Fall festival

Each year, Southern Seminary puts on an event for the families of the seminary called Fall Festival.  It takes place about a month into the academic year (which starts in August over here remember) and is an event that the seminary specifically gears for the families.  And they typically make a really great event.  Last year, our kids had a blast in what was essentially a carnival.  They loved going on the Ferris Wheel and the rocket ship rides etc.

This year, though, they pulled out all the stops.   The theme was Narnia, from C.S Lewis's famous fiction series.  When we arrived, we had to walk through the seminary rec centre which had been set up like a train station and then walk through a massive wardrobe (crafted just like the one in the movie) through to the seminary central lawn which was set up like a Narnia scene.  We were greeted by Narnia characters on the way in, and then made our way through to the central lawn which had Narnia style tents all around the edge, as well as a large fenced in field in the middle which was to be the stage for professional jousters... that's right, there was jousting there, with knights in full armour on enormous horses. 

There was a huge area with amazing bouncy castles, which were fun for all ages - it was quite amusing seeing a bunch of adults and even a few professors climbing in and around and up the bouncy castles.  There was the normal face painting, candy floss and hot dogs (all free), plus you could get a (plastic) sword after being knighted by Peter and Edmund, or have your photo taken on Aslan's broken stone table.

In addition to all this, they fed us all dinner (the festival was at no cost to us), which was catered by a local restaurant.  But the part that got me was finding out that this local restaurant had donated the dinner.  We're talking over $10,000 worth of food.  There is some amazing generosity around here, especially when it comes to the seminary. 

It was a great night - one that the kids loved and will probably remember for quite some time.  It's fun evenings like this that make us feel part of the seminary community and are making this place feel more and more like home... at least for now... :)

The kids with a Narnia character

Sam and Jack on the horse racing bouncy castle

One of the knights on his steed prior to getting armored up for jousting

Patriotism

One thing that is plainly obvious after spending a little time in the US (or at least in Kentucky) is that patriotism is a huge part of the American psyche.  We noticed this from early on, as the kids all have had to say the pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States of America every morning at the start of school.  Even Jack has to say it at his pre-school.  We were blown away one day in the car when we found out that Jack could recite the whole pledge – he hadn’t even turned four at the time!

But it really hit home when we went to a baseball game.  This was not a major game – it was our home team the Louisville Bats against the Tulsa Mud-Hens.  Yes, Mud-Hens.  They deserved the thrashing they got just for having a name such as Mud-Hens.  Anyhow, that’s not what I’m getting at.  It was a minor game between two cities, but it seems that they play the national anthem at just about any sporting event over here, and this game was no exception.

We had just arrived at the game and were walking around behind the seating grandstand in front of all the hotdog stalls etc. when we noticed that EVERYONE had stopped walking, EVERYONE was silent, and EVERYONE was facing in one direction (towards the flag).  I looked around and noticed that all the men with caps on had taken them off.  Then it struck me – it was time for the national anthem.  Like I said, this wasn’t a major game, but still the national anthem held such importance that it made the entire stadium go still and silent.  

We sung the Star Spangled Banner with great gusto, and at its completion everyone put their caps back on and carried on whatever they were doing.

These guys know how to build patriotism.  From the pledge of allegiance at school and scouts, the respect of the national anthem at sporting games to the incredible esteem and honor they give to those that serve in their armed forces, Americans (in general) love their country and their flag.  I think we could learn a few things from these guys…

Canada

It has been way too long since we’ve put something on this blog. Sorry, it’s been a bit of a whirlwind summer. However, I’d like to write a quick summary of our time in Canada, one of the biggest highlights of the summer.

Since arriving in the states, we have been flat out. We were told by others who have come here from overseas with a family that the first six months or so would be a mess and take a lot of getting used to. They were kinda right. After we’d been here for half a year and had survived the first winter, the place started to feel a bit more like home and it felt a bit more normal. But it was still full on.

