At the Korean Church: "Asleep on the hay..." 
Signing "Silent Night" while the Korean pastor stands by.Hello, all--
Happy New Year! Just wanted to catch you up a little on what has been happening here over the last week or so. As you know, four of our daughters have birthdays between Dec. 9 and 18. Then mine is on the 21st, which was especially busy because we hosted the three Christmas parties that day, plus the children in our church had prepared some Christmas carols in sign language to share during the service. Whew! What a day...we were up at 5, saw our co-workers off to the Tien Phuoc parties at 6, then got breakfast, girls up and dressed for church. Our congregation joined with a Korean church for the Sunday morning service. Both churches are small, with attendance at each falling between 30 and 50 usually. The Korean Church meets on the fourth floor of a large Vietnamese Christian Missionary Alliance church here in Danang. No elevators, so up, up, up the steps (I am so glad all our girls are older and can walk themselves!). We sang in English and Korean. When it was time for the children, our girls were in the spotlight--quite literally! Five of the nine "regulars" in our children's class are Brewers. The other four were present, but were too shy to get up on the stage. I thought my heart would burst with pride and joy! Our girls filed up to the stage, stood side by side and held hands. They did a great job on their songs--the sign language was beautiful. I could not have had a better birthday gift.
Speaking of gifts, I almost felt that the Lord special-made that day for me. It was the prettiest day we have had in months--sunny, breezy, warm--around 80 degrees! Just perfect...thank You, Father!
The church congregations shared a covered dish lunch after the service, but we could not stay because the van was scheduled to pick us up for the Dai Loc party at 1 pm. So we caught a taxi home, changed clothes, made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and made sure everything was ready to go.I already told you about the party--what a blessed time! It could not have been a better celebration!
Some of you know that we have been expecting to move for awhile. We love Mr. and Mrs. Bo, and the house has been good (we need some leaks fixed, but we are finding that leaky roofs are quite common place here). But, the house is large with high ceilings, all concrete and tile--Tony calls it "cavernous." The rent was on the higher side of our budget. So, a few weeks ago, Tony and I decided that we would rather get a smaller place and use some of our resources in getting some things to make it more "homey"--rather than see all our housing resources go only for rent. After much looking, we found a place, much smaller, but cozy and pretty (with a garage that would get the motorbike out of the living room!). The rent was half. Throughout this process, Tony had talked with Mr. Bo, who would not reduce the rent.Well, the contract was signed, and 6 months rent paid (which is customary here). Monday morning, Jillian and I rode out bikes to a nearby store to get packing tape for our boxes. When I returned, Bee said that Mr. Bo had come over, seen the boxes and was very upset. He went straight home and called our helper Duc. The end result was, Mr. Bo reduced the rent to half and agreed to repair the leaks (which will have to wait until this rainy season ends). We prayed together, surrendering again our living arrangements, asking the Lord to put us where He wanted us. Tony talked to the new landlord, who miraculously agreed to give us the money back, since the lease did not start until Jan. 1. People who have lived in Vietnam awhile say this is unheard of--NO ONE ever gives a refund! So, we are staying put. I am thankful to be spared the packing and moving! Even though she did not request it, Tony paid the new landlord some of the money for her trouble. She had done some things to prepare the house for us.
We are told that the week of Christmas and the New Year are the coldest weather for Danang. I hope so. We are on our third day of blowing, wind-whipped rain that stings your face and soaks a chill to your bones. None of the houses have heat, so we are all wearing layers.
In the spirit of my language study, I have taught the Vietnamese some American phrases. :) When the Dai Loc orphanage caregivers came to Danang to help choose gifts for the children, we went to a local market to haggle over the prices. At one booth, they found a jacket they wanted for one of the girls. The vendor searched and searched, but did not have the necessary size. As we turned to leave, I smiled at them and said "Phooey." "Phooey!" the caregivers echoed back with wide smiles. Since they speak no English, I wonder what they thought we were saying. :)Then, preparing for the Christmas parties, I was joking with our Vietnamese helpers. We were teasing each other about forgetting things, or not having our own responsibilities done at the needed time. I ended up kidding them about a "weak link." They loved it. Now, we still joke about not being "the weak link" in our every day interactions.
We will resume our homeschool classes on Monday. The break has been good, but I miss the routine. I spent a big portion of the afternoon working in the school room.
I think that brings us back up to the present. I hope your holidays were indeed "merry and bright." I am thankful that no matter where we are, or what circumstances surround us, the Light of the World is ever-near.
Grace and peace!
