The Lows and Highs of Tembagapura

We've had our ups and downs over the past couple months.  Here's a recapitulation.

Low:
Our quiet little neighborhood got totally invaded.  :-(  Normally there are no cars on our street.  Yeah, well check out what happened in February.

How many cars can you count in our front yard?  :-(   It was like this every day in February.
 (Yeah, my wife was pissed.)

But things finally calmed down and things are almost back to normal.  :-)

High:
Enjoying our front porch.  My wife has a thing for porches, and sitting out on them.

Note the awesome crate being used as a footstool.  My wife loves rustic crates.

High:
We walked down to the village of Banti a couple weeks ago.

Communities of panners.

Local kids recognize Leslie from her volunteering at their health clinic.

The tailings river.

And we found some friends from the Baliem Valley!

High of Highs!:
We finally got to do some real, high, alpine hiking today!!!   Woohoo!   Check it out!  :-)

The Dog's Tooth in the background.  It looks like it's really close but that spire in the background 
("The Dog's Tooth") is really like about a half mile away.  It's really big.  Hard to tell in the photo though.

The Fairy Lakes in the background.  Incredible views.

There were some heated arguments about what our actual elevation was and whose GPS was better, but we all agreed that our highest point was over 15,000ft.  Woohoo!

An ode to Grandma Rosemary

Grandma Rosemary Sangster; September 14,1928 -  February 18, 2012 

Last month I had the opportunity to travel back to the States on a last minute mission to re-certify my WEMT. Also during this time I spent some good time with family in San Diego.
One memorable visit was with my Grandma Rosemary. Grandma has been defying death for the past three years in some pretty incredible ways! When D & I left for Indonesia in July '11 we said 'good bye', thinking that was our last time to be with her on earth. However, Grandma had different plans! She clung to life and allowed me one last visit before she passed. The following is an interaction between myself and Grandma on one of her last lucid days:

L: Grandma, it's almost Valentine's Day!


G'ma: What?!


L: Valentine's Day! Do you have any plans for the day of love?


G'ma: Everyday is a day of love for me.


L: Well said Grandma... 


    (Grandma smiles big at me and I am reminded of the years of joy and love she has shared with me and others through her beautiful smile.)

L: You still have a smile that can light up the room Grandma!


G'ma: Awe, thank you! I try to always stay positive.


G'ma: That's true. You have been my role model in that.


    (Grandma's smile grows bigger and her eyes fill with tears... mine do too.)

A few days after this conversation, Grandma Rosemary was no longer able to talk, laugh or even smile.
The things in life that were most valuable to her were no longer accessible to her on this earth. She couldn't stay here with us any longer. She will be missed...