Laura was saying that she'd like to send out a family letter with a picture instead of Christmas cards. For me, this is still a foreign concept, as I grew up receiving mail only from the occasional grandparent, and have lost more relationships with people that have mattered to me than I've kept. Mostly this is because of two factors common to life in international ministry--transience and living someplace one is not really "from." Well, I guess later I'm from those places, but at the time I sure wasn't :-)!
Still, I can keep learning, right?! And if you've ever gotten a family letter from us, you can probably thank Laura for that! But pandemic year has been all about staying home, even for many of us that are used to travelling. This means such things as showing up every week at my groups, instead of only when I'm in town (except when we're locked down!) Or spending more time with immediate family in our little bubble instead of flitting hither and yon. In some ways it feels like hibernation!
Meanwhile we're on the cusp of, Lord willing, moving from one granddaughter whom we see almost daily to three, one of whom will be a full 50 miles away. (Terribly far, right?!) While we've seen less of our son and daughter in law (who live 50 miles away) because of social distancing, we've still seen much more of them than we ever expected when we figured our kids would probably live on the other side of the world.
In so many ways it feels rich, because relationships are so precious to us, and especially with those closest to us. When I was growing up I wanted more time with my dad, who was often gone or preoccupied--he changed careers, got two advanced degrees, and moved us to three countries, and what might as well have been separate countries in California and Texas. (Believe me, they are more alike now than they were 50+ years ago!) So now I generally think I've won the prize when I get more time with my adult kids than with all the other people out there I still love.
Our granddaughter Evangeline is two now, and that means she has a two years' headstart on the ones who are on their way, but I am under the impression we will somehow find new room for the next ones who will have an equal claim on our hearts. Joey and his wife Laura are anticipating a baby boy around Valentine's Day, and Sarah and John are expecting a sibling for Evangeline in June. We are praying with them all for every good thing for these precious children, and making time for them in our lives.
I've heard that one of the adjustments of retirement is learning to spend more time together as a couple, but it feels like this year has been a huge head start. (No, we're still not yet retired, but I will start medicare next August.)
And we're still the sandwich generation. Laura's mom is more a part of our lives than ever, since Laura's dad has been gone now since August 2019. Lately we've been encouraged that she seems to be enjoying life, even though it continues to bring its challenges. Hopefully we'll still be a sandwich generation for a good while longer--when she's gone, we'll just be the old folks ourselves!
I'm still into biking, now including working on bikes myself a bit, since labor is not so cheap as it was in Taiwan and space is cheaper. So I'm insulating the garage! This year Laura decided to keep track of her altitude gained biking and hiking, and she hit her goal--100,000 feet total. If you use strava to track your rides et al, we do too, one of the few forms of social media on which we're more active. I am still a few hundred feet short of 100,000, so if you want to come hiking with me, let me know--they say the sun will come out tomorrow ;-). Today's a good day to write an email update inside!
We've had some fun ministry adventures this year, too, although they have looked different than we might have imagined. Until it finally got cold, our backyard got more use than we'd ever guessed it would, although it still looks like the biggest sandbox in our neighborhood. Also too many people know that I sometimes play solitaire on the other monitor while I'm on video calls, and now you do too! Who knows what is yet ahead?
We only know that what comes each day is exactly what we are called to embrace and endure, and that the world we look forward to without any pain or fear is not this one!
Recently my Wednesday morning men's group has been looking at the "little books" of the Bible. Today we did the fifth shortest which is Jude, and it is there that you find the context for the way I often sign these email updates "in the one who keeps us." It reminds me that I'm not here because I make a good impression, but I do have someone watching out for me, and that makes all the difference. I hope you have someone watching out for you, too, and that you can watch out for the ones you spend the most time with, too!
Hope to see you soon (but maybe not as soon as we'd like!)
In the one who keeps us, Steve and Laura
PS Yes, we're also on zoom, skype, microsoft teams, and google meet. Did I miss anything? Facebook messenger, whats app, line, duo, ....
Steve and Laura Spinella
US: 1930 Springcrest Rd, CO Springs 80920
mail: 9685 Otero Ave, Colorado Springs, CO 80920
Steve cell 719.355.4809, Laura cell 832.755.4261
<spinella@alumni.rice.edu> <lauraspinella@gmail.com>
<spinella@alumni.rice.edu> <lauraspinella@gmail.com>
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