September 2011
2 posts
Resignation from Open Doorways
By now most people know that as of June 15, 2011, we are no longer working with Manitoba based Charity Open Doorways Orphanage. We weren’t really super keen on putting something up on our blog or facebook about it as it was a very hard decision to make. However, we thought it might be good to post our letter to keep everyone up to date - even though it’s a little out of date at this...
I am the Prodigal
In the book of Luke Jesus tells the story of the prodigal son. You are probably familiar with the parable about a young man who asked his father for his inheritance early and left his family only to squander it away and have to return with his head hung low. Jesus tells us that even though the father had the right to turn his son away or make him a slave to his house, he joyfully welcomes his son...
July 2011
1 post
June 2011
2 posts
“A man’s heart plans his way,
But the Lord directs his steps.”
– Proverbs 16:9
May 2011
2 posts
April 2011
2 posts
Dropbox for Life
If you haven’t heard of a program called Dropbox yet, now you have.
For anyone who would like to sync files between multiple computers/devices or if you would like to back up certain files with online storage, Dropbox has you covered.
I am currently using two different computers. When Dropbox is downloaded on both computers and you have signed into your account, all of the files located...
Invictus
Inspiring, encouraging, challenging, moving. A poem by William Ernest Henley:
Out of the night that covers me, Black as the Pit from pole to pole, I thank whatever gods may be For my unconquerable soul. In the fell clutch of circumstance I have not winced nor cried aloud. Under the bludgeonings of chance My head is bloody, but unbowed. Beyond this place of wrath and tears Looms but the Horror of...
March 2011
2 posts
“We’re always on the edge of something bigger than this.”
– Hey Rosetta, Seventeen
Open Doorways Update
As of March 1st, we are officially employees of Open Doorways Orphanage. We won’t be heading to Haiti right away though as there is much to be done before we are ready to accept children into the home. We are expecting to move in late spring or early summer.
For the next few months we will be working on fund raising and public relations for Open Doorways. The major need at the moment is funding...
February 2011
1 post
One, Two, Three, Four...
Sarah recently celebrated her 26 birthday. As a tradition, we always take each other out for a birthday meal; she usually try’s a new, local restaurant whereas I have chosen Arby’s the last five years running.
During these meals we always take time to reflect on the previous year. As we went over the highlights of Sarah’s 26th year, we were reminded of how many different places we’d lived in just...
January 2011
8 posts
How Do You Get Your Fix?
I really enjoy taking the bus to and from work everyday. I think one of my favourite parts of the experience is observing other people.
One morning last week I ended up getting on a different bus then usual. Fortunately, it still got me to work on time, and this early morning slip-up also gave me the opportunity to make an interesting observation.
As I sat near the back of the bus, half asleep,...
“I’ve seen a lot of bailouts in my life, but why is it I never see a...”
– Anti-Flag - The Economy is Suffering…Let it Die
“What we do for ourselves dies with us. What we do for others, and the world,...”
– Albert Pines
"Like" Open Doorways Facebook Page →
Keep up to date on the orphanage, Haiti, and us through Facebook!
W5: Haiti a year after the Quake →
W5 recently aired a four part series on what things are like in Haiti almost a year after the earthquake. We haven’t watched the whole thing yet, but it looks interesting.
Check it out.
“When you give freely, for no other reason than the fact that you can make...”
– Mark Boyle, author of “The Moneyless Man”
December 2010
5 posts
Hold on to the Positive
Have you ever felt like you’re losing faith in humanity? For me this feeling usually creeps in after a long day of negative interactions with others. Usually the cause of this disheartenment doesn’t stem from one bad encounter, but each encounter is compounded by the next.
How dare they butt in line…They can’t speak to me that way…No one stopped to help…What is this world coming...
No Strings Attached
One evening last week I had some time to kill and stopped in at the McNally Robinson. As I browsed the shelves I came across a book entitled, “The Money-less Man: A Year of Freeconomic Living”. The title intrigued me.
