Tag Archives: Châtellerault

Dogs, Poultry & Exploration

September 5, 2015 By in Blog Tags: , 1 Comment

What can I tell you about this week that you don’t already know?  Let me begin by saying that it was both mundane and extraordinary at the same time.

Bible School Housekeeping

From a work perspective, this week consisted primarily of Bible School housekeeping. After last week’s full week of teaching, there was a fair bit of marking and grade calculation to be done. I also finished marking & grading the last straggling tests & papers from the Spring session as well. It feels very good to have this off of my plate.  (You know that feeling you get when you look at that “one particular pile”!!).

It was done just in time too. The 2015-2016 Bible School year begins next Saturday.

La Rentrée

The North-American term “Back-to-School” is translated as simply “la rentrée” (the coming back). It refers not only to the return to school, but also to the return from summer holidays and the recommencement of clubs or organizations that have taken a break for the summer.   Several folks who have been away on summer vacation are beginning to make their way back to church as well… vive la rentrée!

Replacing Jayc

Chicken Coop, Dutch Bantams, Poulailler Nevada, Gamm Vert, Rooster, HenRemember back in July when we were excited to welcome a Beagle pup, named Jayc, to the family. Well… within 24h, Jayc was paralyzed in the hind quarters. The breeder came & got him, took him to the vet and that was pretty much the end as neither cause nor cure could be found. The breeder replaced him with a second pup and after 5-6 days, again, signs of severe illness. The breeder came back and took him to the vet as well… same result. In the end, this well established breeder’s kennel had been hit with a bad virus and lost 47 dogs.  We weren’t ready for a “round 3”, sooooo…..

This week we welcomed a pair of Dutch Bantam chickens into the family (we’ve had small animals before – chickens, quail, rabbits & homing pigeons – so we were in familiar territory!).  Meet “Jayc“ (remembering our beagle pups) and “Ginger“ (*think… “Chicken Run”, the movie*). Sophie is our “Chicken-ista” and handles them like a pro!

Thursday we put their pen together and now can enjoy their pecking, scratching and clucking all day long (along with the occasional crow).

Exploration

Île Cognet, Châtellerault, Pont Henri IV, La Vienne,On Thursday, Liz spent a few hours at the church with one of our ladies who regularly cleans the building. Afterwards this sister came to the house and joined us for supper.

The kids had been wanting to visit l’île Cognet, a small island in the middle of the Vienne River that flows through downtown Châtellerault. It can’t be visited year-round, but during the summer there is a bridge facilitating access. It turns out that our sister from church had never visited the island either, although she’s lived here many years. Following supper, rather than diving straightway into dessert, we opted for a stroll to discover this quiet haven of virtual wilderness right downtown.

The kids enjoyed a wild round of hide-and-seek  and it allowed views of the Henri IV bridge than we’d not previously seen.

Prayer

Could I ask for your prayer support in the following 3 ways?

  • I’ve had conversations with a few church members that reveal heavy needs. Pray for the Lord’s wisdom in working through situations with them.
  • The boys will begin school this week and Sophie a little later. Pray for strength for Liz and the kids.
  • My residency application process – although it should be straightforward there are still a few hoops to jump through before October 10th.

Thank you for your support… It is an incredible feeling to know you’re in the Lord’s will for your life! We are… and you are part of that!

#PrayForFrance

Paris and back!

May 9, 2015 By in Blog Tags: , , , Leave a comment

Hey there!  Good day to you… got your coffee in hand?  Want to hear about the past week?

Paris-Centre

United Pentecostal Church, Paris-Centre, UPCI FranceLast Sunday was another opportunity to train up to the capital and help out with the church in Paris-Centre.

The congregation is primarily made up of Filipino and Sri Lankan Christians and they rent a local in the south eastern part of the city. It’s a bit away from the “touristy-center” but still very much the capital.

