7/2009 - Maryland, USA - Ryan's family. His sister, her husband, their daughter, Ryan's parents, Chandra, and the kids.
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What a great trip to the U.S. we had!
Even though modern travel is obviously a vast improvement over boats and mule trains, 36 hours of airports, airplanes, and a rapid jump over timezones can still be a bit grueling. Especially for kids. We are blessed with some pretty rugged travelers for kids. We are also blessed to have a committed few friends praying for us sincerely. Thank you.
6/2009 - Colorado, USA - Chandra's dad and family. Paige, Parker, Amy, and Chandra's dad in back.
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Our trip was both restful and productive. A hard balance but it worked out well. We got to see many of you, if only for a short visit, and at the same time we had some great leisure times. Some including some of you. Again, thanks so much!
6/2009 - Colorado, USA - Chandra's mom and grandfather.
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So now we are back in Kathmandu. The weather is pretty uncomfortable and the remnants of jet lag, or just the muggy heat, has me up at 3AM getting this update started. Don't feel sorry for me though. I'm actually pretty excited to share a bit about what has already started to develop.
7/2009 - Maryland, USA - Goin fishin with Grandad!
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Like usual, responsibilities came our way as soon as we got here. Lots of possibilities and the day after we arrived Ryan was at school discussing his role for the coming year. In short Chandra will continue to assist the director of the school and since a new teacher from Singapore has now arrived, Ryan will focus on managing the campus technology and developing the department. The school now has a pretty powerful network of computers, and many of the more gifted students have really taken advantage of it, but now Ryan will focus his efforts on facilitating more thorough use, both in the department and campus-wide. Believe it or not even coming from western nations not everyone has been able to keep up with technology.
7/2009 - Maryland, USA - Alicia always wanted to be a farmer.
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Chandra hopes to increase her hours, but our kids have to be our priority. So she has set a top limit of 4 hours a day. Ryan's role is more strategic than last year and also frees him up to a more flexible schedule and that's where the long list of new opportunities really fits in.
8/2009 - Kathmandu, Nepal - Working on laptops in the dark. Power is out. :-\
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We arrived to find that a pile of laptops had been delivered to our house rendering our ping-pong table, which used to be our dining table, completely occupied. They were donated from another local ministry, but the fact is they had been well used before we got them. So far though we have resurrected 3 of them and expect at least 3 more to work. These 6 (or hopefully more) computers are to be installed in a building that is in negotiations to serve as a multi-purpose training center. The center will focus on developing the skills of victims of human trafficking. The vision is gigantic, but the team is dedicated to give this a try.
8/2009 - KTM, Nepal - Some of Woman At Risk Ministries (WARM) with laptops.
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We'll admit Ryan is taking these steps with a bit of hesitance but so far this seems like a great use of his skills. He admires the way this ministry is being run but has some adjusting to do himself. One thing he is fond of is their philosophy of casting a wide net. The training center plan is very pragmatic and has very good potential. All the "eggs" are not in the computer basket. In fact, maybe one of the other subjects will prove to be more successful. It is very biblical and very wise to attempt more than one thing at a time. Ecclesiastes 11:6 says:
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Sow your seed in the morning,
and at evening let not your hands be idle,
for you do not know which will succeed,
whether this or that,
or whether both will do equally well.
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12/2008 - KTM, Nepal - Our local Nepali church.
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Please pray about Ryan's involvement with the local church, school, Women At Risk Ministries (WARM), the youth group, and another project we hope to share more about in the future.
As for Chandra, she hasn't missed a beat. She is really enjoying her role picking up a lot of the slack at the school. Where the ICT (computer) department has seen an increase of skilled staff, most have not. In fact we're down ten members compared to last year. There are big needs in the primary school for Christian teachers. If those last few sentences have made you consider coming and helping please let us know. It can't hurt to explore the possibilities of what God may be asking you to do.
Chandra is spending a lot of time with the kids which is exactly how it must be. Alicia is in first grade now, and Elijah is going to probably need to go to pre-school to work on his social skills. Micah is doing really great and praise God still has not been sick yet, ever. What a testimony to God's ability to be stronger than our fears.
There's so much to share, but we've already gotten pretty long. We do need prayer about finances, and peace. All these opportunities are definitely exciting but daily life is demanding and contentment can be hard to come by when it's hot, the power is out, or the pipes are leaking, when Micah is teething, or we've had to spend more time in traffic or lines than normal. Even getting fruit is requiring a longer journey than usual these days. We are definitely reminded daily that we are human and need God's redemption.
Blessings to you, our friends!
IMPORTANT BUSINESS:
We have a big change in how our finances are handled from now on. We are partnering with ICTA (about the Jamesons @ www.icta.net), which is the organization Ryan first moved to Colorado to work for.
The giving information on this site has been changed accordingly. So please follow the instructions below to send your gifts through the new method: Donate. Thanks!
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