From Alexandria

From Alexandria

I arrived by train this morning in Alexandria to join a conference in kid session. The conference is with pastor Joy Mallouh from Lebanon and he is teaching about Church if God history and doctrines and how they have developed.

I thought this was a pastor's conference, but the pastors are definitely out numbered by many young adults who are here as apart of an ongoing theological training. It's not like a class, but a deep thinking retreat--they are worshipping with the passion and energy you find in a youth camp or IYC. They have gathered spontaneously to sing after dinner tonight--so reminiscent of our days of leading youth in Tennessee and Alabama; I tweeted a short video a moment ago.

They've now invited me into their circle, so there are more videos to come...

From Revolution Anniversary to Revolt

(AFP)

Yesterday, January 25, marked the two-year anniversary of Egypt's Revolution.

Next week, on February 1, it will be the anniversary of the Football (soccer) massacre in Port Said.  For nearly a year, the victims families and fellow fans have been awaiting "justice" from the court system as more than 70 have been detained in connection to the violence that led to the deaths of more than 70 fans attending the fatal football match.

Early this morning, while tear gas still lingered in the air of Cairo from the efforts of Police and security forces attempting disband the revolutionary demonstrators last night, the courts announced a guilty verdict for the first wave of defendants facing charges.  And 21 of these were found deserving of the death penalty.

While most in Cairo, fans of the soccer club based here, rejoiced at what they called justice for their slain peers, the opposite was occurring in Port Said.  There, they found this to be a decision of regional favoritism and the response has been nothing short of riots.  The prison where the defendants are being held was stormed.  At last report more than 20 are dead in Port Said as clashes continue among communities along the Suez Canal.

There are several points of difficulty through this situation:
- the mob mentality of getting justice by force
- the embattled court and justice system in Egypt
- the police who find themselves often just trying to protect themselves
- the government who has to help restore order and lead
- the economy that cannot continue to lose favor of foreign investments
- etc., etc., etc.

As you go to your places of worship and times of prayer this weekend, pray for Egypt.  Pray for peace and pray for leadership that can navigate the difficult transitions of so much chaos.

Egypt: Bracing for the "Terrible Two's"?

Today marks the 2nd Anniversary of the Egyptian Revolution that led to the ouster of Mubarak.

Demonstrators went to the central scene of the Revolution, Tahrir Square, as early as last night to celebrate, but also to demonstrate.  Those demonstrating found themselves clashing with security forces and police--either defensively or offensively.  Al Jazeera reported clashes throughout many Egyptian cities last night ahead of when most would march and gather in the iconic city center.

I had to go under Tahrir today to preach for the St. Andrews United Church of Cairo's weekly worship.  On the return trip, I stopped and went out to look at the Square a couple of hours before afternoon prayers; the smell of tear gas lingered in the Metro station, burning my nostrils and eyes, as many paid vendors to buy surgical masks to help.  Coming out into the Square, the skies were clear and so was the air; as you can see by the video, thousands had already made their way to the Square:


Though the Muslim Brotherhood vowed to stay away to prevent the possibility of violence among those with opposing ideals, there are always those looking to start and/or be in the middle of a fight--so the cautious kept their distance so as not to find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time.  Demonstrators representing various opposition groups, like those in the National Salvation Front, were planning to make speeches and stir the crowd against the Muslim Brotherhood, attempting to seize some momentum for future parliamentary elections.

As we pass the second anniversary of the revolution, the pace of change has been slow and many are growing impatient for change and the desired outcomes of the revolution.  This Al Jazeera video references the cry for "Bread, Freedom, and Social Justice,"



In thinking about this anniversary, the ups and downs of our first year, and the anticipation of stranger things to come, I thought about the child developmental stages and milestones.  According to this Wikipedia article, a few of the Birth to Age 1 motor developmental milestones are:

• Reaches with one hand leading to grasp an offered object or toy.
• Manipulates objects, transferring them from one hand to the other.
• Explores new objects by poking with one finger.
• Uses deliberate pincer grasp to pick up small objects, toys, and finger foods.
• Stacks objects; also places objects inside one another.
• Releases objects or toys by dropping or throwing; cannot intentionally put an object down.
• Beginning to pull self to a standing position.
• Beginning to stand alone, leaning on furniture for support; moves around obstacles by side-stepping.
• Has good balance when sitting; can shift positions without falling.
• Creeps on hands and knees; crawls up and down stairs.
• Walks with adult support, holding onto adult's hand; may begin to walk alone.
• Watches people, objects, and activities in the immediate environment.
• Shows awareness of distant objects (4 to 6 m or 13 to 20 ft away) by pointing at them.
• Responds to hearing tests (voice localization); however, loses interest quickly and, therefore, may be difficult to test formally.
• Follows simple instructions.
• Reaches for toys that are out of reach but visible
• Recognizes objects in reverse
• Drops thing intentionally and repeats and watches object
• Imitates activities like playing drum
• Begins to develop expressive rather than receptive language- child actually responding to what is said to him instead of only receiving and watching the interaction.

