Rejoice! It’s
Christmas!
Nick & I are grateful to share with you this Christmas
season and Year end! We hope all is well
with you and your family and that you also have many things to be thankful for
as you look back to the year of 2014! I
am sure there has been hardships too…loosing a loved one, illness, ups &
downs that “life” can give us! Yet – through it all…we remember this special
season of the year with thankfulness and gratitude, and the Gift of Life, God
has given us!…and for Nick & I, it is giving our God & Lord all the
Glory for His Care & Keeping over us this past year and a half! Yes we have much to be thankful for!
We can hardly believe we have been gone for so long…16 months…returning
on October 1st, and our hearts our Full of wonderful memories trip
& experiences!!
When we departed in June 2013 from San Francisco to Singapore,
we had no idea from day to day where we would be and what we would be doing…but
we continued to travel – all one-way tickets whether it was airplane, train,
trolley bus or horse & man buggy!
You name it we did it! Enjoying Malaysia
& Thailand. Then visiting our
missionary friends Jerry & Wilma in Batambang, Cambodia who have beem there
for 14 years! Amazing Grace! From there traveling to Sumatra, taking a hired
car through the jungles of Sumatra…and we actually spent a total of 10 months
in Indonesia! We had been traveling for
some time and wanted to settle in this beautiful country! Both Nick & I are amazed how the Lord
directed us to the very town where Nick & his sister & parents &
other family members lived for the first
6 years of his life ….yes the town of Salatiga, Java! We fell
in love with the people there…and felt so “connected” with them – both Nick
& I knew it was because of our Dutch/Indo heritage with these gentle
people! We met & made many friends
in our immediate neighborhood (Kampung) called Dukuh! Sweet as can be!!!
It was also a blessing when we found out that foreigners from
all over the world come to Salatiga to learn the Behasa Indonesian language…so
again we met and befriended many wonderful people who live there and spend time
in Indonesia! It was a r e a
l blessing to us both!
All together it was a life changing experience for both Nick
& I …there is a “BIG” gap it seems in our hearts right now as our hearts
& minds wander back to our beloved Indonesia…so’ we are waiting to see what
God’s direction is for us in the future!
After departing Indonesia we flew into Jordan & then by
road to Israel…and on to Greece & Italy.
When we arrived into Austria, we rented a car and travelled through the
Alps enjoying the Tirolian countryside! We
continued to drive along the Rhine River in Germany and then entered into
southern Holland! Yes we enjoyed our
last 2 months in Holland visiting my son & family – and my sweet little
granddaughter Skyler…now 2 ½ yrs old! Spending
2 months in Holland gave us the chanc to visit many family members both on Nick &
my side …and that too was such a Joy for us both! Some of the families we visited we had not
seen in 25 yrs plus!!!! Everything together made it a very special time!
And here we are in Arizona…Yes! Upon arriving back into the US we purchased a
used motor-home and after visiting our home town Bend Oregon and seeing our
family, friends & church family again…we headed south to a warmer
climate! After having been in Asia for
all that time – these two “sissy’s” are
still adjusting to a different kind of weather!
We are grateful to
the Lord for this past 1 ½ years and look forward to God’s Plan in the new year
to come! God Bless You & Yours this
Christmas Week and into the New Year to come!
“The Lord Bless you and Keep you and Shine His Grace Upon
you!”
Happy & Blessed & Healthy 2015 to each & everyone
of you !!!
In His Love ~ Nick & Ellen
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