Stay Close to your Family

-from Grandpa

March Birthdays

1 Kippy

7 Ami (Amelia Lydia Wood)

11 Gram (Jane Duncan)

18 Kyle

27 Jack

Future Wheaton Student

I thought some of you Wheaton alumni Miners might be excited to hear my news. I found out the day after Christmas that I was accepted to Wheaton College. A couple weeks ago I mailed a deposit!

It's exciting and a bit scary to have made this decision. I don't feel the relief that I had expected. Instead there is still so much uncertainty. Was it the right decision? Will I like it there? What will I study?

I'm seriously considering majoring in music education. Piano has been an important part of my life for the past five years. I really enjoying teaching my two piano students and I've enjoyed the extra hours of practice I've been putting in to prepare an audition. I love music and I know I want to continue studying it in some way, but I'm just not entirely convinced yet that a degree in it is the way to go. I love English too and Wheaton has such a great English department.

So many questions, so much uncertainty. And so little time left to decide. Thanks to all of you who have been praying for guidance and direction. Some decisions have been made!

60? come again?

Be extra careful. When you are over the hill you start to pick up speed!

Two Trips to South Africa

This past December, Jim and I travelled to Cape Town, South Africa for two weeks. Our main intention was to visit our friend Fritz van der Lecq, who we met in 2004 when he came to the Wheaton Graduate School as an international student. It was a wonderful time together, as he introduced us to his family and friends, took us around the area, and spent many hours discussing life in South Africa over coffee. While there, we also checked out the University of Cape Town, as Jim was accepted to a graduate program in education, to begin in July 2007. Jim's interests in the program were confirmed - heightened! - so we are continuing to pursue the opportunity to move there for 1-2 years as of this summer (or... winter, in the southern hemisphere). There are a lot of logistics to work through before then, however, so you can pray that the Lord would guide and provide! If you'd like to see 'some' photos, check out our google photos page. If you're wondering how long the flight is to Cape Town from Chicago is .. the answer is 20 hours.

We also took a second 'trip' to South Africa last weekend, via the Chicago Shakespeare Theater, who is hosting the showing of the play "Amajuba" (through 2/11). This play is a realistic and true telling of childhood in South Africa in the 70s, 80s, 90s, during the turbulent last years of apartheid. Songs were interspersed with the narratives of the five actors. It was very moving, and a good reminder of the power of story to communicate strong emotion and the importance of childhood experiences in our psychological development. (Did you know South Africa has 9 national languages? We heard at least 5 during the play.)