Monthly Archives: September 2021

where below another sky: South Africa and the States

where below another sky: South Africa and the States
where below another sky: South Africa and the States

originally published August 31, 2022

Read Part V: Sightseeing in Rome

COVID testing misadventures cost me a day in South Africa. Intsead of visiting her new home, I could only spend a few hours catching up with Petra, the globe-trotting teacher who first introduced me to my community and family-away-from-family in South Africa. I regret that we neglected to take a photo before we hugged good-bye.

After overnighting at the family’s home near the city, we loaded into the car for that familiar drive up into the mountains. Long plains and rocky peaks rolled by – those scenes I watched pass so often from the window of a taxi. I had dreaded that this moment would never come, but again the Lord had laid my fears to rest with His unfailing mercies.

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the golden apples grow: Sightseeing in Rome

the golden apples grow: Sightseeing in Rome
the golden apples grow: Sightseeing in Rome

originally published June 9, 2022

Read Part IV: Conference in Rome

Gabrielle and I had talked all year of her visiting me in England, but in the last-minute rush to finagle my quarantine-free entry to the conference, she obliged me by redirecting to Rome. Joy squeezed my heart at the sight of her – a little piece of home, arriving in a blaze of sunlight. Five days of freedom beckoned, a generous allowance for exploring the city at our leisure.

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