Mirror, mirror, off the wall

I was already up and sitting in the dining room, waiting for the coffee to finish brewing. Then I heard a crash in the bedroom, where Abbie was still sleeping. And another crash, and another...what couldn't have been more than a couple of seconds seemed like it just kept going on and on. Abbie had fallen out of bed? Stumbled and knocked a table over? I went into the dark bedroom and realized what had happened: just as the sun rose over the airport, the mirror in the bedroom fell over the dresser.

The mirror was face down on the floor, but unbroken. Marvellously, only a small glass candle holder broke. Probably the most expensive item on the dresser was this piece of Lladró that was given to us by missionaries we visited in the Canaries back in 1981 or 82. The boy has been yawning and stretching for 25 years, and if this didn't wake him, nothing will. As for us, we're wide awake!

Friends, Farewells, and Festivities

Everyone needs a friend, we say. What a blessing when that friend is a brother or sister in the Lord! Would that every brother or sister could be such a "friend"! But that doesn't happen, in real life, and we cherish the really close relationships we are able to build here below.

Now, one of Abbie's "friends" is leaving. Jackie and Jaime are in the closing stages of getting everything packed to be shipped to mainland Portugal---the rest is gone: given or thrown away. All their properties are for sale or sold; their future is still indefinite. They will be staying with Jackie's sister in northern Portugal for the time being; they would like to visit another sister who lives in Australia, and a return to Madeira is not on the list of options, at least for the moment.

Abbie and Jackie at the Flower Festival last April. They both share a love and a talent for flower arranging.


Last Friday (the 13th) was Jackie and Jaime's 35th wedding anniversary, and as part of the Sunday evening service, they renewed their vows to one another. With the move and all the uncertainties involved in that, plus the latest word on Jackie's health, more than ever they will need to count on each other's love and commitment.

Jackie has been very ill for three years, at times apparently near death, but she has never given up. The worst part is that no doctor ever seems to do anything about her problem, or tell her what her problem really is. The doctor who looked at her test results last week put his hands on his head and said, "Ma'am, I don't know what to do with you. Everything is wrong with you. Your liver is enlarged, your kidneys are barely working, and your heart is bad. Your blood pressure is uncontrollable. If we try to help one organ, we harm some other one." In the end, he basically did nothing. Maybe a doctor in Oporto will shed some light on her problem and provide the treatment medicine can give. In the meantime, the church continues to pray for her, which is what has kept her going so far. The doctors have certainly not made any headway.

Next week, Lord willing, they will be setting off for another phase of their lives. The whole church will miss them; Abbie will miss her friend. But we praise God for the moments we have together, and tonight we took them out to eat for their anniversary. It wasn't really a big festivity, nor was it a farewell (yet), but we were with friends.

Taken Sunday after the service.

And now, that comment

This is a follow-up to the previous post, when I left the main news item without comment. Al Mohler, of the Southern Baptist Convention, has written a very good comment, so I'll let him do the work. The only other thing I would add is that, so far, I haven't seen any reference to this in the press here. Perhaps it has appeared in newspapers on the mainland, but I haven't seen anything locally.

When I posted the previous entry on the Portuguese blog, I re-worded the title to read: "Surprised? I'm not." Al Mohler entitled his, "No, I'm not offended".

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (BP)--Aren't you offended? That is the question many evangelicals are being asked in the wake of a recent document released by the Vatican. The document declares that the Roman Catholic Church is the only true church -- or, in words the Vatican would prefer to use, the only institutional form in which the Church of Christ subsists.

No, I am not offended. In the first place, I am not offended because this is not an issue in which emotion should play a key role. This is a theological question, and our response should be theological, not emotional. Secondly, I am not offended because I am not surprised. (more)

Pardon, but your ecumenical slip is showing....

Posted on CNN's site today:

Vatican: Non-Catholics 'wounded' by not recognizing pope

No comments. Yet.

It Only Hurts When I Think About It

I have just performed my weekly painful duty. It becomes more painful when expressed in the following formula:

(3.75*a)* b = c
c*(d/3.75) = ouch

where:
a = price per liter of gasoline in euros (€)
b = current exchange rate US$ to €
c = price per gallon of gasoline in dollars
d = liters to fill tank at station
ouch = cost in dollars to fill tank

The price per liter continues to go up and the value of the dollar against the euro continues to fall, meaning that each euro spent represents more dollars. When I saw the latest price hike at the station, I decided to see what that comes to in dollars/gallon, at the current dollar rate. The final value of c was $7.48/gallon for 98 octane.

So when I fill up now, I go for the cheap gas (95 octane). It's a bargain at $6.80 a gallon, and this week I filled up for under $70... $69.61 (Ouch)