United Pentecostal Church, Paris-Centre, UPCI FranceI preached from Joshua chapter 1 as they are a church in transition right now… in between Bro & Sis Brochu (who are on deputation) and Rev. & Mrs Dean & Loreen Byfield (AIMers who will stand in the gap until the Brochu’s return…. Incidentally, Sis. Byfield is also Bro & Sis Nowacki’s daughter). As it turns out, the guest minister who was there the previous Sunday also preached from the same chapter… I’d say that there was something that the Lord wanted the church to hear and be encouraged by.  God is good!

Another Funeral

On Tuesday I participated in the funeral of M. Henri Leday (brother of Cecile Leday, the first member of the church here).  For a number of years, M. Leday resisted the gospel and was tolerant, at best, of his sister’s faith.  With time however, the Lord softened his heart. In 2007, Sis. Cecile was admitted to hospital and ended up never coming back out prior to her death, however, the Sunday before she entered the hospital, her brother did join her for service… he never stopped for 3-4 years until his own health would no longer permit him.

He was buried from the church that his daughter attends, in a neighbouring city, but we were asked to participate in the funeral service and then to look after the graveside service as well, which did take place in Châtellerault. What an honour.

I met M. Leday back in 2009 when I was here to teach in the Bible School so he was not unfamiliar to me. I had a chance to visit him again a few weeks ago with Bro. Brochu… but his health had already declined greatly.

*thankful the Lord still softens hearts hardened by any number of things or circumstances.*

Heavy Lifting

Thursday was a very productive day in terms of just plain ol’ hard work.

I started by attempting to mow the church yard (about 1.5 acres).  The ride-on mower was out of commission so I figured I could use Bro. Brochu’s electric “yard mower” to just get a 20′ perimeter around the building and at least “take the edge off” … so it would look less like a pasture!

It was a task, to be sure, but here’s the silver lining… at one point, I saw an older gentleman across the street. I waved at him and kept on mowing, but he was back near our fence a few minutes later.

Thinking he might need directions, I stopped the mower, went to greet him and asked if I could help him with something. It turns out that he was wanting to help me. This was the first time I met M. Poirier, the church’s neighbor. He has a large John Deer, dual-blade lawn tractor and he offered to finish up the rest of the lawn.

Incredible! Though not hostile toward the church, he’s not had all that much contact in the past so this was quite something. It’s opened up the possibility of inviting them for a meal at some point as a means of saying thank you…  *Lord, let our contact with the Poiriers bring you glory*

Compost, DéchetterieAfter the church yard, I returned home and trimmed the hedge at the Brochus. This is about a 4-hour deal (with Liz and/or the kids coming along behind to load up the trimmings). We’ll likely have to repeat the trim once or twice more during the summer growing season, but it’s sure easier than scraping & painting a fence!  Here are the kids helping me transport the trimmings to the church yard where I’ll use them for mulch / compost.

A Few More Highlights:

  • We visited with an older couple who are related to someone in church. It was a very warm visit and I’m confident we’ll see them visit church one day.
  • Wednesday night was the 3rd night of a series I’m doing on the basics of salvation. We’d already discussed repentance & baptism and this was the first of two lessons on the Holy Ghost. There is a gal there that needs it and is also not quite ready to be baptized… *a matter to keep in prayer*
  • Today I am teaching at the Bible School on the books of 1st and 2nd Corinthians then driving 3.5 hours back home.

In a Nutshell

La Manu, La Manufacture, Les Manuchards, Châtellerault, France, EscaliersThat’s pretty much been our week in a nutshell… Thanks for taking the time to stay on top of our goings-on here… let it inform your prayers for us and for the church in Châtellerault. God DOES have greater things in store for this city… and you’re part of it!

God bless you today!

More than words…

March 21, 2015 By in Blog, Events Tags: , 2 Comments

G’morning from France. I usually try to write posts a day or two ahead of time and then schedule them for publishing on Saturday… but today as I begin to write you, it’s also Saturday (about 3:30am in the Atlantic time zone, 7:30 here in France). Dominic & I came to Pat-à-Pain, our favourite neighbourhood wifi spot, where we’re having pain au chocolate, café crème and an OJ. He’s “Clash-of-Clan-ing” and we’ll hang for a while after I’m done.

