Cool Kids

A third grade conversation in reading group today:

"Falsely attractive is like the food on Vietnam airlines. They try to make it look good, but it's not."

"Ya, in Turkey it's like that too because they try to sell designer bags, but the rhinestones just fall off."

How many countries can we mention when talking about one vocabulary word? My kids are so cool! And the best part is... traveling the world is so normal for them, part of their every day lives. I love it!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

The last three Christmases looked like this:

80 degrees, a nice sun tan, swimming pools, and flowers blooming never quite felt like Christmas for this Alaska girl.

This year Christmas looks like this:

Christmas markets, mulled wine, lights hung, wooly hats, my HUGE new warm parka... It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas. And feel like it too... Brrr! But my first European Christmas definitely puts me in the Christmas spirit! It's even inspired the making of 5 stockings and a tree skirt (thank you pinterest).

Remember... While you wrap your gifts and prepare goodies for your families, please keep praying that my friend Jess is freed from Somalia to be with her family for Christmas.

Guest Rooms Ready!

With guests coming in October,

we have been busy getting rooms ready.

We started first with this:

And changed it to this:

Next room was looking like this:

Now it's a little more suitable and we have this:

Porter B&B is open for business.

Come on over!

World Politics

I know, it's a taboo subject anywhere you go. In Kenya it was tribal divides (that caused a LOAD of violence). In Hungary it's liberal vs. conservative vs. extremist vs. a whole lot of parties. In America it's always Republican vs. Democrat (meaning "Christian vs. non-Christian" from the Republican perspective and "non-thinker vs. enlightened" from the Democratic perspective). Everyone has a point of view. Everyone has an opinion. Some people listen to various opinions. Some people don't want to listen to anyone else's opinion because they KNOW. I've heard politics preached from the church pulpit (in more than one country) and politics come up in conversations on the public tram. Living rooms, kitchens, coffee shops, meetings... people talk politics. But what are they really talking about? Mostly what I hear in those conversations is what is wrong with the "other side". What is wrong with the Muslims. What is wrong with the Americans. What is wrong with the Africans. What is wrong with Christians. What is wrong with non-Christians. The truth is, we're all wrong. No one has it right. Because if we were, then we wouldn't have all the mess we have in the world. People in every country would have homes and food and jobs. Political leaders wouldn't be so greedy and would actually want to HELP the people they represent. People would look a little beyond themselves to view things from a different perspective.

I've had the privilege to live in a few different parts of the world now. And naturally, my perspective changes a little bit with each new place and each new person I meet. I can go off on my soap box like anyone else (maybe that's what this post is). But after seeing the perspective from a few different places, I have to say... Politics will always be the same no matter where you go. It's never going to get better because people are involved. Greedy, selfish, ego-centric people. And that includes all of us because we all have a perspective we want heard.

A few months ago I was living in Africa next to a slum where people were starving. I couldn't handle the sadness and frustration anymore, so I moved to Europe. Now I'm buying new furniture and new clothes. All the while, knowing friends in Kenya who have no jobs and can't feed their kids, throwing a few coins into the homeless guy's cup on the Budapest street. What am I really doing to not be greedy and selfish and focus on myself? Still working on that one. It's all politics - even internally. And I think, if we all ACTUALLY tried to see from another perspective, how would our politics change?

Missing Kenya

Yep, I said it. I'm actually missing Kenya a bit. After being in Hungary for 2 1/2 months, I'm finally having some I-miss-Kenya moments. Maybe the "honeymoon stage" is wearing off. Maybe I'm just tired from work. Maybe it's time to remember the good times of Kenya rather than the slum I left. Regardless, here are some of the things I've been remembering and missing with fondness...

Friends, of course.

Good Art Cafe bread. Haven't found a Hungarian bakery that measures up.

Diversity! Everyone here has white skin. Everyone here is from Western culture. I miss the mix Nairobi has. I actually miss NOT blending in. (Although I must say, Hungarians stare worse than Kenyans. This was kind of nice when I first arrived and I was staring at all the white people. I just fit in with my freakish staring.)

More down time. In Kenya the city doesn't have a whole lot to offer, so quite a bit of time is spent at home reading, watching movies, baking, just chillin' out. Not so much here in Hungary. I kind of miss snuggling on the couch on a Friday night, Sunday night, Monday night, Tuesday night...

Still appreciative of life in Budapest. Still thankful for my new job. Still happy to be living in Europe. At the same time, very grateful for what Kenya gave me as well!