and Year 1 (age 12-24 months) motor developmental milestones are:

• Crawls skillfully and quickly.
• Stands alone with feet spread apart, legs stiffened, and arms extended for support.
• Gets to feet unaided.
• Most children walk unassisted near the end of this period; falls often; not always able to maneuver around obstacles, such as furniture or toys.
• Uses furniture to lower self to floor; collapses backwards into a sitting position or falls forward on hands and then sits.
• Enjoys pushing or pulling toys while walking.
• Repeatedly picks up objects and throws them; direction becomes more deliberate.
• Attempts to run; has difficulty stopping and usually just drops to the floor.
• Crawls up stairs on all fours; goes down stairs in same position.
• Sits in a small chair.
• Carries toys from place to place.
• Enjoys crayons and markers for scribbling; uses whole-arm movement.
• Helps feed self; enjoys holding spoon (often upside down) and drinking from a glass or cup; not always accurate in getting utensils into mouth; frequent spills should be expected.
• Helps turn pages in book.
• Stacks two to six objects per day.

And after all this, what lies ahead are those most difficult of early childhood years, the "Terrible Two's"!  If these have been the cute and cuddly years, is the Egypt population ready for the "tantrums," the verbal insistence of getting their own way, increasing independence and all the other challenges of a two-year old?

Now this is simplistic hyperbole, and given tongue-in-cheek, as I imply a connection of the political events of the past two years to that of a child's development in the first couple years.  But, we always have to keep in mind, that Egypt is a diverse and large nation attempting to start over with a lot of "baggage" and move through many deep, difficult issues--democratic development will be slow, clumsy, and involve a lot of trial and error.  Not only that, but it is doing this in the midst of a the "fishbowl" that is the international media that runs from cellphones to satellites to living rooms all over the world, and then embedded or retweeted or blogged by every potential "reporter" and "commentator" (like us)!  Maturity under such conditions is extremely difficult--and meanwhile, millions upon millions of lives hang in the balance waiting for such maturity.

One year completed for us; two years completed since the Revolution; many more years needed to see progress.

Thanks for your continuing interest, thoughts, prayers and support...

Pray for Egypt.

UPDATE: 01-26-2013 morning after...

Link to local newspaper re: deaths throughout Egypt

CNN out of control clashes in Suez

CNN Video from Tahrir 01-25-2013 night:

Pics & Thoughts from Keli's Beirut Trip

It is so hard for me to put into words the experience I had on my trip to Lebanon.  It was an amazing experience as I gained many new friends and learned about some excellent ministries in which the Church of God is involved.

On this trip I stayed with the Melki family (Bassem, Roula, Samantha and Brandon).  Even though this was a "work trip" they made it feel more like a vacation.  They have a warm and relaxing home and they made me feel part of the family.  They treated me to many wonderful foods, sites and lots of great conversation.  We roasted chestnuts over the fire, visited the mountains and had snowball fights, and witnessed many weather events together that I have not seen in a very long time (rain, lightning, hail, sleet, snow and even a tornado!)

Roula works for Heart for Lebanon and I was able to experience many of the regular ministry activities that they would do in a week.  I helped to sort clothes for their clothes distribution room, I went to visit Iraqi refugees who receive assistance from H4L, I attended a Bible study with Iraqi women, and participated in one of the food distribution days where they also had a medical clinic available.  It was so good to see that the help being giving is not just for physical needs, but they also meet the emotional needs of the family.  There was so much love, respect and encouragement given to each person and I believe that was perhaps the most important part of their ministry.  I worked alongside several of their many staff members and each one is passionate and gifted in their respective ministries.  H4L also has locations in Bekaa Valley and southern Lebanon where they assist many Syrian refugees with food, clothes and education.  In Beirut they largely work with Iraqi refugees and train churches to reach out to the Syrian refugees.   This is just a small glimpse of all that they do!