Send-off for the Brochus

Paul Brochu, France, Châtellerault, sendoff

Last Sunday we held a sendoff service for the Brochus. He preached on the need for a move of the Spirit of God, like a river of living water, in order for us to bring life to those around us. That is the message that he wanted to leave with the church as he & Sis. Brochu prepared to leave for their deputation.

They leave this morning for one week of regional meetings in Israel. Next Sunday they will have their final service in Paris-Centre and return to Châtellerault for 2 days before flying back to the USA.

These are extremely busy times for them and we can totally relate as it was only two months ago that we were doing many of the same things.

Ron Bohde, anointing oil, Châtellerault

After the message and time at the altar we had several a farewell presentations in their honour. The Sunday School kids did a poem and a skit depicting the hectic life of a busy pastor & missionary. Pictured above is Sis. Christelle reading two poems that she wrote in honor of of Bro. & Sis. Brochu.

Liz & I presented the Brochus with a gift for the church… a turned-wood anointing oil flask, hand crafted by Rev. Ron Bohde, Pastor of Bethel UPC (Hillsboro, Oregon).  We’d purchased it at general conference in St. Louis, back in the fall, but held onto it, waiting for just the right occasion.

During the dinner afterwards the kids got a chance to just hang out with the other kids and bond.

I must say… this service was somewhat emotional for me, which took me by surprise. I was more emotional than I was during our installation service. I think it’s the realization that the weight of pastoring will now fall primarily on our shoulders whereas before “the leader” was always there and I functioned much as I always had… as a “second man”.  This service went a step further to underscoring the change.

Family Time

Oyré, France, Église Saint-Sulpice, St. SulpiceFollowing that service we took a drive to the village of Oyré, about 7km away. It’s a village of only about 1,000 people, but at the center is the Saint-Sulpice Church, which dates from the 12th Century.  How amazing is that?!  This building is roughly 850 years old.

Here you can also see the family gathered at… you guessed it: Pat-à-pain for treats and wifi time.  Before leaving, friends sent us off with 200 euros in hand… we’ve chosen to use it for these weekly family wifi-treat nights. It has allowed us to get out of the house a bit and allowed the kids to connect with friends via chat / FaceTime.

Brothers & Sister

Kids, Coca-Cola, Kraft Dinner

At that same Pat-à-Pain visit, we came away with three Coca-Cola cans with frère, frère & soeur written on them (brother, brother & sister). We couldn’t pass up the opportunity to do a photo of the kids with it…

(the clown-face pics were just them cutting up at another time… but seemed appropriate).

Below is something that all Canadian children will immediately recognize… Kraft Dinner (I think it’s known in the USA as “Mac & Cheese”).  In any case… you can’t get it here in France. Liz brought a number of boxes that we ration. It’s only the second time we’ve had it since arriving.

Misc. Notes

  • I spent some time this week working on a church website. It will be similar to this site in that it will be a WordPress site, but will be a more simple in layout. Watch for it in the next few weeks.
  • I also spent some time doing landscaping yardwork at the church, trimming & pruning mainly. It hadn’t been done for a couple of years.  The French are quite particular about the maintenance of shrubs & hedges… so it’s one way to present the church well to the community.
  • We’ve also spent time with the Brochus going through their house in preparation for our move there this Thursday.
  • The closing date for the sale on our house in Saint John is also this Thursday. Please pray that everything goes well there.  It will be nice to have that off our minds. We thank God for what we consider a miracle: The deal was struck the day of our departure and, given the real estate market there and the fact that it’s a winter sale…. it’s a miracle that it sold that fast.
  • This past Thursday, I got to meet our closest neighbouring pastor, Bro. Chartier, who is roughly a 2hr drive from here, in Bourges. The work is similar in size to Châtellerault but they don’t yet have their own building. He came to pick up a baptistry that was being stored here as he has 5 people wanting to be baptized. Thank you Lord!

