After we arrived back at the Lowenberg's house from visiting Pastor Vincent's church, we had about an hour of down time before getting ready to go to the MK progressive Christmas dinner. In so many ways, I feel like I've been an honorary MK this last week. Julia, Ruthie, and I wrapped our Christmas gifts for the gift exchange, then hurried over to the Burr's house. The Burrs are the directors of the East African Convoy of Hope and have 3 kids: Reed, Riley, and Raelyn. I find it awesome that we once again arrived nearly 20 minutes late, but because it's Africa, it's ok :) You're pretty much on time.
So, the Burrs had appetizers, then we headed to the Nelson's house for egg nog/ hot chocolate and the Christmas stories. The Nelson's have 4 kids (but only 2 here now): Jonathan, Joelle, Jenny, and Josh. House number 3 was the Bass's, and we had the main course there. There were about 20 MKs making these rotations and they ranged in age from about 5 to 25. All of the houses were full and overflowing with laughter and energy. The Bass family has 2 kids: Joseph and Anna. After the meal, we did the gift exchange, drawing numbers for our turn and only being allowed to steal a gift once.
The final house was the Pennington's house. They have 3 kids: Josiah, Priscilla, and Micah. Dessert was served here, and all of the parents joined the party here. After singing some Christmas songs, Santa arrived with gifts for everyone! Including me, the honorary MK :) As the party came to an end, there was still one more tradition: Capture the Flag. And I definitely played, although all of the other girls were somewhat lame and claimed they were too tired to run around ;)
So it was just me, Anna, Taylor, and about 8 other guys. I love playing Capture the Flag, and it was even better playing it with a group that thrived on the tradition. We played 2 games, I got in jail both times, and my team lost both times, and it still was one of the funnest games I have ever played in my life! The MKs here are absolutely amazing and I have enjoyed spending time getting to know them. Most of the kids I played with last night were about 11-16 years old and it was so wonderful to be with young people. After our crushing loss, we returned to the Pennington's house for a game of Cranium and then late-night goodbyes. Aunt Trina commented to me that I was officially one of them after the night (especially since I had joined in on Capture the Flag), and it was one of the nicest things she could have said to me.
In a lot of ways, missionary families are like homeschool families. You have a special interest that uniquely bonds you to other people just like you. Sometimes others people can't understand your way of living, but you love being together and having fun. Age is not a factor and everyone just gets along - whether it's your friend or your friend's siblings. There's a feeling of community and shared love. The parents all like to hang out together and are at ease with one another. Conversations can last for hours. I love being part of this group and felt privileged to be allowed to share in this evening with them.
Last night was also a record since I've been here. I was still awake past 10 p.m. and didn't get to sleep until about an hour later. However, it was probably one of the worst nights to have stayed up so late, because this morning we had to be ready to leave by 6:30 a.m. to head out for the medical clinic. Oh well! I wouldn't have traded the evening for anything.
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