I also visited Cedar Home Orphanage (Church of God gift giving ID #42.40355).  I met with Karim and Rita (the new directors of Cedar Home), Amal (Director of Care) and also Chadi and Joyce Melki (the last directors of Cedar Home for 19+ years).  I was able to get a very good picture of the history, present and future of Cedar Home and I am very excited about this ministry.  Cedar Home houses at-risk girls (currently ages 5-15) and provides them with a Christian home atmosphere and also a wonderful education.  Though they did recently have a 9 day old boy literally left in a basket on their doorstep, usually the children they serve are not orphans but come from split homes or abusive homes.  Amal, as the Director of Care, oversees the everyday life and activities for the girls - but she also has started to reach out and minister to the families of the girls this past year.  Currently Cedar Home houses 15 girls.  They have a very nice building with room for expansion!  Once they are able to complete construction they will have a total of 6 apartments and can house up to 50 girls.  The potential for growth and ministry is huge - especially since they are already doing such an excellent job.

 

As you can see, Beirut is a lovely place with even lovelier people.  Pray for H4L as they seek to serve the refugees all around them and as they start a new youth ministry called T-360 (Transformation 360).  Pray for Cedar Home as they have been transitioning in their new directors and seek to finish the building to give more girls a home.  

Egypt Today

Great opportunities seem to be "par for the course" among international schools.  Among the various activities that our children get to enjoy are the opportunities we have as parents to connect with fascinating people who are also living abroad, as well as the opportunities that we get to share with those parents.

Today, as a welcome back coffee event sponsored by the Cairo American College PTO, we had the opportunity for a presentation entitled "An Overview of Egypt Today."  As you can see from the poster, David Kirkpatrick, chief Middle East correspondent for the New York Times was slated to be the speaker.  Unfortunately, David ran into bit of a conflict this morning and was unable to attend--he did not bail on the gathering all together, but found his own worthy replacement in colleague and rival journalist Jeffrey Fleishman of the Los Angeles Times, also their chief regional correspondent.

I would not classify the presentation as riveting as it was largely a recap of what nearly all of the 180-ish in the room already knew after months and years in Egypt during this tumultuous time; however, once we got to some Q&A, putting that shared-knowledge and experience into the conversation, we were able to get quite an informative and noteworthy presentation.  

Here are a few of my takeaways in understanding where we are, from where we've been, and what that means for where we are headed in Egypt today...

The Muslim Brotherhood and the "opposition" are very "embryonic," for different reasons.  

   The Muslim Brotherhood has actively been building a support base and learning the political ropes for decades, so they don't seem like newcomers--but, they are newcomers to power.  The MB does not have a history of being the decision maker, and it is showing in their first year of power by majority and with new President Morsi.  Though they are trying to work out many new things, they're still really relying on the "old playbook" of the former regime and allowing a lot of government to continue as they were while they (MB) try to figure what's next and how to steer the ship.  For example, early in the leadership of the new President, there was the economic and social presentation of a "new renaissance," which sounded great, but there were not a lot of concrete, measurable steps to take to see such a transformation of the country--and, the economy is in really rough shape, but there seems to be a struggle to implementing the free-market model of the west (which is desired by the MB) with the ongoing nationalistic/socialistic ideals and frameworks that have been inherited and expected among the masses.  So, for all the political experience that the MB has gained through decades of being an outsider to the Mubarak regime, the actual experience of leadership with power is lacking.

   Meanwhile, the "opposition" is not even that far along in the process--they're still trying to find their identity, clearly state their goals, and develop their own support base.  Many youth are disillusioned from the state of the country, and though they may be opposed to what has happened, they're still lacking a clear sense of redirection and purpose.  Similarly, though the Salafi movements have sided with the Muslim Brotherhood in the past Presidential and Constitutional votes, they are still trying to carve out their own separate identity, and in the process they have been splintering into different camps over the past two weeks.  

Where are the military and the police?

   I thought that Fleishman offered the best point of the presentation through this part of the dialogue.  He stated that the military, though remaining in the Constitution as broadly and loosely defined as the "protectors of the state," they are happy with their separation and ability to be antonymous from the political landscape at this time.  Fleishman felt that they got their wish in the controversial Constitution, and they've retreat to hopefully see their stature as the most respected and powerful force in Egypt restored--a stature that definitely took a hit during their temporary term in leadership of the country.

   The police, Fleishman feels are still trying to figure out who they are and to whom they answer.  He said he did a piece on "who are the police" recently in which he interviewed an average police officer, revealing his modest living and pay.  He shared that the officer felt like they were kept at such meager pay that actually encouraged the system of bribes that many fell into, and not feel trapped in until the government brings a change.  In Fleishman's interviews among the poorer residents of Cairo, they complain that the police used to be everywhere even though they didn't do much, but now they are no where to be seen.  Though the economy has to remain a strong focus for the government, maintaining order has to also be an issue--yet, with declining economy, how do you fund a transformation of law enforcement?

Everyone wants Egypt to be stable.

