It's Christmas Time in the City

One last post without pictures.

I just wanted to say that it was a wonderful Christmas here. I know the time for Christmas stories has passed, but I didn't get a chance to let you know what I was up to for the holidays.

First, there was the Christmas program at church. I played a Wise Man from the East in our little play, sang in the choir, and handed out prizes during a Christmas Q&A we did. The star of the show, however, was my little Turkish teacher Melissa. She's only maybe 10 years old and as cute as a button. She recited a poem that a man in the church had written. It was quite a performance.

The next night, Christmas Eve, the church got together in a restaurant for a big holiday feast. We rented out the second floor of a restaurant downtown and we just about filled it up. It's amazing how many "members" show up when there's free food. The choir had an encore performance, sans accompaniment and, more importantly, sans lyrics. There was a short highlight film of the program and some songs before dinner too. It was a very enjoyable evening... all five hours of it.

Needless to say, I didn't make it to the V-house as planned. In fact, Papa V called to ask if I wanted a ride, since he was about to get in bed, and we hadn't even been served dinner yet. So I spent the night here and headed over to my family's house with my two roomies. Of course, we were late. But that just meant that everybody was there to greet us. We had a wonderful brunch thanks to Mama-V and the lovely single ladies. We shared a lot of good stories and good laughs. Then we sang some Turkish Christmas songs and prayed together. It was a very sweet and special time.

I spent the rest of the afternoon trying to push the Germans out of Northern Africa with the eldest V as my wingman. What's Christmas without some anti-aircraft fire?

Then, Christmas night, the Anti had a dinner for a couple of her Turkish friends. These girls were celebrating their first Christmas as believers. It was really neat to see how happy and excited they were. I was invited to keep the Anti's dad company amongst all the gals. It was another special time, watching two young believers celebrate their first Christmas with their first taste of pork!

I told the Anti before Christmas came around that it was going to be the best one ever. I have to say, if it wasn't the best, it was real stinkin close.