Greetings from Africa on this second day of the year 2000! Yes, we are still connected with the rest of the world! Our power didn’t even hiccup, our phone and email connections are as good as ever, and January 1 was one of the most beautiful days ever! God is ever faithful even when we are subject to worries.

Hope all of you are doing well and looking forward to the freshness that a new year brings. We look forward to seeing most of you again this year and discovering what exactly God has next for us.

On New Year’s Eve we invited Grace and her whole family (husband and 3 sons) to come for lunch. It was so good to meet her family, but was a little challenging because her husband and youngest son do not speak too much English. Thanks to Matthew’s nearly constant chatter, the meal was very enjoyable and I think everyone was fairly comfortable. After lunch Steve suggested we show them the elementary computer lab. He set the whole family up on basic programs like Kidpix to show them how things work. Grace kept saying, “This is a day of history.” None of them had ever seen or worked on a computer before. And they probably never expected to. We stayed about an hour. As we left, Grace told me this was a day they would never forget. And yet again we are slapped in the face with the huge chasm between American life and Kenyan life.

We did stay awake to usher in the new millennium. First time in 10 years that we have stayed up to see a new year in. We did consider doing our usual bedtime and just greeting it in the morning, but decided the grandkids, someday, would think that was pretty boring! We gathered with friends and played games and visited until the big moment. Then we prayed for this new millennium and we were home and in bed by 12:30 am! We let the boys stay up too, and they are still recovering from it!

January 1 is always Community Day in Kijabe with games and fellowship and a big meal together. What a wonderful time it was! It started at 8 am, but we didn’t. I think we finally joined in around noon. We got there in time for the races. Steve and Matthew entered the men’s 3-legged race and I’m proud to say completed the whole race without falling! No trophies though. Our friend Grace came in 3rd in the water-balancing race. Women had to balance a cup full of water on their heads and run 100 meters. Not only was she 3rd, but she was first among the Kikuyu. The women who took first and second place were Luya and they always carry things on their heads! Then, Grace and I entered the 3-legged women’s race. I am proud to say that we also completed the race without falling! I thought we were doing pretty well till I looked up and saw all sorts of people passing us! And I discovered that Grace is Very competitive. She kept saying, “We must go faster!” Unfortunately I couldn’t oblige her.

Truly a memorable day! The meal was a typical African meal of rice and stew, but they asked all the missionaries to bring desserts, so that made it a little more multi-cultural! We had a new year’s challenge from one of the local pastors and prayed together and it was just a great day.

Now things gear up for the next term. The kids all arrive on January 10 and school starts on the 11th. I just got a huge shipment of books for the library which was fun, but translates into a lot of work! I have one bulletin board up and my ideas for the others. So a busy week ahead. This is an extra long vacation because they didn’t want the kids traveling too close to the new year in case there were problems, but it has flown by! We do feel rested and refreshed and by next Monday we will be ready to see all of the kids again.

During this fresh new time I hope that God will refresh and renew each of you for the journeys that lie before you. Our love and prayers go with this,

Nancy Peifer