Just Stuff...

We haven't written much lately. That probably bugs you. It makes me feel a bit uncomfortable...or is that indigestion? No matter. To be truthful, I don't feel as though we have much to tell you. It's not that nothing is happening, but there hasn't been much out of the ordinary. Perhaps we're actually beginning to get into a routine.

Uncle Bob and Aunt Sylvia left the country on Monday. We had a great visit with them. Because we have a car now we were able to do a couple of tourist things that we hadn't tried yet. I mentioned last week that we went to Samal island to see the waterfalls and the fishing village. We also visited the eagle sanctuary that is a bit over an hour north of Davao City. The eagles were cool, but I especially liked the crocodile and the monkeys.

It was such a blessing to be with Uncle Bob and Aunt Sylvia for such a long visit. Having them around made me feel a bit closer to home. The poured into us lots and they were a great encouragement. I spent a couple of days with them in Manila before they left. We checked on the water project and I got my final lesson on filter installation.

While Uncle Bob was here, we built a filter in Joe's backyard. Chad and Joe and I are hoping to build three more this month. Joe and I were out buying supplies today for planned improvements to our backyard assembly plant. Tomorrow, Chad and Joe and I will be building a small roof above our work space so that we can have some protection from the hot sun and the rain, both of which can effect the quality of the concrete filter. We hope to build two filters next week.

Christmas came a bit early for Bethany and I. The shelves in our little old fridge broke. The fridge is very small and has a habit of filling with frost (the fridge part, not the freezer!). So with a bit of Christmas help from our dear Auntie Syl, we purchased a new fridge. An-An, our Filipina friend who buys our produce for us on Saturdays is very happy for the extra space. We got another appliance for an early Christmas present too. Mum and Dad got us a microwave! This is very good news for the silly man who is without his wife a few times a week and has to find something to eat. Most Stewart men are more comfortable with the word "reheat" rather than the word "cook".

The addition of two new appliances and a truck have left us wondering if we're getting too comfortable. I don't think so, but it's an interesting discussion. I think it's important that we use these comforts to bless the people around us. For instance, today Joe and I delivered the old fridge to a very poor home. They were very blessed by the early Christmas present.

Also, one of the reasons that we need a larger fridge is that we're regularly hosting guests here at our apartment. Tomorrow Lois' parents arrive for about a week. Next month, while we are in North America, there will be a large team of Oregonians using our house as a home base for a couple of weeks. In our absence, they will be using the truck for some medical outreaches. I'm sad that I won't be in town to join them, but Bethany and I were very excited that there was some way for us to help.

I've just thought of something else I can write about, so I'll post something in a couple of days. But we need you to comment. Otherwise we don't know if you're reading. And if nobody is reading this, why am I writing this? Perhaps it's just a good grammar exercise.

I leave you with a couple of photos from our trip to the Philippine Eagle Center. The eagles were neat to look at, but because they're behind a chain link cage, they don't make for great photos. The monkey's were fun though. I'm using a new program for editing my photos and it still needs some tweaking. Upon uploading, the colours have come out all weird and the pics are a bit dark. Sorry about that.

Cheers,
Timmy.