As I flipped through the first few pages I was hooked. I ended up standing in the isle captivated by the first chapter. The author seemed to have a gift for taking complex topics...
Could you live in 89 sq. ft.? →
Important Update
Friends and Family,
There have been some recent changes to our plans and we want to share the exciting news with you. As you may recall our plan was to visit Haiti for two months starting in January to work with an organization called CINRADD. Since making that decision God has placed before us a new opportunity to live and work in Haiti with a different organization. Although we will no longer be...
What a Privilege
Our trip has come and gone and the memories we made won’t soon be forgotten. Now that we have returned to Winnipeg I’m back at Siloam for the Christmas season. My official title is Christmas Coordinator, but I’m affectionately referred to as the Christmas King.
It’s been nice to see old friends and meet new people who are passionate about serving Winnipeg’s inner city. The one thing that never...
November 2010
16 posts
We've Come Full Circle
We took the Eurostar from Brussels to London this morning.
We’re back to where it all began.
We are currently sitting in the exact same Starbucks I made our first European blog entry back on August 11.
Tonight we head to the airport and by tomorrow night we’ll be back in Winnipeg…weird.
Cheers,
R&S
Behind the Scenes at the Grey Cup →
An article by CBC news about people experiencing poverty helping to ensure this years Grey Cup was a success. Check it out!
Odd or Even?
From a top the Acropolis we looked out over a sprawling Athens. It stretched out in every direction covering the land with buildings, roads, and about 4.5 million people.
There was a haze in the air. We asked the guide from our hostel if it was humidity or smog and he responded that it was mostly humidity. Apparently the city no longer has a smog problem thanks to something called “odd-even...
Bitter Sweet
It’s hard to believe that our European adventure is coming to a close; only seven days left until we’re back on Canadian soil. It’s a bitter sweet feeling.
We’ve enjoyed every minute of this trip and feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to make this dream a reality, but we will be the first to admit that we are tired. I suppose it shouldn’t come as a surprise; in the last four months...
Deutsche Eishockey
In an attempt to be good Canadians we decided to take in an ‘Eishockey’ game while in Munich. The league is known as the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL), or the German Ice Hockey League, and the game featured EHC Munich versus the Straubing. Interestingly enough the DEL has the highest number of Canadian and American players outside of North America.
Although the skill level was lower than I had...
München
We arrived in Munich, Germany today. So far it feels a bit grubbier than Switzerland, but we’ve noticed the people are extremely friendly and helpful. The city bus we were on made a stop and we noticed the driver get off and grab some food. He knew we were tourists and it turned out that he had bought us each a giant pretzel. He said that he wanted us to try a German treat. We were blown away by...
A bit about our time in Switzerland thus far.
The English Language
We’ve been very surprised by the significant number of people from non-English speaking countries who know at least a little English. In contrast, I would venture to say that fewer people in English speaking countries are even a little familiar with another language. With Canada being my most familiar context, I would say we have enough trouble learning both of our official languages, let alone...
You're So Romanticising
I don’t know about you, but we’ve done a pretty good job of romanticising countries that we’ve never seen with our own eyes. Perhaps it was a picture in a magazine, a commercial for a travel company, or a scene from a favorite movie. Whatever it was, we thought, “one day I’d like to go there”. Sometimes this picture-perfect location is all you dreamed it would...
“In Venice, Italy they don’t have streets they have canals. So in Venice,...”
– Mitch Hedberg, Comedian
Thank You for Not Smoking
I’m allergic to tobacco, so I’ve never smoked. I never really felt the urge to anyway; I’ve seen what it can do to people.
My brother smokes and has tried many times to quit – to no avail. My aunt used to smoke and it took a lot for her to stop. Growing up I could see the immediate effects this habit had on both of them; the money spent, the yellow teeth, the stained fingers, and the smoky odour...
A Little Over-Rated
The trip to Venice was long: from Athens we took 1 metro, 1 ferry, 2 trains, and 3 buses. The journey took 32.5 hours straight, but we made it.