Final thought

The Lord challenged me this week while reading 1 Corinthians 4. Paul said he would come and would be able to judge the quality of their relationship with God… not by the words they spoke, but by the power exhibited in their life for, “the Kingdom of God is not in word but in power” (v.20).

The challenge to me: words are very easy to produce (this blog is the proof), but the power of God, manifested in the life of a Christian is not something I can “produce” apart from a close walk with Him. Lord… guide my steps so that I’m not limited to just words.

God bless you today & Thank you for checking in!
….let this post inform your prayers for us & for France.

New, Bizarre & Everyday…

March 14, 2015 By in Events, Places Tags: , , , 7 Comments

If it weren’t for “the bad” in “the good, the bad & the ugly,” I suppose I could’ve used that as a title for today’s post – there’s lots of good and a little bit of ugly, but no bad – instead, let me just use… The New, the Bizarre & the Everyday as a way to order my thoughts.

The Bizarre

IMG_8139I’ll start with the bizarre because I promised it two weeks ago and failed to deliver.

I’ve shared a number of pictures with you, showcasing the beauty of Châtellerault, but there is something that still makes my skin crawl a bit every time I drive by it (at least every other day): “la main jaune” (the yellow hand).

Smack dab in the middle of one of the busiest traffic circles in the entire city, it is the first thing that visitors & residents see when they exit the Paris-Bordeaux highway, coming into Châtellerault.

At 24m (72′) high and 20 tonnes, it’s a giant forearm supporting a hand, in which sits a huge black egg. Descending the arm and continuing behind the sculpture (barely visible) are 7 famous cars (incl. a 2CV, Fiat 500, a VW Beetle, etc.) also painted black.  …Makes me think of giant black ants crawling down my arm when I see it… Oh yes, and they’re like ghost ants because at night, the car lights are on. WEIRD! 

It supposedly represents the valiant nature of the community and the past connection to the automotive industry… a resilient people who will rise up out of the rubble of the past. I, however, just see ants on arm.

This sculpture is visible from our church property and the one redeeming factor is this:  from the angle at which it is seen from church, neither the cars nor the egg are visible and it would remind you of a hand raised in surrender and worship to God – the only one who is worthy of our praise and adoration.    May that be the case for many in our city and beyond in Western France!

The New

Subway, sandwich shop, Châtellerault1. Châtellerault just got its very own Subway & we ate there this past Sunday. The French have heard about it and/or tasted it elsewhere and are very excited to have one in their own backyard, so to speak. The kids were glad to find a familiar taste of home as well.  Still… at about $45 for 5 people (that’s with no cookies or chips)… it’s a treat & won’t be a regular thing.

Happy Birthday Balloons, craquant abricot, auchan2. Liz has begun a new year… #41 to be exact (honey… don’t hang me out to dry for sharing this…. but the smart ones would’ve figured it out anyway from the numbers on the cake!  🙂 .  She was saluted with 41 balloons and presented with a challenge… burst them all in less than 30 seconds and she would get the second part of her gift (she managed).  We got an apricot mousse cake with some café éclairs to go with our coffee. God bless the baker at Auchan!  Thank you too, to the many who have sent cards, emails, texts, Facebook messages, etc.!

3. This one is a bit more difficult to define I think… something else is new to us.  We are accustomed to be in a large church setting where a good portion of our involvement is in managing… events, tasks, structure, etc. and much of our time is taken up with that. There are 275-300 people who invite others to church, share their faith, etc. We spend a great deal of time preparing the church and the church body to receive those guests that come, make them feel welcome, etc.  Working in what I’ll call a “home missions environment” is new to us.

