Operas of hope

"Paper People"

One of Hope’s favorite activities is playing “paper people”. This involves us cutting plain paper into human figures of all sizes and shapes which she then colors with clothes and faces. Often she asks us to cut out props such as bikes, cars, beds, chairs, suns, moons, stars and houses which will also then be colored. She will then spend hours weaving epic operas of love, family, and friends during which these “paper people” and the props are lined up on the floor in various ways while she talks and sings her way through the story in her mind. (The key dramatic elements of tragedy and treachery have not yet found their way into her tales, but will the closer she gets to middle school :-)). When the stories are completed or when the time comes to move on, the paper people are all packed away in a box. These “paper people” are far from two dimensional in her mind as they are often compilations of her real and imaginary friends and the scenes often mimic events (school, sleepovers, parties and play times) in her own life. If we try to throw away her “paper people”, she melts down.

Hope enters the story

Janet and I sometimes spend time discussing news we hear from our friends or family. Often, they are faced with decisions about their career, raising children, or working through difficult situations. Sometimes they are celebrating good news or exciting possibilities. While we dearly struggle, wonder and celebrate situations in their lives and long and pray for answers and clarity for them, there is an element in our talking through their epic journey where we find ourselves using their situation as a way of transferring/ projecting/discussing similar issues we face in our own life. In fact, the things most pressing in our lives currently are the things we most often gravitate towards in our conversations which were started by our reflections about other people and things. This sometimes happens without our even realizing it.

Neil relaxes with the cast of the WOZ

As you can see from the pictures, Neil for the past months has been practicing for a small part as a munchkin in the SPH Senior School presentation of the Wizard of Oz. He really enjoyed this as he hung out with teachers, high school kids as well as other munchkins his age. He also got to get out of school lots to practice and perform in an extremely professional production at a very cool theater in Jakarta.

Lastly and maybe most importantly, as a member of the Lollipop Guild (in which he had to sing a trio), he was one of many dancing and singing figures in this silly epic who helped a girl named Dorothy navigate through the terror and wonder of Oz …

SPH Dorothy

and find her way back home.

No wonder Neil (and the rest of us) like this story so much.

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On a different note:

Two days ago I paid the most and the least ever for round trip plane tickets...on the same day.

Most: Round trip tickets from Jakarta...to Hong Kong....to Tokyo...to Detroit....to Grand Rapids and back (in a slightly different way). Price: you don't want to know (or I don't want to tell you!). Dates in Michigan: June 16-July 15

Least: April is spring break and Asian air carriers are in a price war! We booked round trip tickets on Air Asia to Yogjakarta (a city about 300 miles away but quite unreachable by car) for $11 a ticket on the way there, and just under $5 a ticket on the way back! (I'm hoping we are not stuffed in the luggage compartment or sitting on the wing--Air Asia has the reputation as the Southwest Airlines of Asia, so thats reassuring). Total price ( including taxes, "administration fees" and $1.50 charge for suitcases) meant the round trip tickets were a bit above $35 a piece. Still a great deal!

Spring Break, here we come.

Please email if you get a chance!