The joy of skype and a webcam

The picture may be dim and the sound sometimes a bit patchy, but it is amazing to see Zara and Richard and Chris and Esther in Kabul while we sit in a fire warmed room in the Smoky mountains in North Caroline. Modern technology may bring with it a host of problems, but for those of us called to the far reaches ot the earth the Internet is a life saver and an enricher.

Zara is quite astonishing in her grasp of English, clear enunciation and enough of an attention span to delight Granny Elsie and Grandad Mike, and from this picture, a whole lot of others.

Fio, Pete and Andrew

Pete and Fiona with Andrew. Pete and Fiona are going on well in Cincinnati, delighted to have finished working on their latest Aradhna worship CD, and thankful to have some time off to catch their breath before heading out on tour once again.

The girls together

The girls love getting together even though it doesn't happen often enough!

Dave and Sus

Dave and Sus with us before heading off to India for 6 months to work with Freedom Firm up in the Nilgiri Hills. They are doing so well and we had a great time together. They are so looking forward to this next big adventure in their lives.

Our Christmas Hosts

Marc and Penny Kretzschmar have been our hosts over the holidays and what a superb job they have done!

Our Christmas Home

Here in the Smokey Mountains we are spending our days over Christmas with the girls in this lovely mountain cabin. The Lord blessed us with wonderful snow on Christmas day!! Great snowball battles and the building of a snowman...

Lovely tree and fire

Some of the joys of our lovely cabin...

Views like this met us everywhere on our walks...s

Walks high up on mountain paths were also spectacular.

Ali and Fio

Walks down by raging rivers were part of our time together

Christmas with the girls

What a joy for Mike and me to spend Christmas with the girls, their husbands and the Kretzschmar family up in a wonderful Smokey Mountain cabin. Here is Elsie and the girls with their appropriate headdress as "mountain women"

The proud Dad

Here is Chris with his little son! Amazing that 4 little children had 7 adults working full time, but none of us were complaining at all! We loved every minute of being together!

What a pair!

Esther and Rich

Granddad's duties

Here is our dear little Richard taking his Granddad for a walk! We had 9 wonderful days with Chris and Esther and the family, along with Frank and Liz Guinness and Esther's sister, Lucy and her family, in both Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Richard was taking his first steps and trying to say a few words - wonderful times!!

Gulf Dancing Girl cousins

Zara, Chris and Esther's oldest and her cousin spent the time waiting in the restaurant in Dubai entertaining the guests.

The Real Work

Looking at some of the picture all seems to be play. Of course most of our time is taken with hard work. I seem to spend a huge amount of almost every day spent in meetings. I guess you get to a stage where a lot of the work is actually enabling others to get on with their work and helping them to be effective.

I have 4 major responsibilities

1. Finance
2. Information Technology
3. Financial Development
   
4. Communications
   

In each of these areas our job is to look at the whole of OM and to attempt to see coordination of a common direction and also to provide services that are best provided internationally. I work with a team in each of these areas. Many things have been accomplished but we could be so much more effective.

Over Ullswater

Sheep photos 2007

I was asked by a friend to take photos for a new line of wool carpets he was launching. Here are one or two.

Paul Guinness and Carol Anne - July

Paul Guinness, engineer (Esther Lyth's brother) and Carol Anne Poyner (with Elsie on the maiden voyage of the Logos in 1971) showed us around the Logos Hope.

July 2007 Logos Hope Troghir Croatia

On the way back from Croatia we called in on Logos Hope. What a joy to see the results of so much prayer that has gone up and so much work done. It still looks a long way from being finished but a huge amount has been accomplished.

Adrian at the wheel

Shore visit Muerter Island exploration

Captain Sue

Stuart as the evening wind blows up

Krka Falls Croatia

See what I mean - we only seem to take photos when we are in exotic places. My sister Sue invited Elsie and me to go sailing with them in Croatia. Here was one of our shore visits up the river from Sibenik. Fascinating!!