Marsha's Blog

 To All my Wonderful Followers,   We survived the holidays! Now we are making it through what the English call “Boxing Day”, which has nothing to pugilistic activities but rather to “boxing up” all the things from Christmas. Quite appropriate in our case, since we’re also packing up the house in preparation for the Big Trip.   And to make things even more interesting, our whole family is beginning a 5-day stayover in a resort not far from the house. It’s rather tired, but it has a pool, a pond and a creek, and the grandkids love it.   I know Christmas is over, but I’d like to share just one more story, in case you haven’t heard it already. It’s about Henry Wadsworth Longfellow … remember him from high school literature class? He did most of his writing in the mid to late1800s, but did you know…...   …that his second wife burned to death in 1861 when her dress caught on fire as she melted wax to seal Christmas letters?  Henry was so injured trying to save her that he was unable even to

  Well, are we all getting excited yet?  It’s almost Christmas!! I’m glad so many of you enjoyed the “Cockroach Christmas” story.  Fortunately, all our ‘goofs’ in the Japanese language weren’t so eventful In fact, soon after we arrived, Tony came across a simple story in my grandmother’s Guidepost magazine that she’d so kindly tucked into our luggage for the ‘hard days'.  It was simple enough that Tony felt he could tell it in Japanese, and the story was a great success.  So much so that besides being “Santa” for numerous Church kindergartens every year, he began to have a reputation for the simple “Tommy’s Christmas” sermon.  Always a hit on the cold and dark winter nights of Christmas in Japan. So here’s the story.  I can almost repeat it in both languages: "It was Christmas Eve, and I was trying to write my Christmas sermon for the Children's home where our family lived and worked.  Even though my heart was happy and filled with love, the words were not coming to me.  

We’d been in Japan several years when we got some new missionaries.  This couple and their two boys were unstoppable. In particular, the wife clearly had a musical ear, leading her to have a real gift for the languages. I tried not to be jealous of her prowess. And then one day she dispelled any jealousy I’d had by telling this story on herself. It was the Christmas season. That’s when we missionaries would crank into gear and take every opportunity imaginable to show Christ to Japan. After all, materialism had appeared soon after the war was over and most Japanese understand that Christmas is coming, even going so far to seek out churches and other venues in the hope of some ‘holiday cheer’. Mind you, most have very little idea to this day of WHAT Christmas means, apart from gift giving to children  and eating Kentucky Fried Chicken with your boyfriend on Christmas Eve. I’m not making this up, you can google what an incredible marketing ploy the Colonel pulled off some 60 years ago! A

 Hello all   Welcome to December!  By now you in the Northern Hemisphere should be snugged down and anticipating Christmas. I can imagine you looking thru frosty windows out at glistening lights, humming Christmas carols and sipping hot chocolate. (sigh!)   And yet, here Down Under, I have never quite “gotten” the Hot Christmas idea, but I have to admit that it’s fun to hear the grandkids frolicking in the pool and wondering what cool quick dry ‘frock’ I can come up with for the Christmas Eve carols. And then is the 8:00AM Christmas day service that is also so much a part of Australian tradition.    We love being with family then, and seeing the gleam in the children’s eyes. I was almost moved to tears when I asked my middle grandson, Ezekiel, what his favorite Christmas memory was. I expected to hear something involving food and/or presents, but he thought a moment, then said, “Oh, that’ll be THIS Christmas, because we have a ‘newcomer’! He was talking about Cousin Jeremiah, now comin