This week we were given this beautiful bouquet of deep purple lilacs by our neighbours across the lane. They had no idea that:

a) this is my favourite shade of lilac,
b) lilacs are SUCH a reminder of home, or
c) that our spirits could’ve used the boost that comes with the smell of lilacs filling the room!

With our departure only 3 weeks away… we were a little bit in panic mode this week. But before I get to “panic” let me just talk “purple”…

Purple

I could never get Wisteria to blossom back home in Canada. The winters were too cold resulting in frozen flower buds that dropped off every spring leaving me with nothing but beautiful bushy leaves which, I’ll admit, grew well.

Here wisteria grows like a bad weed, like a runaway truck… like a house on fire! Here are just a few pics from around Châtellerault (and I easily could’ve included 100 more… you see it everywhere).

The flower hangs downward and only as it fades do the leaves come out… dressing the vine for summer and giving abundant shade. I’m glad I live in a world where God created wisteria!

Budding Intellect

Timo got his glasses this week…. here he is trying not to show how excited he was to put them on for the first time.

The next transformation (for both him & Dominic) will be braces, but they won’t come until August.

Although they need them now, the orthodontist didn’t want to start the process before our 2.5 month absence in case they ran into any problems. Wise move.

School: done / not done

Yes: our trip to North America was prompted by Sophie’s graduation from her homeschool program (Abeka Academy / Pensacola Christian Academy).

No: She’s not totally done with secondary school. This week she did an orientation/observation day at a French high school in Poitiers… here she is, heading to school for the “first time”

Why? Sophie’s spoken French is good and she can get by quite well, but doing 1-2 years in a French school offers a couple of advantages:

• it’ll help with her written French
• it’ll help her make a softer transition between homeschool and the wider public world (without going straight to university)
• should she choose to enter university here in Europe (an option, given her Italian citizenship and our seemingly prolonged stay), university acceptance becomes easier with a French diploma

Missions life is not always the most clear path in terms of the future… so we’re trying to make as many provisions as possible for what appears to be a lengthening stay. What’s more, given that we entered missions service at a time where the kids were moving into their teens, that gives us a number of extra considerations that we’re always trying to balance.

We always appreciate your prayers for our current service as well as for the future. We know that God is the author and the finisher of our faith and even when faced with uncertainty, we can rest on him for strength and assurance.

“A” is for “airplane”

Take a close look at this plane… do you see what it says on the front, below the windows?

“Châtellerault”

I guarantee you… it’s the only plane you’ll see with the name of our city on it!  It’s actually a promo piece for a local grocery store but I thought it appropriate given our all-too-soon departure.

This is where “P” is for (a slight) “panic”.

You know that burst of activity that hits right before you leave on vacation? Things that you’ve kept putting to the back burner are all of a sudden in the forefront of your mind and you’re unsure how you’ll get it all done before leaving… well that’s us. We’d not made any plans for the week prior to our departure in order to be completely free to tie up loose ends. That changed and those changes are unavoidable, so we take a deep breath and hope for the best.

One thing’s for sure… on May 15th our seats will be seated on airplane seats. Until then…

---

Thank you to those of you who support us financially.
Thank you to those of you who support us in prayer.
You are invaluable!