Weddings, Beach Parties, and Blackouts
Time for another update, quite possibly the last for awhile as things are going to be getting crazy around here over the course of the next few weeks. As most of you have probably heard by now, our second interview with the American Embassy went fine, and we recieved Leia's immigrant visa on June 15, which means we are free and clear to move back to the States in August. Obviously, this was a tremendous relief, and we are very appreciative to all of you who supported us with prayers and encouragement.
The day after our visa interview, we flew to Athens for the wedding of Leia's cousin Siana. It was my first time to attend a Greek Orthodox wedding, which was a fairly interesting religio-cultural experience, especially given all of my recent research on the history of Christianity. One interesting aspect of it is that you actually hurl rice at the couple during the course of the ceremony! The wedding reception was held at a top-flight hotel on a huge patio overlooking the sea. As you can see from the pics below, the scenery was just spectacular.
The following day, June 17, was our first wedding anniversary. In some ways it seems hard to believe that we've been together that long, but in other ways it seems like much longer. Anyway, we spent the majority of the day alone in Athens, strolled through a bustling open air flea market, walked around the foot of the Acropolis by moonlight, and had a delicious Greek meal at a taverna with tables on the sidewalk. All in all, it was a lovely way to celebrate our first of many wonderful years together.
Last night, we took the kids from our youth group to an interchurch beach party in Limassol. Since our big conference in March, the Protestant churches on the island have been periodically getting their youth groups together to do things, and this was the latest chance for us to continue promoting this spirit of unity. The kids played soccer and ultimate Frisbee, had a sand sculpture contest and a swimming relay race, we grilled hot dogs, and closed things out with moonlit worship on the beach. The kids seemed to have a lot of fun, and it was good for us to see that there will still be talented, loving people on the island to promote youth ministry after we've gone.
After we got home late last night and were just about ready for bed, disaster struck. First, the power went out on our entire street. Now temperatures this week have been in the 100's during the day, and the nights haven't been too cool either. So losing the air conditioning and fans is no picnic. To compound the problem, we have a plug-in mosquito repellent thing that, of course, also lost power, meaning we had to choose between closing the windows (and completely suffocating) or leaving them open and being eaten alive. And just to top things off, someone's car alarm was going off nearby for about 20 solid minutes, beginning about 15 minutes after the power went out. Talk about the perfect storm to ensure that there is NO WAY you're getting any sleep! Fortunately, the car alarm finally stopped, and at some point after we had finally started drifting off, the electricity was restored and the fan and mosquito repellent dispenser mercifully kicked back on.
So now our focus is on our upcoming youth camp and visit from the team from Lee University (who arrive a week from today). A week after they leave, we're having the bulk of our possessions packed up and shipped by a moving company, and slightly less than a month later, we're coming home! It still seems far away, and we definitely still have a lot of things to do and details to work out, but it's finally starting to feel like a reality. Keep us in your prayers, and we can't wait to see you all.
–John
The beautiful bride, Siana, and everyone's favorite bridesmaid, Nadia.
Either she's growing taller or I'm shrinking.
These next two are scenery from the reception.
Part of the Athens streets. That's the Acropolis in the distance, but the building in view is not the Parthenon. We were on the other side.
They don't build them like this anymore.
The taverna where we had our anniversary dinner.
Homecoming and Such
So what have we been up to since April, you say? Glad you asked. Well, by far the biggest news is that we have been making preparations to move back to the U.S. This past Friday we had our first of two interviews at the American Embassy here in Nicosia as part of the process of securing a visa for Leia. We had no problems at all with this first stage, and are just waiting for a couple of her documents to arrive from England so that we can schedule our final interview. Assuming that goes well, we will be back in the States on August 21. We will be living in our old hometown of Cleveland, TN, at least initially. We are hoping to find a job in full-time youth ministry eventually, but for the moment we are just thrilled at the prospect of coming home and reconnecting with family and friends. Of course, Leia has a lot of mixed emotions about leaving her family and friends in Cyprus and starting a new life in the U.S., but we ultimately feel that this is where God is leading us and that it is the best option for our marriage, our ministry, and (someday) our children.
Apart from our impending move, there have been several other major recent developments. I have finally finished the massive writing project that has consumed the last year of my life: a 653-page introduction to the History of Christianity, plus a 147-page leader's guide for the same course.. a nice round 800 pages altogether. Let's just say I'm not too eager to tackle anything that big again any time soon. But the comments from the review committee have been extremely positive so far, and I'm pretty proud of it. It will probably be several more months before it finally hits the shelves at White Wing, so those of you who are eager to snatch up a copy will just have to be patient (I guess if you're a loyal reader of our blog, you're used to waiting for things).
May 4 was Leia's 29th birthday, and I had a lot of fun spoiling her. I went out while she was at work and bought her some flowers and candy, and I wrote several notes for her that I left in each room of the apartment, one leading to the next. When she got home, she was led by the notes from the living room to the kitchen to the bathroom to the office to the bedroom, and finally to our balcony, where I was hiding behind the shades with her flowers, chocolates, and lunch laid out on our outdoor table. That night, we went to one of our favorite restaurants and had the best steak to be found in Cyprus. And finally, we came home and I played/sang a little song that I had written about her. So I think she enjoyed the day, apart from getting older... although, as she constantly reminds me, she'll never be as old as me. *sigh*
The last week of May, we traveled to Cambridge, England for the wedding of our cousins/close friends Eric and Christiana. It was wonderful to see so many family members and friends, many of whom are incredibly dear to Leia in particular. The wedding itself was beautiful (depsite the rain that is a constant feature of life in England), and it was great to see the happy couple united at last. In addition, it was a lot of fun for me to be in an English-speaking country again, and because Eric and his family are Americans, I even got to chat about things I'm actually conversant in (like American sports). So all in all it was a good trip, and a nice change of pace from life in Cyprus.
This month, another of Leia's cousins, Siana, is getting married in Athens, Greece. Her wedding is the day before our first anniversary, so we're going to attend the wedding and then spend an extra day in Athens celebrating together... not a bad place to have a first anniversary, eh? Then the first two weeks of July, things really get busy. First, we are having our youth camp, which is held at a place called Governor's Beach. This year, a team of college students from Lee University in Tennessee is coming to assist us in running the camp and to lead some ministry training workshops for our kids. Then after camp ends, Leia and I will spend a week touring the Lee students around the island and providing them with some cultural and service opportunities that are required for their trip. And then it will be time to start packing boxes and preparing to move!
So as you can see, the next two and a half months are going to be fast and furious, but we are looking forward to all of it and waiting patiently for a chance to exhale. Thanks to all of you who have been faithful companions on this journey with us. We love you very much.
- John
The beautiful bride, Siana, and everyone's favorite bridesmaid, Nadia.
Either she's growing taller or I'm shrinking.
