Christmas in the Clouds

Well, I did manage to get back into the Christmas spirit in time, after all. It was definitely helped along by many neighbours dropping by to give me Christmas baking and little Christmas presents, and by the few deliveries of similar nature that I made myself. But I think the real turning point for the Christmas spirit for me was eating tourtiere. Christmas tourtiere has not been a Christmas tradition of mine for very long, but several years ago I was introduced to this French Canadian tradition by my good friends, Terry and Denyse. At home, we always spend at least one evening in the Christmas season over at Terry and Denyse’s Ranch in the Thickwood Hills northwest (or maybe just west…dad will probably be rolling his eyes) of Blaine Lake. Tortiere has always been a part of that evening and it was one of the things I really felt the absence of last year. So this year, Denyse sent me the recipe and I tried it out for myself. A tourtiere is a spiced meat pie. It is eaten on Christmas eve, preferably with mango chutney (which we happen to have in abundance in Kenya.) So, on Christmas Eve, I had several Canadian friends, a South African friend, and my American housemate here for the tourtiere, spiced apple cider, and shortbread cookies. We had a lovely time visiting and the tourtiere was a decided hit. Then we went to the 11 p.m. candlelight service together, which was very beautiful and meaningful.

This morning, I got up early so that I could make some poppycock. I listened to The Messiah while I did this, and that music has a magical effect. I was definitely feeling the Christmas glow. At around 10:15, I headed over to the Halls’ for brunch. LeAnn put on a glorious and mouth-watering spread. After brunch, Tim led us in a devotional and sharing time and then we exchanged some gifts. Brad gave everyone these “twirly gun” toys, which became a primary source of entertainment for the rest of the day. We watched a Christmas movie, visited, and then got ready for the afternoon’s highlight: fondue out on the deck. I’ve never had a meat fondue before, and it was delicious. We deep-fried beef and chicken pieces and had curry, teriyaki, and barbeque dipping sauces. There was also a cheese fondue with bread, tortellini, and broccoli for dipping. We ended with a chocolate fondue with angel food cake (haven’t had that since my birthday in Canada) and fruit. It was delicious!


We spent the rest of the day playing games, reading, eating candy, and visiting. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The weather outside was not very inviting, so it was nice to be warm and cozy inside. Our campus was enveloped in clouds all day, so we had a lot of humidity in the forms of fog, mist, and rain throughout the day.

My Christmas day is nearly over. At home, it is noon on Christmas day as I write this. I thank God for an enjoyable day when I could feel His love and comfort despite being so far away from the people I love. I thank Him for giving me people to be close to here; people I have come to love since coming to RVA; people I’m so glad are a part of my life. Mostly, I’m thankful for His wonderful gift of Jesus and for all the ways that Gift has impacted my life, bringing me here at last to this place of great beauty and purpose, contentment and joy.