Which Way is Home and Church Ladies

My blog update is long overdue, I apologize. We spent two wonderful, albeit crazy weeks in Washington, and being gone took its toll at work. I have spent the last couple of weeks madly working to catch up!

I was pretty introspective about the trip home over the holidays. Many of my friends and family have stayed in contact and were welcoming us before we arrived. But I wasn’t completely sure how others who haven’t been in touch would respond. I prayed for a happy homecoming. And happy it was! Nate picked us up and we were off to Willard’s folks down past Olympia. Because of flight issues we were running an hour late and were concerned we were showing up around midnight, but we were welcomed with open arms and hot chocolate. The Lathrop family Christmas was one of the nicest I can remember in many years. Everyone seemed genuinely happy to be together and to celebrate as a family. There are eight little ones under the age of 6 and having them all together took me back to our days as young parents. Plus, I got to hold my own grandbaby for the first time.  What fun! Christmas Eve began with church at Messiah where we were able to say hello to many friends, and then a fun evening with my sister and brother-in-law, Cheryl and Phil, and Nate. The Michael family Christmas was another wonderful family gathering, and of course I got to hold my grandson again! After Christmas we attended a wedding in Canada and spent a little time in Bellingham with Will and Marcia - and got to hold the grandson some more. We then trekked back down to spend time, including bringing in the New Year, with friends and run a few zillion errands.   We enjoyed everyone and are grateful for the hospitality and good beds (Thanks Mom and Dad, Phil and Cheryl, Rose and Stacy)! Sadly, too soon it was time to go. Some asked how we could go back, especially to leave a brand new beautiful grandbaby.

What I have come to realize is that we now have two homes, one in the Puget Sound, and one in Majuro. Our friends and family are in the Puget Sound. But my work, and I believe my current calling, is here. My contract will be fulfilled in June and I have prayed about whether it is time to stay or to go. The door to stay has been completely opened, even in unexpected ways. The door to The Puget Sound has not at this point. Our friends are mostly still working.  Willard is retired and I do not have a job waiting for me. Health insurance is a big issue too. While I don’t have great care here, what I do have is, for the most part, affordable. Our children are all in different places and busy with their lives.  And the return here was every bit as welcoming as the visit to the States. We were greeted at the airport with hugs and smiles. The people here are genuinely grateful for the help we can provide for them. I feel I am making a big difference with my high school students and I wish you could all be here when we open up gifts from you like the laptop for my cook or the dictionaries for the high school students.  Juanita, a retired teacher who attends First Lutheran where we were for many years, sent a box of much loved books and the third grade teacher went nuts claiming them for her classroom! In addition, Willard is still having fun and I still find the job interesting and challenging. At the end of the day there isn’t much of a paycheck, but there is a huge feeing of helping to make a difference in the lives of 60 high school students. We like the pace of life here too. Life at Co-op is crazy - just as busy and demanding as any school I have seen in the U.S., but outside of school, Island Life is a reality. We have a new church family as well. Willard has donated some time here and there but I have been too busy to do much except worship on Sundays. Until now.  I have made a commitment to change this as much as possible and to have fellowship with the other members.

This is where the Church Ladies come in. They have a Women’s Meeting on Thursday nights. The last meeting of the month is a cooking night, something I couldn’t resist. I was welcomed immediately the first time I attended and had a lovely time learning to make a Filipino dish. It was also fun to see the amazement on the local women’s faces when a ball of oatmeal cookie dough “magically” flattened in the oven! Two weeks ago I made it to a regular meeting where the women shared, had a Bible Study, and prayed. This last week it was time to cook again. I agreed to show them scalloped potatoes and ham. This is such a “no-brainer” for Americans, but was completely new for the rest of the group. During the same session we had a Korean woman show us the Korean way to make sushi, Fijian women demonstrate beef curry, and a Filipino woman teach us how to make a pickled papaya salad. The only other American, a woman from Florida, demonstrated chicken wraps. Wow! There were 17 of us from all over: Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Korea, Marshall Islands, Philippines, U.S. and more. They are fun, funny, and warmly welcoming. For someone who hasn’t really been able to make real friends here (I am the boss in my work world), this has been a real blessing in my life. Being able to laugh,  pray and get to know these ladies from all over the Pacific is a new happy chapter in my life here in Majuro.

So, yes, it was very difficult to leave our new grandson, along with our children, friends and other family, to come back to this side of the world. But Will and Marcia are doing marvelously and we take comfort in the fact that they are confident and capable parents. Plus they send pictures and videos that I watch over and over! We look forward to all of your cards, letters, Facebook connections, and even packages that keep us connected.  I just spent an afternoon reading all of the wonderful Christmas letters we received. Thank you! We miss all of you and trust the Lord will allow us to reconnect soon.

Thank you for reading, and I’ll try to catch up more frequently!

Love to you and your family,

Becky



Grandma and Papa Lathrop with eight great grandchildren, including our baby, Will



The Usual Suspects



This family got a lap top thanks to a good friend from home. They now Skype their family in Hawaii and Arkansas several times a week!



The fun church ladies and the night's creations



Willard and Mischief on a Saturday afternoon - We took the high school students to a nearby island for a Welcome Back Party and, as you can see, it was a tough day!