As the summer and the one year mark approached (remember summer here is June-August) we realised that we had been going full steam ahead for almost 18 months without a real break away. Also, we’ve wanted to go to Canada for years (like, about 10) to take Sonia back to visit the place she spent a year of her youth on a student exchange. We figured that we were more than three quarters of the way to Canada already (from New Zealand that is) and that it would cost over 3 times the price to go up there if we did it later from NZ, so we decided to head off to Northern Alberta, Canada to visit Wayne and Val Schamehorn and their family.

Canada was amazing. It is such a vast country, with amazing diversity. Where we were staying (Northern Alberta) it is mostly forest and vast amounts of prairie land. Sonia had said to me a number of times in the past that the sky was huge in Canada. Approximately just as many times I had thought to myself “the sky is the same size no matter where you are in the world – science kind of dictates that”. Well, it turns out the sky is HUGE!! in Canada. I don’t know how to explain it – I’m sure it is physically the same size as anywhere else on the planet, but it just seems to stretch an unbelievable distance, and in all directions. I’m picking that it’s due to the fact that in the prairie land there are no hills and almost no trees. There is nothing anywhere 360 degrees around you to stop you from seeing all the way to the horizon. It really is something to behold.

It also turns out that it’s not just the sky that’s huge there. The country itself is enormous. It’s enormous and vast. It’s enormous and vast and for the most part empty. Approx 80% of Canada’s population lives within 100 miles of the US border. If you look at a map of Canada you’ll soon realise that the other 20% probably get to have about the size of a small country each if they divided it up evenly. But I got the opportunity to experience first hand how vast the country actually is. I got to go on a fishing trip to the west coast, to a sea side town called Prince Rupert in British Columbia. It was about a 2000km drive, spanning three days (we did it in two on the way back). The thing that stunned me though, was that I had only travelled across approx a third of the country. It’s crazy how big the place is.

We all loved our time in Canada. The kids loved being on the farm up in Manning, riding on quad bikes, catching frogs, going camping and playing in tree huts. And we all loved catching up with so many people we hadn’t seen in a long time (and many that I’d never met before). They were all amazingly hospitable and everyone had time to stop and chat, and if required, spend an afternoon just catching up and “visiting”, as they call it. I think we can learn a lot about the way they structure their lives and the priorities they put on people and relationships.

There is one major downside to having gone to Canada – the fact that we want badly to go back one day. I would love to see a winter there (Sonia already has). We’ve had a winter here in Kentucky with a bit of snow, but we measure the snowfall here in inches and fractions of inches. They measure the snowfall there in feet (even though they use the metric system in Canada – that’s another story for another time). Perhaps one day the Lord will give us cause to go back there, but for now it is a memory that is imprinted in our minds with a vividness and a fondness that we are immeasurably thankful for – a memory that we will cherish forever.

Long Summer days in Louisville Kentucky

So a big hi to everyone back there in little ol NZ! We miss you all. Even after nearly a year! Some things are definitely easier having been here for close to a year but the longing for coming home and standing on NZ soil has not diminished all that much.

We are approximately half way through the summer break here in Louisville and it is very hot and humid. We still spend a large chunk of the day inside as the heat is fairly extreme. However we've managed to keep busy and find enough things to do outside and inside with friends. And we haven't had it above 36 degrees yet, which isn't too bad. We have been assured that there will be some 40 degree days ahead though...

