Καλά Χριστούγεννα Happy Christmas!

A Cypriot nativity scene outside the local DVD shop!

A brief blog to wish all our friends and family a very happy Christmas. The last few weeks have been full of the normal year-end festivities, school Christmas concerts and parties etc. It's been lovely to spend time with good friends, although a little sad and poignant, knowing of our pending transition back to Australia in less than a month's time.

We're looking forward to heading away as a family tomorrow for a white Christmas and week of skiing. Planning some time away for Christmas is probably one of the best things we could have done, as it gives a much needed break in the middle of packing up and preparing to relocate.

So on the night before we depart, we are pleased to report no children with broken bones or sickness! A big day tomorrow: a plane, bus and three trains (including a cog railway) before we finally get to Wengen.

Wherever you may be this Christmas, we pray that you may be aware of God's grace and presence with you. We hope to see you in 2015!

love from Ross, Sarah, Jessie, Angus, Sam and Anna!

ps. here's a few other recent pics

A 'how to host a murder' dinner last weekend, lovingly catered
for by Menaka

Hannah and Jessie

Guess who?

Angus in action at a match last weekend

A chance to see Barca in action

Angus and his good friend Repe before the match

A few weeks ago, Angus was able to fulfil a football dream of sorts when we went to see FC Barcelona play in Cyprus. The occasion was a Champions League group stage match against Apoel, one of the leading teams in Cyprus. Despite the high ticket prices, the match was a sellout, and interestingly many of the fans had travelled from Lebanon, Jordan and other countries in the Middle East where Barcelona have a huge following.

The match itself was played on a freezing night with some fresh snow on the mountains in Cyprus (which the locals assured us was a good omen for Apoel). Alas this was not reflected in the final score!

The financial numbers behind a team like Barcelona are pretty staggering. Someone observed that the net worth of the Barcelona team far exceeds the value of the European bailout package provided to prop up the ailing Cypriot economy. Certainly the value of one of the Barcelona players such as Messi, Neymar or Suarez dwarfs the entire team budget of FC Apoel.

So it is not surprising that the match was a fairly one-sided affair, and despite holding Barcelona to a 1-0 victory in the first round when Apoel played them in Spain a few months ago, this match ended up 4-0 to Barcelona, and it could easily have been more. It was a delight to watch them play though, and the experience has no doubt further inspired Angus in his current football obsession!

The Apoel fans still managed a traditional Cyprus
welcome with flares!

Parkour in Gaza

"Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it". Helen Keller

I was prompted to write this blog after seeing some remarkable photographs that were taken by a member of our regional team Pablo Teves. who was recently visiting Gaza to support the World Vision team there. The photographs show youth in Gaza performing 'parkour', which is the aerial activity originating from urban youth in France. Parkour or freerunning, is the activity or sport of moving rapidly through an area, typically in an urban environment,negotiating obstacles by running, jumping and climbing.

To see these youth performing parkour amidst the absolute destruction from the recent war says something profound to me about the resilience of the human spirit, and it's ability to find expression and hope, even in the midst of overwhelming adversity. 

The recent war in Gaza lasted for 7 weeks, and resulted in widespread destruction. The statistics tell enough of the story:

• more than 2000 Palestinians killed,over 500 of them children
• more than 60 Israeli soldiers killed, and 7 Israeli civilians killed
• more than 10,000 Palestinians injured,of whom nearly 3000 are children
• 460,000 people (more than 25% of the Gaza population) are currently seeking shelter,the majority of whom are hosted in schools designated as emergency shelters
• More than 16,500 homes in Gaza damaged or destroyed, leaving more than 100,000 homeless
• Approximately 370,000 children require direct or specialised psychosocial care

It is estimated that it will take more than 20 years to reconstruct the damage caused by the recent conflict in Gaza. World Vision has worked in Gaza for many years, and as a result of the recent conflict has further expanded activities. 

Click here to read more about World Vision's ongoing work in Gaza, in particular following the recent conflict.

