Albanian Students' Farewell to Nancy

Nancy and I both arrived safely in Greensboro on Thursday. Our time in London was wonderful, as was our time with friends in N. Ireland. Now we are here, with Emily, Steve and Collette, for some time. I leave Saturday for Mexico and the Seminario do San Pablo, where I will be teaching for 5 weeks. Nancy will not be joining me as she has grandmother duties plus a TESOL conference in Seattle in March. I will try to add more to this blog as the days go on, particularly as I get to Mexico. But here are a couple photos from N. Ireland and London--perfect time to visit, tho a bit brisk...
The north coast of N. Ireland and St. James Park, London

After a wonderful week visiting friends in N. Ireland, and relaxing on the Antrim Coast, Nancy and I are heading back to London Monday, then to Greensboro NC on Thursday. It was a joy to see the health and life at Elmwood Presbyterian Church, the church we spent two months in three yers ago. Tonight we attended their "Connect" service, a monthly event designed as a safe and comfortable place for non-believers in the community. Leaflets had been taken door to door yesterday, and there were a number of people who responded, setting foot in the church for the first time. The event was low-key, with a bit of singing, chairs set in circles around tables, lots of refreshments, a game of "name that tune" and an interview focusing on love and marriage (the theme was Valentines Day) with a couple in the church. The pastor gave a message on love and the love of God. All in all it was well done and effective. The church is trying new things to reach out, while it is at the same time drawing up a strategy for addressing the opportunity which will be presented by the 5,000 new homes that are being built near the church.
The North Coast of N. Ireland is spectacular. Nancy and I went there to look at birds, but most were away for the season. Nevertheless we enjoyed views of the islands, small towns, bays and beaches--all tempered by gray skies and strong, cold winds. We borrowed the cottage of a friend, and marveled at the opportunities God has given us as we sat cozily under the thatched roof and watched the beauty and power of God at work. I will put some photos up soon, but with my computer dead I can not just now.
Our basic question at this point is where we will be after my time teaching in Mexico. Several options are developing, and we only want to be sensitive to God's leading as we discern the call for the months ahead.

Just a quick update. With mixed emotions and several heartfelt thank-yous and goodbyes, Nancy and I left Tirana on Thursday. A significant chapter in our lives closed as we flew out, but the departure was with hopes that our time was meaningful to some of the people we had contact with, gratitude for what they had meant to us, and an anticipation of a short return some time this fall.

The flight to London deposited us in a completely different world, and Friday as we walked through James and Regents Parks in the beautiful cold of the day, then in the evening attended a performance of the musical Wicked (the other side of the story of the fearsome witch of Oz), we sensed the difference. Today we flew to Belfast and we will spend the next few days enjoying the hospitality of friends in Lisburn. Then back to London and to N. Carolina to be with Emily, Steve and Colette--then on to Mexico for me.

Nancy describes our life in terms that readers of the Chronicles of Narnia may recognize, as a life in the woods between the worlds. In the Chronicles this is a half-way place between the world as most people know it and the magical world of Narnia--a place of transition and of options, each somewhat undefined and each important. That is where we are. A time of pausing with gracious friends as we leave one world and journey into the next... I guess life is always like that to some degree, each day is a step beyond the day before and towards the day to come--but sometimes we see this reality more clearly than others. And this is such a time for us...