Archive for March, 2005

I’m starting to get old! The days are just running by to quickly! I don’t know where they all went
There has been some good days though! One of them finally landing my papers for adoption in Ethiopia. They’ve been there for almost three weeks now – hope they’re doing fine

It’s so surreal to wait for a child like that! I’m not pregnant and don’t look pregnant (ok, sometimes ) But I act pregnant!!! Have had a hard time focus on my work lately because of this child-business. And I can’t remember a thing… almost….

*Is this what motherhood is like??? *

Tonight I’ve been reading up on the beginners guide both to HTML and CSS. Most of it was something I already knew, but there was one or two things that I hadn’t gotten before Hope I get time tomorrow to go on on the intermediate guides and maybe also advance…. If not my head are spinning by then

I think this is so much fun, but it is like learning a new language – it takes some time getting it all together. And one thing is to understand and copy examples; another thing all together is to write my own html or stylesheet (or figuring out something others have written )

*It’s around midnight – so nighty night! *

ooops! here is a link to the guides I’ve been reading tonight, easy and good written; with a little bit of fun inbetween : htmldog.com

When I got home today he was moving into the apartment on the second floor. He said the move would be completed by the end of the weekend. *So much for the landlord promise to tell me when the new neighbor might arrive!!*

I’m still a little upset about the way this has been handled, and I guess he’s got a key to my basement as well. I told him what I was told when I moved in here for almost three years ago: all of the house, except the second floor apartment, and the garden was at my disposal. I hope that is not going to change! He said that the man showing him around didn’t know if there was any room for some of his things in the basement or if he was allowed to place some stuff on the attick. *But they still went down in the basement without asking me if I knew or if I minded!* I think that is kind of rude!

By law I’m bound to live here because this is the house for the pastor and I am not allowed to live anywhere else. In rare cases and on special grounds there can be given disposal from this “housing-law”, but I don’t think my case is so special….

Now I have rambled enough of this!

Just because I had to send something into the other church office and a nice neighbour could help me. She leave for work around 7 am, so that’s when I was outside to to move it from my car to hers. Thanks a lot for helping me out T!!!!

And thanks for the flower

This is one of my favorites, and it just started blooming yesterday. It is blue tiny, tiny flowers and brigt green leaves. They spread quickely and becomes a rug of blue and green. I’ll show you when they are in full bloom!

Have a happy day everybody!!

I live in a house own by the kommune (a part of a county, can’t remember the word – sorry) where I’m pastor. As a pastor I’m bound to live here, and mostly that is quite all right.

But today there was two men in my cellar, they even tried to open the door leading up in my part of the house. I really didn’t like it, felt like they were invading my space. And they didn’t even ask!

Usually I think of this house as all mine; but there is another apartment too. Much smaller than mine and only on the second floor. Today these men came by to look at it. The last year this apartment has been empty, and before that there was a teacher living there who was both quiet and nice. In the summer he went away, so he didn’t bother me at all. Now I wonder: who’s moving in?? I made a call and got to know that yes there was a man looking at the apartment and no, they hadn’t made a contract yet. I was promised to be notified before any agreement was done.

I have this icky feeling, not just because they was down there in the basement (where my washing machine is, by the way – and my dirty laundry). But because I’m afraid this is someone else, that will bother me and maybe want to use my garden as well…….(yes I still call it my ) This is my free space, I don’t want to be watched!

Hope I’m freaking out for nothing! But still:

Just enjoying my day off!!!
Soon my breakfast is finished – from lack of bread I’m warming a Nan-bread, they are *DELICIOUS*!

After that a cup of coffee in the sun, a little more cloudily today, I’ll just have to wear some more clothes

By the way; the traffic of yesterday was big but they got a third ferry joining – so it was less time waiting in line for the holiday-people; but so boring for me I have much fun watching this each year. Here is a photo from Sunday evening, look up on the bridge there is cars too:

Klick the photo and you jump to my photoblog.

Some statistic

Since last Sunday I have:

• had 8 services
• in 3 curches and 1 community center
• driven 400 kilometres
• taken the ferry 10 times
• met a lot of wonderful people

Tomorrow is my day off Now I take my Easter holiday!!!!

Woke up to another beautiful day, clear blue sky, hardly any wind and the sun shining. I love such days! It has been cold tonight though, belove zero acctually. But hey, who cares

Now I’m off over the fjord again for the last service this Easter week. That will make 7 sevices since Wednesday!!!

Have a wonderful day!

*hugs*

And the flowers really are starting to blossom. I took some pictures today, not all of them so great or sharp; but then I played a little…..