Just to give you a little idea on what the weather is like here in Louisville during summer...approximately 3 weeks ago, Bradd and Sam went camping with a bunch of men from church. They had a fantastic time - Sam just loved sleeping in the tent out in the bush, having a camp fire, and hiking through the woods. However ever since then Bradd promised to camp out with Jack and Ash in the back yard. Well the nature of Louisville summer weather is such that, although it is extremely hot during the day, in the evening thunderstorms will very quickly and loudly roll in. He was able to take Jack out in the tent just a few nights after coming back from the camp. But over the last 3 weeks there have been very few evenings whereby thunderstorms have not been anticipated, and the few that have been clear we have been busy doing other things. Just the other night, after deciding that afternoon that we shouldn't risk going out in the tent due to the possibility of a storm, we even spent several hours in the basement with the kids late at night as there were Tornado warnings in place. Reading the paper the following day, we discovered that there was significant cloud rotation and actually 4 tornadoes touched down in Louisville, one of them just a few miles down the road. Of all the places to hit, one of the tornadoes touched down at Churchill downs (home of the Kentucky Derby), where obviously many of the horse owners, who had horses housed there, were a little nervous about their horses being panicked and getting injured etc.

So tonight Bradd is hoping to get the tent up and camp out with Ashleigh. She has been very patient, but I think it's starting to wear thin. The weather forecast looks good - 0% chance of rain after 9pm, an overnight low of 18 degrees (Celsius) so it shouldn't be too hot (overnight lows here are often in the mid twenties during summer), and most importantly, no thunderstorms or tornadoes.

Tornados - A little too close to home...

Back in October last year I wrote a blog about tornados being boring. I just want to go on the record right here saying that I was wrong.

Those of you that keep up to the minute with the news may have seen that a small town called Joplin in the state of Missouri was hit by a massive tornado this evening (Sunday 22 May, US time). According to reports at the minute, about 75% of the town is in ruins. There are many deaths, and a massive amount of people still missing. Very scary stuff.

But here's the bit that makes it particularly scary for us. We were in Joplin yesterday morning. And if we hadn't altered our initial plans while in Joplin, we'd still be there this evening - in fact, we may not have "been here" at all...

We arrived in Joplin Thursday night and attended the wedding of Jonny and Janaye on Friday(Jonny is a friend from Seminary and Janaye rents our basement). The morning of the wedding (Friday morning), the weather was crazy. It was only nine in the morning, but the entire sky was dark (it was just like night-time) and when it rained it absolutely poured!! While we were sitting eating our breakfast we saw what seemed to be like a river flowing down through the gas station next door. Sonia was a little anxious about going out in the weather however she needed a couple of things for the wedding and the people around about the hotel did not seem that concerned.

Sonia's account of the morning: "So as I was driving around I kept one eye on the sky and one on the road. Approximately 2-3 miles in the distance I could see the dark clouds almost touching the ground. I have never seen anything quite like it before. You could just imagine how tornados form so easily when the massive cloud systems are that close to the ground. Anyhow while in the 'dollar tree' store I asked a couple of ladies if this was normal sort of weather for this time of year. They said "somewhat, but that the darkness of the sky was certainly unusual". So then of course I asked why they would be out shopping given the likelihood of a tornado. However they responded saying that you just keep your radio on, and all shops would advise of a tornado warning should one be given by the authorities but its pretty much business as usual unless warned otherwise. Anyhow I was extremely relieved to have picked up the things I needed and be back in the Hotel with family."

This evening (Sunday) as I type this, we are seeing more and more updates from Joplin on the Weather Channel - it looks like the whole town has been flattened, and this is a "town" the size of Hamilton, New Zealand (population approx 170,000). I've just now tried to call the hotel that we stayed in - there is no reply. Almost all the wedding guests that were from out of town for the wedding were staying at the same hotel as us. We don't know if any of them were still there when the tornado hit. The Weather channel is saying that the tornado was a mile wide.

We are currently in a hotel in St Louis (approx half way between Joplin and Louisville) and we have a Tornado watch here in St Louis as well. We've just had a huge thunderstorm pass through with strong winds. We've had plenty of storms since being in the US, but seeing something so devastating so close to us has us a little nervous, especially as there is no basement in this hotel. We might be a little sleepless tonight.

We are thankful that God has kept us safe and taken us out of the path of the tornado, but are also concerned and praying for those that have been affected by the devastation, particularly those that were at the wedding with us.

Keep an eye on http://www.weather.com/ if you want to keep up to date with it all.