 I am married to an odd man. Now, some of you who know my husband are busting out laughing right now, and others who know my husband are highly offended by that statement because you hold Billy in high regard.
Everyone just hold your horses and listen for a second… Last week, we went over to visit our best Peruvian friends, Elva and Alfonso. We went to bake bread, a Peruvian tradition on November 1st. I arrived first as Billy was trying to finish up something at the house and would follow shortly. Upon my arrival, I was greeted with hugs and kisses and the usual jokes and fun. Then Alfonso asks me, “Where is the happiest man in Patarcocha?” I’ll give him that - my husband IS the happiest man in Patarcocha (our village in Peru). I have continued to think about that question/statement from Alfonso for several days. I can’t think of a better way to be known. It is such a testimony to who my husband is. He is always laughing, always smiling, always joking. This weekend, I listened to a lecture by Gary Moon and he talked about how followers of Jesus are “odd -- oddly loving, oddly joyful, oddly peaceful”. My husband is definitely all of those things, and it is evidenced by the fact that people in our village actually describe him in that way! I always knew that he was odd. I’ve spent 27 years with him! Now I’m wishing that I could be as odd as he is. I’m now praying for an odd life…oddly loving, oddly joyful, and oddly peaceful. And I’m praying that one day, others will call me odd, too! |
Laurie DrumIn my USA life, I was a teacher in Texas for 15 years. I was also a professional photographer, a soccer mom, a horsewoman, and the neighborhood hospitality queen. I did "Joanna Gaines farmhouse style" before Chip and JoJo were even a thing - we restored an 1884 Victorian farmhouse in small town Texas and did shiplap walls until I thought I'd go crazy. I taught at NASA, scuba dived with astronauts in training, and studied animals at Sea World for educational purposes. I've tried just about everything, because I have an insatiable need to know if I can do it! Never underestimate a Texas girl in cowboy boots! In 2006, my husband Billy and I became cross-cultural workers (CCWs) with TMS Global. For five years, we served in three rural Quechua Wanca villages in the Andes of Peru. And when I say rural, I mean RURAL - like no potty! I spent my days in Peru learning to live a Quechua lifestyle in a rustic adobe house - cooking Peruvian foods, sewing with Quechua women, raising my chickens and goats and pigs, and planting my gardens. Now I live my life in small town Spain, serving other cross-cultural workers via teaching and training and care, and helping displaced people to navigate their new reality in Europe.
I'm passionate about fostering personal growth, growth in community, and growth in The Kingdom. Walking alongside others and helping them to use their unique design, their gifts and strengths and maximize their abilities to fulfill their God-given purpose - that's what makes my heart sing! Archives
August 2024
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