There is much that has been exciting about the "newness" of living in a country like Indonesia - and we usually try to focus on the adventure side of things. Well, this past week I had the privilege of experiencing first hand the inside of a local hospital - lucky me! I spent two nights in a Seventh Day Adventist hospital; I was sick with Dengue fever. I was confined to my bed and bombarded with care. I think on average there were four nurses assigned to care for me - bath me (yes, they offered!), dress me, check my temperature with a thermometer straight out of the fifties. In fact, the entire hospital experience felt like I had gone back in time about fifty years - complete with nurses wearing white uniforms and little white caps. Very cute indeed. And I was a very unwilling, un-compliant patient. After two days I was finally released to the loving care of my husband. I have never been so happy to come home. Hospital experience number two (Blaise earlier this year) completed. This week Indonesia got the better of us.
So, needless to say, these past few weeks have been a blur for us as a family. Whilst I was sick, Ben was busy dropping kids off at school, visiting me, picking the kids up, taking them to soccer and so on. Flora has been newly registered at Blaise's school. It is quite cute to watch her walk up the steps to school with her back pack on and say "see you later, mummy" like such a big kid, just like her big bro. Blaise loves having her at school and will often help fill me in on what Flora did all morning. Of course if you ask Flora she'll say "I play house" or "I read stories".
Ben has been getting more opportunities to teach and preach - in Indonesian! He's already given one three hour lecture at a small country Bible School. I am quite proud of him - it would have been a blast to watch him lecturing in Indonesian in a little pondok (a hut-like structure that is open to the outside) with cows and chickens wandering around. Ben is in his element at the front of a class room - no matter what the language - so he was very glad for this opportunity. It is also showed him that even at this point in his language learning he can give a lecture - albeit a simple one.
Highlights of this month: Ben's birthday, receiving a couple of packages (always a highlight!), and a somewhat awkward, but relationship building trip to the local volcano with our neighbours :).