I found myself asking God this week… “God, how do we share our faith in a city where, outside of the people in our little church, we know very few?  How to we do it? How do we find people interested in a home Bible study, etc.?”  The question was not asked out of discouragement… not at all, but out of an eager desire to know how to grow and move forward in a new reality.  (Incidentally… I was encouraged by an article written by Kent Carter that will appear in March’s Pentecostal Messenger – “How Church Planting Saved my Life.” For those of you in the Atlantic District… I highly recommend the read!).

Pray that God helps us to do great things in the new as we rely on Him.

The Everyday

mini oven, new way of cookingI suppose that the lines are really blurred in this last section because it bridges both the new and the everyday.

One of the things that Liz has had to get used to is life without a microwave oven: How do you do all those quick little heat-ups without a micro-wave?

  • those 2-3 last portions of yesterday’s leftovers that will become today’s snack.
  • that mug of milk for hot chocolate
  • the small pitcher of milk to froth and put in coffee

The other thing that we don’t have yet is a full-sized oven. We will have one in two weeks (as well as a micro-wave) when we move into the Brochu’s home, but for the time being we’ve been using this neat little counter-top convection oven (purchased for us using a gift from the U.P.C. of Bordeaux, France – “shout out” to Pastor & Sis. Paul & Melissa Majdling – THANK YOU!!)…. btw, if you haven’t seen their video promoting the upcoming Pentecost Sunday Convention… take 2:10 to watch it… VERY well done!

Very excited to be there in just a few weeks. Derald Weber (Lafayette, Lousiana) will be guest speaker.

Prayer

  • I’m teaching at Bible School today – likely as some of you are reading this.
  • Tomorrow is Bro. & Sis. Brochu’s last Sunday service in Châtellerault.
  • Pray that we excel in the new… for God’s glory.

Summing it up

Getting us out of our comfort zone is causing us to rely on the Lord to a greater degree than we would normally have back home. The exciting thing is… God has an incredible track record of doing “exceedingly, abundantly more than we could ever ask or think…” when we put our trust in Him.

Here’s to more hands reaching to the sky in Western France!

God bless you today!

Installation Service

March 7, 2015 By in Blog, Events Tags: , , 3 Comments

When Sis. Brochu shared the picture below on her Focus on France Facebook page, she started like this:  “The UPC of Châtellerault, France has a new pastor!”

It’s quite something to see really.

The service

Église Pentecôtiste Unie de Châtellerault, EPU de Châtellerault, Mike Long, Paul BrochuOn a typical Sunday, the kids play music, Liz leads worship and I preach as the Brochu’s also pastor an international work in Paris.  This Sunday, however, they remained in Châtellerault in order to officially transfer leadership of the work over to us.

The kids had a break from playing as Sis. Brochu looked after things (as she’s done for the majority of their time here) and Bro. Brochu was slated to preached on the I AM statements of Jesus in the book of John… Incredible message!

Since the kids got a break, Liz was glad for a bit of a break as well and she handed me the baton, so to speak… so I led worship for the first time in a number of years…  (All my North American Missions friends tell me that “flexibility” is the name of the game and since that’s about the size of things here… flexible we are!).

“Greater things”

One of the neat things that I greatly enjoyed in the service was that Liz & I got to sing “God of this City” as a quartet, along with Bro. & Sis. Brochu.  Without question there is something kind of cool about the four of us singing that song…

Greater things are still to come,
Greater things are still to be done in this city!

rue Bourbon, ChâtelleraultThat pretty much expresses the reason that they came to this city some 14 years ago. It is the reason they have stayed here. And it is the reason that our family has joined them in western France. We share a strong and determined belief that God has got greater things in store for Châtellerault!

I might add that that same belief is also what brought Bro. & Sis. Christian & Vanessa Kabasele to this city as well. They are originally from the church in Melun but have been helping out here over the past year or so and moved here back in the fall. Very much looking forward to working with this gifted couple!