Venice seems to be one of the most famous cities in the world. The concept of the “streets” being made of water seems simple enough, but it was facinating to experience it first hand. The buses are boats, the taxis are boats, boats act as...
Looking for Support...
“Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.” ~ Proverbs 19:21
To our dear family and friends,
Sometimes our plans don’t exactly match up with God’s and it can take some time to figure that out. Life doesn’t always go the way we might have envisioned, but it always goes the way He has.
We are at a point in life where we can’t really see past the near...
Ordinary People
What did you do today?
Whatever it was, you are not alone; many people around the world lived out a very similar day.
For some reason, before departing Canada in August, this concept hadn’t really crossed my mind. Instead of imagining a country full of ordinary people, I would imagine what looked more like a semi-deserted island.
Often we forget that there are ordinary people living...
It's All Greek to Me
We decided to make a round trip from Italy to Greece. We took a 17 hour overnight as a ferry from Bari, Italy to Patras, Greece. From there we spent time in Olympia and Athens.
Although we’ve been getting used to being in countries that don’t speak English as a first language, it was our first time being in a country with a completely different alphabet. I was a bit worried about this, but...
“There are two things that motivate all of us in the fight from generation to...”
– Tony Benn - Former British MP
October 2010
18 posts
Italia!
Italy has such a rich history. We spent time in Florence, Pisa, Rome, Pompeii, and Bari. A few of the highlights included: Leaning Tower of Pisa, Colosseum, Roman Forum, Paletine Hill, Vatican Museum, and the ruins of Pompeii. We saw so much along the way and learned a lot too.
It was Entertaining to watch people take these kind of pictures, so we joined in!
Chillin’ at...
Free Water!
I was amazed to find that Rome has over 2500 water fountains scattered through out the city. The water is clean, cold, and free. If you don’t have a water bottle you can simply cover the main spout with your finger and the water shoots vertically out of another hole turning it into a regular drinking fountain.
You can see the small hole on the top of the spout in the picture. It’s...
“I’m poor with two children, homeless and jobless. Please help my family...”
– A note from a women in Italy asking for change on the train
"Non Parlo Italiano"
We arrived in Italy yesterday and the title of this post has become our new favorite phrase. I’m sure you can figure out what it means…
We are in Florence right now and have learned that the tourist season in Italy isn’t over yet. The streets are full - I can’t believe how many tourists there are.
The view from Piazzale Michelangelo
Charging an electric car
...
Just A Little Water
We were walking down Boulevard Victor Hugo in Nice, France the other day. It was a quiet street - not a lot of foot traffic compared to many other streets in France’s fifth largest city.
Regardless, there was a gentleman sitting on the sidewalk with a small cup in hand. As we walked by he made a simple gesture in hopes of receiving some change.
I can’t begin to count the number of...
Nice in Nice
We arrived in Nice yesterday. Everything went quite smoothly with the train considering many people are still on strike.
Nice seems to be much warmer than Marseille was. It was about 20 degrees Celsius today with not a cloud in the sky. We spent the afternoon relaxing on the beach and swimming in the Mediterranean Sea. Hopefully the weather stays this warm.
We are definitely enjoying the...
Lourdes of Tack
Let me start by simply saying, Lourdes is kind of an odd little town. The place is super religious, old, and outdated. Everything looks like it hasn’t been updated since at least before I was born; including the post cards. We spent some time trying to figure out what it is about Lourdes that we don’t really like. We finally decided on a good word for Lourdes – tacky.
The religion is so overdone...
Alternative Transportation
I have been fortunate enough to have owned a car since I was 16 years old. It all started with an ’87 Acura Integra before moving up to an ’89 Honda Accord. The most recent car we drove was a ’96 Hyundai Accent, which we sold before leaving for Europe. Since I’ve basically owned a car as long as I’ve had a drivers licence, being truly ‘car-less’ is a new reality for me.
Yet, over the last couple...
