They Got One?
When you give twins a bath together, they NOTICE stuff. Since we are
trying to do the toilet training thing, it has led to discussions about differences
between a boy and girl. After almost every bath, Katie will tell me `Ben has
one, and Daddy has one, and JT has one and Matthew has one but Momma
doesn’t have one and I don’t have one.’
That was all good, but she and I were going for a walk and we passed a
friend and Katie asked `They got one?’ Me, not
being quick, asked `Got one what?’ Katie then said `Ben has one, and
Daddy has one, and JT has one and Matthew has one but Momma doesn’t have
one and I don’t have one.’
I said, `Oh THAT one.’ And I clarified that we generally
don’t speculate about such things. And she said `Oh’. And I’m
SURE that will be the end of that.
A friend recently wrote to me about a situation at work that reminded
him of the scene in `It’s a wonderful
life’ where Jimmy Stewart yells `Don’t you realize that this will
mean scandal and prison?’
I knew how he felt.
The last time I bought maize the guy sold me some that hadn’t
been dried well. That can rot, and it also violated the contract I had with
him. In addition, since then the government has recently raised prices it would
pay for maize, and so all prices went up.
I got many bids, and met with a family who gave a reasonable price and
they had a sturdy truck. I told them that I hadn’t determined how much I
would need, because I hadn’t gotten a firm price, but that I would work
with them. I told them that I would determine how much I could buy based on the
price and get back to them.
In the meantime, they bought and delivered one thousand bags of maize.
I’ve been scammed many times many times in
The problem was I didn’t have enough money to cover that amount.
The way our accounting works is that if someone makes a donation, it can take
several months for the money to get here.
And I was stuck. There wasn’t a way out like in
The night before Christmas I couldn’t sleep. I was sweating so
much that the bed was wet. I have some extra money from selling our home, but I
didn’t want to touch it, but I didn’t seem to have many options.
Bottom line is this: it turned out I had nearly enough in the account
to squeak by. We are buying fewer beans this term. Communication is tough out
here, but this one really threw me for a loop.
Part of the reason it hit me hard was that I realized: I want to look
good. Sometimes you find out how much you want to do
good, and how much you want to look
good. I found out, again, what I really am.
It was EASY to make new years resolutions this year. I want to resign
from the looking good club. (Note to all old friends especially from
It has been a tough month in many ways, JT has been sick, and Nancy and
Matthew both have mild cases of pneumonia. Matthew also is experiencing high
fevers whenever he stays up late, and the doctors haven’t been able to
figure it out.
We went to the Embassy to apply for immigration papers for the twins.
If they interpret the law one way, it will be a small of amount of money when
we return to the states to apply for their citizenship. If they interpret it
the other way, it will mean home studies and thousands of dollars. We are trying, sometimes successfully, not to
be anxious about it.
So this is a good time to mention that we return to the states in July
for our furlough year. The reason for a furlough is to renew yourself, which I
never understood before. But I understand that it is easy to get burned out on
the field, and it is best to take a year before you have to. AIM requires one
every three or four years.
Part of our motivation is we don’t want JT to miss his junior and
senior year at RVA. Part of it is to get citizenship for the twins. Part of it
is to reconnect with family and friends. Matthew and JT have not been in the
A big part for me is to see if we can expand our programs. We are
feeding 25 schools and 8400 students a day. I long to see many more children
helped with this. We will finish our first computer center in March. I would
love to return after our year’s furlough with the support to do many more
centers. So, if your church or organization is open, I would appreciate the
chance to share our vision.
Our furlough in the states will coincide with some big events in our
family: JT will turn 16 and be able to get his drivers license, Matthew will
become a teenager, the twins will become US citizens, Nancy and I will
celebrate 20 years of marriage, and I will turn 50.
50.
I better step it up. I’ve got a lot I want to get done, and
I’m running out of time.
Your pal
Steve
Steve
and Nancy Peifer
Stateside
Address:
Phone:
011-254-20-32046-252
PS. There are several friends who have started websites that I wanted
to share with you:
This was created by a company of people I knew when I worked for
Oracle. The founder was so impressed with me that three days after I joined his
company, he resigned.
This was created by a friend who I climbed
http://furman.edu/~elisa.cook/peifer_food_project/
This was created by a former driving student of mine who besides her
incredible lapse regarding her defamation of my teaching abilities is a pretty
amazing kid.