This was an issue of the Criswell Clarion from May 2005 that never made it out the door.
Dear Friends and Family,
Spring has sprung! Today is the May Day bank holiday here in the UK, celebrating the beginning of spring. Finally, it is also beginning to feel like spring as well, despite a very cold transition from winter. Finally we are beginning to see some warm weather, making the concept of outdoor café’s feasible once more (on the days it is not raining anyway).
Since we last corresponded with you, we have ushered in our 4th year of marriage. This was celebrated on the island of Malta. It was our first holiday of this type since our honeymoon and long overdue. Despite weather complications that kept us from several of our boating plans, we had a wonderful time. Malta is an island of complex history as it has been part of nearly every empire that dominated the Mediterranean since the ancient Phoenicians. Each society left a mark in architecture, culture, food, or language making it a fascinating society to interact with. We also took the opportunity to catch up on some reading for pleasure and undertook a couple puzzles for the first time in years.
Rachel is very busy trying to balance 2 part-time jobs and her volunteering presently. A project of the type of which Rachel is working for the University of Oxford has never been undertaken before in the department in which she is based. There have been a lot of bumps along the way as the realities of what the project necessitates replace the perceptions many had of how things would proceed.
In the coming months we are welcoming several visitors to Oxford. Mid-May, we will be expecting the arrival of Rachel’s sister Tatiana at the conclusion of her study abroad time in Rome. Tatiana plans to spend the summer with us, getting to experience another European country (she is very excited that this time it is an English speaking one) and making a bit of money for next academic year in the very favourable exchange rate of the pound sterling to the dollar. Shortly after Tatiana’s arrival we will also get the benefit of two sets of visitors from America. First, Kristin and Dan Wycoff, (Kristin was one of Rachel’s bridesmaids) will be visiting the UK and then shortly thereafter Brian’s brother Kevin and step-father George will spend a few days with us as part of a high school graduation trip for Kevin.
One of the wonderful things we are really getting to enjoy this is a few more local visitors as well. We have a wonderful park next to our house, which is both part of the Oxford green belt (where building development is prohibited) and an 82 acre allotment designated for recreation. Some of the highlights of the park include a duck pond, rabbit, guinea pig and budgie bird hutch, miniature train, and playground. Brian and Rachel have enjoyed many walks through the park in the past, but it is much more fun to spend time in the park when there are kids along to enjoy the amusements. As a result, we’ve taken the opportunity to invited several different families with toddlers from church over for a meal and time in the park. It has worked out really well on all sides, as the park is far from the centre of the city so many of our friends with small children normally don’t get to enjoy it. It also has given us the opportunity to interact with an age demographic we rarely see any longer and yes, swinging, making daisy chains and kicking around a soccer ball is just as fun as it was twenty-some years ago.
