My mom's mom

I don't think any of my family reads my blogs anymore and since I don't seem to talk to any of them very much either this seems to be the only place I can talk about my Mom. I don't hang around anybody that knew her or remembers her but just yesterday we got some information about her and her mom that was so cool and interesting. I have no desire to talk to my brothers about it all...but talking to you...somehow it is safe. Please indulge this family history I just learned.

Camille Montet was my grandmother. She was a 'love child' of a Brazilian diplomat and her socialite mother. Since her mother had married well, this was not a good thing so Camile was raised by foster parents in Normandy. When she turned 9 her mother came and got her and then lived with her from age 9-21. Her mothers name was Madame Leuiset. When she was 21 she looked for her foster family back in Normandy. She went to midwifery school at a Catholic school in a large castle and having earned her credentials went on to deliver 20, 000 french babies and lost only 2.

Camille married Albert and good looking philanderer who was a painter, an artist and a performer. Albert came from a Russian/French background but then everyone in France comes from mixed blood. ( this is told from her daughter My only living Aunt). During WWII when the imminent invasion was to occur Camille and her 5 children moved to Marsaille , then Geneva and then settled in Grenoble and became an Administrator in an orphanage for young women who had children without husbands. Because she received food stamps she was able to help many during the war and took part in the underground railroad helping Jews to make it the Holy Land. My mom and her brother were in Switzerland at this time as many children were put out of harms way. They lived so high up in the mountains that there were no trees and Mijo (my mom) was a shepherdess. My Grandmother had Yves, Michelle, Mijo & Camille, and Marie-Therese. My grandmother outlived 4 of her children. Camille, Mijo's twin, died of an ear infection. Yves, died when he fell off a roof when he was in his early 20's. Michelle died of bone cancer when she was in her 40's and Mom died when she was 52. My Grandmother died a few years ago which leaves my Aunt who lives presently in Erie, PA.

As my mother grew up, she was sad and morose. When Camille came to the Lord she had joy and this was true of my Mom who came to Christ when she was 15. She went on to a technical college to become a chef...but somewhere along the way she found herself at Bible college in Paris, met my Dad and the rest is history. She ended up so far away from her precious mother in a land so utterly foreign raising 4 of her own children.

What a legacy I carry from all these amazing, colorful, heroic , accomplished women...I can't help but feel that I have done so little in comparison.

Good wine and God's glory

John 2 The changing of the water to wine.



" But you have saved the best till now !"

This, the first of his miraculous signs...He thus revealed His glory and his disciples put their faith in him.

This makes me smile, God's glory revealed in good wine.

God's glory revealed in taking away a lack of preparation by the host.

God's glory revealed in making his mother happy.

God's glory revealed in a marriage ceremony.

God's glory revealed in a recognition of cultural expectations.

God's glory revealed in elevating and making right an embarrassing moment.

Result: Disciples put their faith in him...

God's glory is not that complicated...maybe when we

help elevate an embarrassing moment

do something for our parents

understand a relevant cultural happening and abide and give respect

come alongside a harried co-worker and lessen their load

drink some good wine in good company at a good celebration

we in turn glorify God and our faith is visible.

HOME

He is and will be now for awhile....exhale....Scott that is.

Hedging the bets

Yesterday in class a student was talking about his bad luck. In his broken English he was telling us that even though he prayed he has much bad luck. He had lost in playing his xbox games, it had rained when he left the Y so his ride home was wet but the worse was that he had gone to the bathroom and while there realized that there was no toilet paper. To make matters worse, there were no males in the house he could call to deliver the toilet paper since they had gone hunting. He was left with only females which he could never ask to deliver the TP...he got stuck twice not having TP. "Bad-luck, I have to take two showers. But I pray", he wondered.

"So, who are you praying to?" I ask... knowing that he is not a believer."God and Buddha" he said."Buddha lets us talk to anyone".

So what do I do with that?

Might as well be me

In my last post I shared how difficult it is to talk about our personal faith...I might as well start. As you know by now Scott has been working away from home for about 8 months now. The last 7 weeks he has not been able to come home on the weekends because he has been working 12 hour days seven days a week. It is harvesting season , it will come to an end but I am finding something strange happening in our relationship. We talk to each other every day but we have less to say. His world and my world don't Venn diagram anymore. We have no intersecting areas, not even with the children. I can try and explain what is going on here and he there but the distance has become more then just miles. It isn't lack of interest or lack of love or lack of anything but time together. When you are in sync with someone, communication isn't difficult. Scott and I are out of sync which a week together will remedy. Don't know if that would help with my relationship with God.

The verse in Psalms that tells us to be still and know...that wonderful verse that puts our life on necessary pause...In Hebrew 'be still' means 'Enough' ! Enough and Acknowledge that I am God...not so much a necessary pause but an abrupt command. Stop it...Stop musing, commiserating, doubting, wondering, wishing, wandering away...Enough! Acknowledge God for not being what you expect, not running to your every whim, bigger and better then you imagine, not Santa Clause, apart from your human imagining, outside of it all and inside all at the same time, Macro and Micro, the Grand story of Time and the intimate story of place...

What I know about Scott belays any fears of distance and being out of sync. I know his loyalty to me and his love for me...I know we will both work hard to get back on the same page.
God is asking me to do the same about Him...Enough already , know me..we can get back on track, Anytime!

A safe place

In class we were discussing normative behavior at LC, this is my Psychology class. A comment by one of the students struck me. "There really are no safe places to express what you really think or feel. One way or the other you will be judged or talked about for what you really think."

I have two Dutch boys in class and they were bemoaning the fact that here in America we all seem so afraid to really say what we are thinking...about politics, religion and sex. I think what we are most afraid to really talk about is our faith...I know this is true in my classes in this Christian school. If I want to shut down a class room quickly all I have to do is ask people to say something personal about their faith. Some will talk about politics, social issues, drinking habits even their sexual escapades but they won't broach their faith with any ten foot pole. It is private, personal and none of your business.

There is a lot of Dutch in me in that I have no hesitation about telling people what I think. I do it less and less though because I have come to realize that so much of the time we aren't really listening to each others point of view but waiting for our soap box to preach. I really don't mind a good discussion about opposing view points but it gets so personal so soon that it is better for the discussion not to even begin. It is kind of sad because we are not listening and learning from each other. We are not being that iron that sharpens iron.
I agree with those students...I also wonder where the safe places are for us adults?

Not talking enough

Scott has been away from home a long time. He used to come home on weekends but for about 5 weeks now he has been away. I have gone to see him for an evening but for the most part...I have been alone with my thoughts. Like this tulip petal on the ground...my thoughts when not expressed become quite disconnected. One of my strengths is connectedness...the ability to connect random things, thoughts, happenings, etc. together and make some kind of sense. Another one of my strengths is ideation and intellection...I love to learn new things, think about things and come up with new ideas for about everything.

( Those of you who do not know about these strengths...it is a psychological profile we have done in our school with students and teachers to have a handle of our 5 major strengths out of 37. It has been very helpful in figuring out who we are from our strengths.)

The problem is that my head becomes very full if husband isn't around to talk too....my brain just gets fatter and fatter. I am an introvert by nature...sitting at home with a good book (gathering more ideas and thoughts) then go out and about. All is well and good and balanced only if husband is here to help drain my thoughts and ideas. He has the patience to listen to me and gently let me know how off base I have become or the best to tell me he has never really thought of it that way.

He has been gone too long...I have been thinking too much...fat head needs patient ears !!!!!