French Cuisine

Famille de Dieu à Châtellerault, EPU ChâtelleraultAfter the service we gathered in the larger of the two Sunday School rooms (it seats about 20) and had dinner… wait for it… Domino’s Pizza complete with pasta salad and a shredded carrot salad (THAT is very French).  I know, I know… it’s not the fancy French cuisine that you may have come to associate with France… but it was every bit as sweet given the company. THIS is our church family here… it is this group that God is going to use to further his work in this city.

Back to Work

yard work at the church in Châtellerault

After the celebrations of Sunday… we were back at getting our hands dirty on Thursday.

We have spent three full Thursdays hauling and burning brush that was trimmed from the church’s hedge last fall by the electrical company… and this past Thursday we just about finished. There are only a few bags worth of smaller twigs that we’ll be able to take to the recycling facility where they’ll use it to make compost.

The kids each took turns driving the little lawn tractor behind which was a large tarp that facilitated hauling the branches up to the fire. They were only too happy to help (when the tractor came out!) … hehe!  Each one of them did great… afterwards we got to sit around the fire with some of the church people and just enjoy the satisfaction of rest after a hard day’s work!

One final note…

Primevères, primrosesThis may be a bit tough for anyone along the east coast to see without feeling a bit of seasonal jealousy… but in preparation for the services last weekend we spruced up the flower bed at the entrance to the church. Primroses are in full bloom and now’s the time to plant them sooooo…. off we went to get some. Nights still regularly get frost so there’s not a great deal of things hardy enough to withstand… but primroses and pansies are readily available at all garden centers.

ps. garden centers and hardware stores… even the large chain stores… close from noon until 2pm here allowing their employees time for a good lunch break. Pretty cool huh!

Thank you for staying on top of what is happening with us!
We need and appreciate your continued prayer support.

Cheeseburger Chips & Mustard Pickles

February 28, 2015 By in Blog, Process Tags: , , , Leave a comment

Lays Chips, Cheeseburger, Mustard Pickles

A week or so ago I posted a pic on Facebook that got a lot of response… did you see it?  It was the pic of cow tongue … something that is readily available in grocery stores here and is considered a delicacy by many.

Don’t worry… we left it there! However we did discover two flavours of Lays potato chips that have our mouth watering whenever we pick up a bag… Cheeseburger and Mustard Pickles.

It’s almost creepy how much they taste like cheeseburgers!
(or maybe it’s just that we’re in withdrawal!?)

Change

Have you ever found that, amidst change, there is that element of change that you anticipate and the element of change that kind of catches you a bit off guard?  It’s pretty normal in all situations of change and we’ve experienced it.

  • Groceries – you know how, in your local grocery store, you can just “pop in” and get something really quickly?  Doesn’t happen here. We’re still learning the layout of the stores that we go to most often, the brand names and which products are the closest equivalent to home.
  • Car-space – 4 words…. Narrow roads, fast drivers.  carBack when the French all drove cars like this… no problem, but as cars grew and schedules got tighter… driving became a bit more intimidating… (sometime I’ll post a pic of a parking lot I regularly use)… it’s a little like holding your breath every time you pass someone. (Now that I look at it… THIS car could be OUR car’s great grandfather!)
  • Personal space – The house that we’re living in has an open concept so, apart from the bedrooms and washrooms we all pretty much live in the same space – homeschool, meal prep, working, reading & thinking….. er…. uh…. sometimes thinking is a problem.   🙂

(This is only a temporary thing and will change at the end of the month when we move into the Brochus home)

Change… they call it change for a reason….  It can take you off guard and try your patience by times – seriously – but can I tell you the payoff?

Two immediate Payoffs

#AIMKids, AIMKids

  • Seeing the kids involved in ministry… incredible training… serving as a family.
  • Knowing, beyond any shadow of doubt, that we are in the center of God’s will.

There will be other payoffs with time… but we’ve seen these already.