The sun is shining from blue sky, warm and welcome after a winter of too much rain and snow!

LIFE IS GOOD!!

When you work as a pastor you can’t help letting the days in the Church year effects you; or at least I can not! I live with the shifting days and especially at Easter time there is a lot of drama going on. From the saddest sad to the highest joy. So today I smile , and am happy to wish everyone I meet a Happy Easter – where as on Good Friday I smiled , but thought it was to soon for a Happy wish……

We had a nearly full church today and two little ones got baptized. It was a service full of joy, as it’s message is:

The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”

So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples.

Later tonight we shall have a new service much like this one, just in an other church. So now I’m going to drive my car down to the ferryline and hope that I am alowed to just place him down there and drive on board in the ferry later. This is one of the days with biggest traffic over the fjord. Everyone are going home after holiday either today or tomorrow. And I don’t want to stand in que for an hour or two (as it usually takes later today…) If I’m not alowed this, I’ll just have to take the car over now and use an hour to do it!!! (I so hope not, but I take with me a book just in case!)

Tonight we gathered together to celebrate Easter night. It is starting to be more common with services around midnigth before Easter day in Norway; we’ve done it the last three years. We go from Good Friday to Easter Sunday in the service. In the beginning there are just a small amount of light, in the midle we turn on all the light and sing: “Glory be to the Lord..”

To be honest, we should have been in the church until the morning, like they did it in the “old days” – and some places even today. But we said Happy Easter and split. We’ll meet again later today for a service a 12 am.

I leave you with some pictures of the night:

HAPPY EASTER!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU,
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU,
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR BROTHER,
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!!!

see also my photoblog: A Farmer’s Child’s Tales

In Norwegian we call this day Long Friday and think about how hard and long it was for Jesus. Many of you call it Good Friday, because what Jesus did this day was good for us. Together they make a whole.

The picture is taken by Lois Carroll and I found it at Stock Xchng

The last weeks I’ve been posting pictures on my photoblog
A Farmer’s Child’s Tales from my trip to South Africa. The last two of those pictures is from Shobashobane and now I will tell some more about what happened there 25th of December 1995.

It was our third day in SA, everything was still a little overwhelming – but we were starting to adjust. Some of us was out on the sea fishing for shark (!) The rest of us had a busy day of visiting several places and people. One of those places was Shobashobane and one of these people was he (sorry don’t know his name) who stood in front of us and told the story.

Sobashobane belonged to a greater area called Izingolweni. The area is controlled by a Chief and divided into 8 areas, Shobashobane is one of those. The people lived thogether peacefully until the peak of the violence in early 90’s. Then some ofthe people joined the Inkata party others became followers of Nelson Mandela and NCA. The majority of the people in the great area belonged to Inkata, but in Shobashobane there was a majority of NCA supporters. The Chief saw this as a problem for the area, he wanted the all to stand together – not fight each other! So he demanded that the NCA supporters should leave Shobashobane; if he needed he would use force to move them.

The NCA supporters, mostly the young people in the village, refused to move. But after several armed attack, many of the non-political villagers left the area.

Then it happened, on the night before Christmas-day, they came in great number; maybe a thousand. They wanted to get rid of the NCA-people once and for all. When they left, 19 people were dead, many more was hurt and a lot of the houses was burnt down.

He lost his daughter, she was only 17. He speaks low and touches us deeply with his story. Together we travel to a graveyard where they are buried. It is not common with graveyards in SA, but they decided to have one place to go with sorrow and loss, and one place to remember. A memory board is placed near, with the name and age of all who got murdered.

He showed us her name: Nyawose Phindle. He showed us her grave. Then we sang together a song of hope in Jesus and heaven. In our Norwegian word and on his zulu melody.

Since the incident there has been much work done in the area of the diaconial institution: Practical Ministries. When we was there they were in the work of building a community-house; trying to bring the people back together. So such a tragedy never will happen again.

I’m a little slow at learning; have just recently discovered that my pc makes a good DVD player…. I have no DVD-player attacked to my TV, but now I can watch DVD’s still Since Sunday I’ve seen: “The Day after Tomorrow” and “The Incredibles”. The films are really different (!) but I liked them both. Next on the list is maybe “The Passion of the Christ”, but I think I will see that one at my neighbor’s house…

What is your favorite????

 
Now I’m just home relaxing a bit. I’ve been at one church for my first service of the day. Tonight there is a new one in the church close by my house. We’re doing a new thing this year; celebrating an Easter-meal similar to the Passover meal but with the Messiah = Jesus. We’ve never done it before so it is both scaring and fun… Hope people dare to come – there will be feeding =>