Part of Bilbo's eleventy-first birthday speech.

"I don't know half of you half as well as I should like and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve. This was unexpected and rather difficult. There was some scattered clapping, but most of them were trying to work it out and see if it came to a compliment."

haha.

28 years old.

It's going to be a great year.

(the 8th graders made me a birthday card:)

Zongo Valle.

love it.

Fast Pive Months.

I decided I didn't like my most recent post. So I'm editing it:)

I did like the last line, so I'll keep that.

I think, really, I just wanted to share that I'm engaged! However, seeing as how the only people who read this blog already know that, it's probably kind of a silly thing to blog about.

I guess I could explain my subject. It comes from our engagement story.

I was standing with Carolyn at the church in Mt. Adams shivering, enjoying being with each other, and enjoying the view. The ring was weighing heavy in my pocket. My mind had gone blank...However, this was the moment I'd been thinking about since around September...asking Carolyn to marry me! I had some things planned to say, but standing there with my girl in the freezing cold trying to get up the nerve to get on one knee, i couldn't for the life of me recall what some things were.

The cold was becoming really cold. I finally remembered sort of what I was going to say. Either way, I needed to say something. I turned to face her and began. This spot is where we had our first date back in June. It was a lovely evening together. I think we were together for close to 8 hours and there wasn't one lull...It was just an amazing evening. However, back in June I was struggling with reconciling the feelings I was feeling for her with the fact that I was leaving the country in two months to Bolivia to teach... On the night of the engagement I explained that the last time we were at this spot (for our first date) I had no idea what was going to happen. We decided to date long distance. I told her the past five months, but I actually said the "fast pive months" (I was nervous!:) had been amazing. That I loved her so much and that it was nice being back at this spot again (on the night of the engagement) knowing that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her. At this point I pulled out the ring, got down on one knee, and said, "Carolyn, will you marry me?" She said yes!

A lot has happened in the fast pew months. I finished up the first semester of teaching about half way through December. I had a wonderful 3.5 week Christmas break at home in Cincinnati with Carolyn. With my family. With my friends. It couldn't have been better. Now I'm back in La Paaaaz, beginning the second semester of classes. Carolyn is going to visit in April! We can't wait:)

At this point, Newandis' comment doesn't really make any sense, so I guess I should add again that after being engaged I learned that fiancee is spelled with 2 Es:)

I'm now back in Bolivia. There is so much to look forward to. My heart aches for Carolyn. I think it will be a long semester...but a good semester. I am thankful to be teaching again and with the students. I'm praying for focus and for peace and for joy. I trust that God knows what He's doing...

Life is good on the road to God only knows.

The Four Loves.

"There is indeed a peculiar charm, both in friendship and in Eros, about those moments when appreciative love lies, as it were, curled up asleep, and the mere ease and ordinariness of the relationship (free as solitude, yet neither is alone) wraps us round. No need to talk. No need to make love. No needs at all except perhaps to stir the fire."

The Takesi.

Campsites don't get much better than this..

A cow bought the farm...

I had a very interesting weekend. As a staff we were going to Sorata for a retreat. It's a trekking hotspot. It was a beautiful place. We enjoyed some wonderful time relaxing together, worshipping, enjoying camp fires, eating good food. It was a nice weekend. It's a little rough being gone Saturday and Sunday and then having school on Monday...but all in all it was worth the time and effort.

It was a good weekend...except for an incident that happened on Saturday. It's sort of hard to believe that it actually happened. On Saturday as we drove down, I was driving "the beast." The beast is a 1978 (I think) Toyota Land Cruiser. It truly is a beast. We were driving along through Bolivia on a nice road, going about 40-50 mph (the beast doesn't go anywhere very quickly). We were in a farming area and there was a cholita walking her herd of cattle/sheep/donkeys towards us in the other lane. No worries. The cows gave every indication that they were quite content in their lane.

However, about right when I reach the herd, one of the cows decides it likes something on the other side of the road. So it gingerly walks across the road, sadly, right in the path of the oncoming truck. I slammed on the brakes but there just wasn't enough time to stop. I slammed into the cow going about 30 mph.

It was horrible. Thankfully, no one inside the truck was injured. Sadly, the cow did not fair so well. It didn't die, but was laying in front of the truck in shock. A crowd quickly gathered. Thankfully, the Molenas were close by. Marcos Molena is Bolivian and works for the school. They turned around and came back to help. I don't know what we would have done if he hadn't been there. A truck full of americans. Killed a cow. The crowd could have quickly gotten out of hand. Marcos was able to talk to them and explain what happened and we were able to settle the matter quickly. We had to pay for the cow, about $400.

Ironically, the beast comes equipped with a bull guard on the front. So the damage was minimal. Nothing happened to the engine. Which says a lot about the beast, because hitting an 800-1000 lbs. cow at around 30 mph probably would have totaled any other car.

It was a sad thing that happened. I felt really bad about hitting and killing such a big animal.

However, through all of it, even though some things about it are hard to understand, God's grace and provision did shine through.

No one was hurt.

Marcos was there to help.

The truck still drives fine.

I was driving instead of one of the girls.

There were others in our group nearby to help gather together the money.

The crowd did not riot or get out of hand.

And other little ways.

So it was not a fun experience. But I am glad everyone is okay. And hopefully the people in the town will be touched by our attitudes and actions towards them. We didn't get mad or angry or protest the price. We expressed our sympathy and our regret that it had happened. We paid for the cow. And Marcos prayed for them and the situation before we left. Hopefully, they saw something of the love of Christ in the craziness that happened.