Change in Frequency

Just want to give you a heads-up that going forward I’m only going to publish once per week (each Saturday morning).  We don’t have internet at home which makes it difficult to publish 2 posts per week. We typically have to head over to the public library or to a local coffee shop in order to have access and by then, there’s usually a lot to catch up on!

Installation Service

Tomorrow will be our installation service as interim pastor of the work, during the Brochu’s absence.  We appreciate your prayers. We’ve been involved in church for a very long time and have no shortage of experience, but still, we’ve never been the one to bear the lion’s share of responsibility – spiritually or materially… first time pastors, can I get an amen?  

Finally…

Here are a couple more pics of our city. Next Saturday I’ll share pics of something a little less beautiful (the kind of creepy yellow hand) as well as some pics of the service tomorrow.

Have a great day all and for those of you back home… Bon Courage! with all the snow you’ve been getting.  I can’t even imagine!

You all are precious and God is GREAT!Châtellerault, Centre-ville, Vienne (86), Place Émile Zola

Wet Feet…

February 7, 2015 By in Blog Tags: , 6 Comments

We’re coming to the end of our second week in France so I wanted to give a bit of an update over and above what you’re seeing in the “AIMKids Missionary Moments” posts.

Musically Speaking

with Missionaries Paul & Darla Brochu, Châtellerault, France

If you follow our Facebook page (if not, like it here) you will have seen one of these two photos already… the one of the kids practising before Wednesday night’s Bible Study.

The second one is a composite photo of Bro. & Sis. Brochu helping the kids with their various instruments. It’s not that they’re getting lessons of how to play, they’ve been taking lessons for several years.  Rather, the Brochus have been helping them learn some of the songs that are sung here in the local church which are, for the most part, choruses.  Although they are mostly familiar to Liz & I, they are not the songs that the kids have grown up singing.

It’s good really, because they are fairly easy to pick up… both in terms of the music and the lyrics… making the learning curve somewhat less intimidating.

Timo has not played in a service yet… he’s still working up the courage, but Sophie & Dominic both played for 1/2 of Wednesday’s song service.

Getting Around

du vélo à Antoigné, Châtellerault

In my last picture post you saw a photo of the church in our backyard… We live in the village of Antoigné which is a neighbourhood within the greater Châtellerault area. It’s a wonderful little community and here you can see the kids getting out to explore it by bicycle (on loan from the Brochus).

Two of the three photos will immediately make sense to you… Dominic at rest in front of that little country church and Sophie cruising the roadway near the village. The photo in the upper left corner might, however, be less easy to figure out. Can you take a guess at what it is?

If you guessed ancient community washing machine, you’d be right!

This is called “un lavoir” and would have been found in just about every rural village at one time. Some have disappeared, but our little village has kept theirs very well maintained. The steps lead to 2 small basins at one end of which is a hand-pump (not visible in this picture). Residents would pump enough water to replace any that had run off or evaporated and do their laundry while visiting with neighbours at the same time. Definitely no spin cycle in those days!

Home heating

gaz naturel, cafetièreIt’s pretty common here, and our house is no exception, to heat and cook with natural gas. We’d never done that before so it’s taking a bit of getting used to although I must say that things heat up on the stove very quickly!  Even our hot water is heated using gas.

As I was out walking the other day, I saw a couple of posters protesting the practice of fracking for natural gas.  It reminded me of home… as that’s a real hot button issue in our province.

Daily Details

The last few days have also seen us get more and more settled into daily life:

  • Of course there are some things that you don’t realize you need until you don’t have them within reach… so we’ve made several trips to the grocery store to stock up on some of the staples.
  • I’ve gotten a new French telephone number for my cell phone so my Canadian number will soon be cancelled. For now I switch between the two SIM cards as needed… so if you text on the Canadian number and I don’t respond right away… that’s why.
  • It turns out that you need an appointment to open a bank account… that’ll happen this week. Go figure!
  • Next Saturday will be my first Saturday teaching at Bible School up in Melun…

Thank you for your prayers and for partnering with us!