a batik lesson

Ever find yourself reviewing the rules before you leave the house? About two weeks ago I was (amost) nervously reviewing the rules of going on a homeschool group outing to Gracia Fabrics in East Legon. Listen to whoever is in charge. Bring your patient spirit (Mmhm. Leave the high and mighty one here at home, please. )
Wait for your turn. Raise your hand and, for goodness sakes, no shouting. No taking off at high speed to explore the compound. If someone greets you, how do we respond?

We enjoy the times we are able to catch up with a homeschool group in Accra.
I just feel slightly nervous bringing the youngest kids in the group. Nationals here are also not always  receptive to the idea of homeschooling never mind of group of us unsocialized expatriots playing tourist.
Except Ms. Grace was very kind. And welcoming. And very gracious about my smaller son leaning over the dye vats. And swinging from the drying rack.
She's been batik designing and dyeing for her whole adult life and in business for 22 years. The process is done with chemical dyes and color fixes but used to be done with natural bark and nut powders bought at market. So (sadly for some) this was not the organic batik spot, but it surely was great in so many ways.

The older kids chose large foam stamps to create their designs. The process of dipping the foam into the wax, shaking off the excess and repeating many times over was assisted by two helpers but the children were allowed to take off on their own if they could brave the spritzing wax.

We began with white fabric. The wax protects the base color. Then the first dye is applied. When set, the cloth is dipped in boiling water to remove the wax. The cloth could then be restamped and redyed, adding another layer of color. To shorten the process for our crowd, we did one stamping, one dyeing.
My three are the youngest in the group and so they worked on the ground with a tie-dye style batik. Their white cloth scrunched while damp and then let to dry. The man showing us the method went ahead with a first color of yellow and then the children could choose the second shade. We waited a short time between colors and then after both were added to allow the fabric to dry. They were a little disappointed they were more observers for this activity but I was thankful no one handed them the ladle of boiling hot chemical dye!
Apparently, my rule reviewing was a success. The only thing dyed was the fabric and no one destroyed anything. In fact, our relationships with our school friends were built upon and, hey, we got some pretty cool clothes as well.
We are thankful for the work that went in to planning the day. Thanks, Pam S.!

Waiting for our turn for color.

Watching the older kids design their fabric.

Elle wanted to help....:)



Max and Stephen watching Stephen's cloth being rinsed.

Adding the first color. He said it was yellow but he had a hard time convincing the children. Only when it fully dried did the yellow come out lighter and brighter.

Our co-workers Leon and Barb entertaining Leila. They've got a grandson in the States a few days older than her. Leila loves the 'Grandma' time and so does Barb. What a blessing.

Waiting for the color to dry.

The results!

Sandra the seamstress whipped up these handy little shorts. When the boys said they wanted shorts, I wasn't so sure! But I'm thinking these are pretty cool.

Cool, indeed. Those shorts turned these guys into, er, well, pirates?!

still here

A day trip to Bojo Beach.

 Dear reader, I know you'll forgive me without hesitation & I shall accept your offered grace.  I can no longer call this a monthly update. I have scolded my children for repeating an action & giving a half hearted apology every time. Perhaps I need a lesson on true repentance. ;) Nevertheless, here is a bit of what is going on.

Ron & Audrey and kids have left this continent for the temperate zone. We played & laughed every minute we could up until the very last. It was a teary goodbye for all. Predictable of the fairer gender, Elle & I are feeling it the most. Several times we've stopped our snapping at each other & admitted we really just both miss our best friends. Let's just say boys are a little different. Their sadness involves fists & wrestling.
Life does go on. The three of them have been playing very well together. Max & Rory have been playing 'Mom & Dad' & Elle happily plays in the nasty dirt under the trampoline.



Savannah, Elle, Arielle & Tirzah get crafty at the missionary weekend early in August.

It was a wonderful weekend of 9 families talking, laughing, saying hello to Leon & Barb & many saying goodbyes to the Bontragers. Juanita & Audrey are the sort of sisters only God can provide. So thankful for them! Here they are talking with Geraldine Kouwen.

Leon, Barb & Carissa Geigley from Indiana here now to join the work of the CFC Bible School & churches. Leon & Barb are blogging here. They've got some great pictures of the last few weeks & are doing a great job at showing life here in Pokuase as they settle in. I'm embarrassed to say I've got no pictures of these great new friends. Let's just say it's because their baby girl is a beautiful 12 years. My baby girl is not quite so helpful with taking pictures and allowing me time online. :)     



I am full of thanksgiving today. A melancholy thanksgiving. One phase has ended here in Ghana and another has begun. My big kids are busy learning & my little one learns a new trick daily. As life changes, bringing endings and new beginnings, I see us all gaining that flexibility that God grants those who rest in Him. Change happens. He is the same.
 ( But in case you're wondering about the rest of us....)

Jon is still here...
I continue to work at the Bible Institute in attempting to make the school an option for the most amount of people possible. We have a large facility that is not up to operating capacity, and we are working to change that! One of the options we are looking at is starting Saturday classes. Our current program aims at students achieving a Diploma in Biblical Studies, which is a year-long course with 51 different courses spread out over 800+ hours of instruction. But we could also offer different certificates courses such as Christian Leadership, Missions, Counseling, and Church Administration. These courses are only 140 classroom hours, so we are processing whether this is the next step for the school. Many Ghanaians have difficulty working and surviving, much more so when you try to fit school in during the week. Saturday classes would allow more flexibility to these students.
We are also slowly getting some computer training in at the school. I have developed a short handbook that covers some basics in computer hardware, software, and networking. We also have a one computer that the students can practice their typing skills, which I think is the most practical aspect of anything we will do with them. It is difficult, however, to learn without having computers to practice on, so the next step will be filling our computer lab.
And no, I don't normally wear glasses. I really don't like them, but persistent eye infections have forced me to pull out my 10 year old scratched spectacles much to the dismay of my wife.  Some of these things we are waiting until we return to the States to resolve, although with an uncertain return date it can be frustrating. Please pray that we would get clear direction in the next few weeks, as we have asked to be relieved since our term is up in February. This time is one of crazy feelings, probably swayed a bit with our co-workers departing. We always appreciate your prayers, and we keep our prayer list active on the right side of our page under "Prayer Requests."

And I'm still here.....

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Kindergarten & third grade are in the 3rd week of progress. We try to start at 8:30, take recess at 10:30 & then Max finishes up in the afternoon. Elle & Rory get off with an easy 30 minutes of learning fun & games. Max has quite a bit more to do with the addition of spelling, geography & science. It is a fun thing teach on culture when I consider our German ethnicity, American nationality, Anabaptist heritage & Ghanaian home that cross 3 continents & 2 climate zones! (Maybe I'm not so boring after all. :) )
I've got some school pictures to post soon.

One of the best things about life at the moment is, despite our dear friends leaving, how settled our children feel here. They are comfortable going down the street to buy the egg sandwiches for supper & sit on the curb to wait for them. The neighborhood is out & about right now as schools are on holiday so they had a crowd of company as they waited. And they were okay with it. The waiting part & the crowd part. :) I joined them & stopped to talk to a friend while there. I wasn't surprised when she held my hand while talking to me. In fact, I was flattered. It's a sign of friendship & comfortableness.
We just might be getting too comfortable here. We are not to be comfortable anywhere in this troublesome world. And so we find ourselves in an uncomfortable place for our human nature: waiting on God for the next step.
We are focusing this month on resting in Him while we wait.
Thanks for praying!