The latest from Anna

Anna is five and a half years old, and as many of you know, the youngest of four.  I just wanted to take a moment today to capture her in all that she is 'right now'.  Sometimes, the youngest one misses out on the photos and documentation so this will hopefully balance things out a little. She's growing up so fast and by the time we get to Australia she'll be on her way to 6 and wearing a school uniform.  The dentist the other day said she'll be losing teeth soon!

The words I would use to describe Anna are bright, determined, sporty, helpful, eager to please, generally happy and when not happy; stubborn. She's a girl who wants to be recognised as a boy and refuses to wear anything that might be associated with female, including girls' swimmers. Last month she told us in all seriousness that she wanted to change her name to 'Dorian'!

Today she went to her swimming class and was delighted to move up a grade along with her best friend Aeantas.  When they were each asked to join the other group; the new teacher gave them each a big congratulatory hug and threw them in the water. 

What a funny pair they are: Anna and Aeantas.
Their latest trick is kissing games at school.
I think Dad's got something to say about that.

Anna and her swimming teacher Fani

Today she also bought home from pre-school her first 'reader'.  There's a magical moment I think for every parent when they discover that their child is actually reading the words and not just guessing or reciting. So I thought I'd take a picture of that special book she read to me when the penny seemed to drop.

The other day, Anna visited the dentist.  She was very proud to receive the same fluoride treatment that her siblings got and didn't seem to mind the discomfort.  A few weeks ago, I took her to Dr Emily for her school vaccination and, much to the Dr's astonishment, she hardly flinched. I'm beginning to thinks she's pretty tough.

And if all that wasn't exciting enough today; we are getting ready for our Christmas ski holiday and Anna was given a new ski jacket. She kept saying to me "Mum, this has been one of the best days!" 

A few more pics of Anna...

The homework project: make a banana smoothie

Mum's great photography...:)

A special visit from an old friend

When it comes to the official job description of "Mum" I don't think annual leave gets a mention.  Nobody talks about it much but there are some mothers out there who allocate themselves a bit of time out and return (hopefully) refreshed and, in different ways, renewed.

My old friend "Weed" as I like to call her is one such person.  With a generous hearted husband who noticed some cheap tickets from Perth to Cyprus, she spotted the window of opportunity and without any hesitation she sent me an email entitled "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?" I was delighted; there's nothing like some quality time with one of my oldest friends.

Lisa, as she is known by everyone else, came for almost 2 weeks and experienced some of our life here in Cyprus; both the mundane and the interesting and, during family times, the LOUD. On one weekend, I also took some 'maternal annual leave' and we both flew to Crete.  It was fantastic to experience a new place together with heaps of time on our hands.  Walking, driving, bike-riding, beaches, shopping and eating....all glued together by a lot of great talking.  

The pictures say it all:

Encountered a massive hail storm en route to the 

airport

The weather brought about some beautiful colours around Aphrodite's 

Rock near Paphos airport in Cyprus

An early view of Crete

Good Morning Crete!

We can't stop taking photos...no kids to watch...new camera

The harbour in Chania

We soon realized that the town of Chania was pretty small, even for 3 days, so we bravely rented a car and drove ourselves to some pretty sights - all the while reminding ourselves "Keep Right, Keep Right".  Despite there being some hesitation in opting out of car insurance, we did just fine and made a great team.

Yes Weed...it really is the Mediterranean.

"hey, stop that, this rock is my only privacy"

Back in Cyprus, it was great to take Weed to some of my favourite places and do some cooking with some of my favourite people.

Walking, talking and sitting in the
beautifully natural Mahairas Forest

Menaka continues to watch over my
cooking of her Prawn & Coriander dish

Hanging out in the kitchen...

Bringing together 2 artists (excluding myself).
Afternoon Tea at Behnoosh's home.

Lunch at Bellapais Abbey

Visiting Ross at the World Vision office

An early morning bike ride discovering doors in the
old town

Weed learned to play Backgammon with
a qualified Turkish mentor!

Had to watch a football match!

A visit to the box shop in Kyrenia

And, on the last morning, tried a Frappe.

So, when you've tried a Frappe, you've really been to Cyprus. Weed, it was great to see you, thanks for coming! Graeme, thanks for minding the fort back home.