Our dear family and friends
As I sit down to write this annual Christmas letter, it’s an
unusually bleak day here in Rome. It’s dark, rainy and cold and but sitting
here, in front of the huge Christmas Tree we have put up in our living Rome, I
feel anything but. As I look back on the year that’s been, and search out those
tidbits of our lives to share with you, I feel warm and fuzzy, contented,
accomplished, just plain happy. And that’s because I realize, it has been a
good year, in fact it’s been a great year. Gerard finished his stint in Afghanistan
and we are all together in a place we are once again happy to call home.
The move back to Rome went well for the most part, and after
the initial expected hitches (telephone and internet connections) and
unexpected hitches (we were without a washing machine for almost a month) we
settled down into our lovely home, ready for round 2 in Rome.
Ryeika is 11, spirited and always happy and enthusiastic.
Her big achievement this year, is that she has learnt to take the public bus
home from school on days she stays back for special clubs. She is the gadget
expert, can find anything you have lost, and is the someone you need around if
you are having a bad day.
Neeira is 9, very gentle, affectionate and quietly
confident. She can be a real clown sometimes and makes us laugh with her antics
and imitations. She absorbs every experience she has to the fullest, and truly
carries a part of every friend she has ever made, with her everywhere she goes.
Liraya is 5 and still everyone’s baby. She doesn’t scream as
much as many of you will remember, but still definitely gets her way. Though she
exasperates us as much as she delights, we all enjoy every minute of her antics
and wish we could keep her like this forever. She began reading this year and
we are enjoying being read stories instead of the other way around.
Well otherwise really, life has been just routine and
normal, the usual ups, the usual downs. After the high drama in our lives the
last two years, everything is just ordinary. Of course, a house with five
ladies, can never be quite without its share of drama, but it’s drama that is
not exceptional, it’s drama we can happily handle.
And so, as we plough through our ordinary days and
predictable weekends, watching our children grow and explore, as we navigate
school and work, tantrums and giggles, laundry and dirty dishes, trivial
conversations, quiet laughter, inside jokes, teenager moods, sibling rivalry,
sibling bonding, and other so called mundane moments, we thank God for helping
us see the wonder and the marvel of this ordinary life. We thank God for making
the ordinary seem extraordinary.
This Christmas as we welcome Baby Jesus into our home, we
thank Him for our families and for all of our friends spread across globe. Even
though many of you are continents away, we stay connected and remain close. Our
times together are forever etched in our hearts and as Christmas draws near, we
send you all our love and warmest wishes. Come visit us. (Don’t get put off
with all my talk about ordinary, Rome I promise you, is more than extraordinaryJ).
May your coming year be filled with magic and dreams and
good madness. If you surprise yourself, and enjoy the ordinary you will see it
take on a glow and wonder all of its own. Merry Christmas and a very Happy New
Year.
All our love
Sanchita, Gerard, Arhantika, Ryeika, Neeira, Liraya
Comments
Post a Comment