What We Do With Our Time

As newly-married kids in Waco, Texas, we discovered the perfect form of entertainment, per our lovely friends Cameron and Wendy Moore’s suggestion: we began reading aloud to each other, and Treasure Island, a copy received as a wedding gift, was our first. (Daniel soon discovered I inherited my mother’s affinity for falling asleep within seconds; this remains the single challenge to a most beloved activity in our home. I am not only capable of falling asleep while he reads to me, but also while I read to him). The time of day does not particularly matter.

Since we have arrived in Adwa, we have read the following books aloud to each other. We are currently reading Jane Austen’s Mansfield Park.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, J.K. Rowling

A Wrinkle in Time, Madeleine L’Engle

A Wind in the Door, Madeleine L’Engle

Death in Holy Orders, P.D. James

An Unsuitable Job for a Woman, P.D. James

Murder Room, P.D. James

The Secret Adversary, Agatha Christie

Postern of Fate, Agatha Christie

Peter Pan, J.M. Barrie

The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games 2: Catching Fire, Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games 3: Mockingjay, Suzanne Collins

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Kidnapped, Robert Louis Stevenson

The Wind in the Willows, Kenneth Grahame

This affinity for sleep, restlessness and daydreaming while being read to (I have an exceedingly patient husband) has led me to believe I am a kinesthetic learner. I must be moving; my hands must be active in order for my mind to be. So this has been the remedy:

Crocheted to the Harry Potter series, along with a pair for my sister-in-law Lindsay, not pictured. 

Sewn to The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, for our fellow American and Filipino volunteers in Adwa: Doug and Bahereh, and Uziel.

Crocheted to Murder Room and a podcasted sermon (Slave to Child) by Rev. Steve DeNeff, for our little neighbor and friend, Meron.

Stuffed and sewn to The Wind in the Willows, for our living room window. Pictured clockwise from left: Ohio, Indiana, Ethiopia, Texas. Blame the wind for Ohio and Ethiopia’s being backwards.

…and many more.