweet potatoes in their luggage, especially with the tight weight limit these days, but you do what you have to do! :))
Today is Will Robertson’s special day. He is our eight-year old grandson. Happy Birthday Will! I put Will’s picture above (with granddaugther Macy and all the grandsons)so you can see what a handsome young man he is.(Or, maybe, I put them on as part of my continuing therapy today.) He loves baseball, has beautiful hand-writing, is a remarkable reader, and loves music. He’s leaning toward the drums. (Can we say ear plugs for the rest of the family?) Will has a smile that lights up the room and he loves his friends. He has been a constant source of joy to us, as all our grandchildren are. Will, this verse is for you.
“Pursue a righteous life—a life of wonder, faith, love, steadiness, courtesy. Run hard and fast in the faith. Seize the eternal life, the life you were called to, the life you so fervently embraced in the presence of so many witnesses.” I Timothy 6:11
Love you all.
Hugs, 2 Mama