  The US wants Egypt as a stable ally in the Middle East, as well as to continue to honor their treaty with Israel; as a result, though they have made some comments about abuse of power, respecting minority and women's rights, they have really been vague and silent often so as not to appear to be beating up on a country in trouble.  Israel wants Egypt to be stable, and doesn't want to give reason for bad words to be exchanged between the two.  Turkey wants to be the model of democracy and leadership in the Middle East and recognizes that influence with Egypt would go along way toward that; similarly, and conversely, Qatar wants to be viewed as a major axis of power and influence in the region, and so they have willingly been coming to the financial aid of Egypt.  Iran, the Saudis, and others all want Egypt stable, for various reasons, and all are attempting to exercise influence and earn relational favor in the process.

Silver linings versus darker storm clouds.

   The upcoming parliamentary elections this spring could offer some hope.  Most democracies appear to have two ends of the political spectrum, conservative and liberal, that dominate the election issues and ballot boxes.  If, proposed Fleishman, the "opposition" can become that liberal end of the political spectrum, compared to the conservative end of the Muslim Brotherhood, by faring well in the parliament elections, then Egypt could be headed in the direction of a stable democratic system with good debate and opportunity for believe in the political process.  This is a big challenge in the coming months as they have got to organize, clarify, and connect with the populace.  Low voter turn out has worked against the "opposition" over the past year, and it has gotten worse with each vote.

   But, the economy could lead to a worse revolution.  The current hope of economic stability and reform hinges on a loan by the International Monetary Fund (IMF)--that loan is contingent on some aggressive government tax increases, as well as some reduction in subsidies.  The subsidies and the lower prices have been vitally important for the at least 40% of the population who live on less than $2/day.  There is legitimate concern that a loss of subsidies on bread, oil, cooking or transportation fuel could lead to a state of "desperation" among an already struggling populace in the midst of difficult times.  Fleishman pointed out that the January 25 Revolution that led to Mubarak's ouster began with the young people and was eventually aided by the middle class, but that the lower socio-economic class and rural centers of population were not very involved, if at all.  If the lower socio-economic class created a revolution of desperation, Fleishman proposes that it would be much more violent in nature because the goal would not be political.


Where Egypt goes from here is still a question mark.  What we do know is that we were called and sent into Egypt for such a time as this--and as the country continues to figure out their course, we're waiting and watching for what God does within and through us.  Thank you for your continuing interest and support through prayers and encouragement.

Weird Weather for Middle East

Until the sun started shining a couple hours ago, I had wondered if someone failed to read the small print around the Mayan prophecies--you know the statistical disclaimer of "+/- 3 or 4 weeks".

Around here, and the Middle East in general, the weather has been quite abnormal.
UPDATE 01-11-2013, 9:00pm - Eight have died in Egypt due to weather this week.

not filmed in Cairo

For example, Cairo typically sees .5-.75 inch of rain PER YEAR; but in the last 48 hours, we may have received 3 times that much.  Cairo streets are typically covered in dust, and garbage/litter collects along the sides and at nearly every corner--as a result of all the rain, the city is a sloppy mess.  Regular "rainfall" in Cairo (what most other locations would classify as "drizzle") is like spraying mud because it falls through such dusty air--then, it drips off of dustier roofs, trees, etc. -- as joyful as it is to see the rain when it does fall, no one goes out to sing in it.

Over the past week, the temperatures dropped dramatically and the highs stayed in the upper 40's and low 50's -- now for a kid from Nowhere, Indiana who vividly remembers some harrowing blizzards -- that's not "cold", but it's dramatically colder than normal around here.  (Last winter was the coldest for the longest that anyone in Cairo could remember--but was a bit warmer than it's been the past few days).

Phillip Seymour Hoffman knew to
watch for "greenage" in the
movie Twister

The wind has been strong.  Cairo has its share of strong, windy days--the kind of days that can put so much dust and sand in the air that all you see is orange when you look outside.  Due to all the moisture, we didn't get that "orange" effect -- but the wind was strong enough that I began looking for that "green effect".  Those in the midwest and southeast know what I'm writing about--in times of severe thunderstorms and high winds, you watch for the skies to go a bit green and begin thinking about shelter because it may indicate a recipe for a tornado.

Twitter pic of @alinahar

Tornados (from what we've been able to briefly research) are not common in the Middle East, and when they occur, they are the smaller, weaker version that are not necessarily the catastrophic damage producing type that are seen annually in the US.

Yet, Keli and her host family in Beirut witnessed a tornado over the Mediterranean Sea yesterday -- it never came inland, but it was quite an eerie sight for people who have never seen such a thing.  Keli couldn't catch a pic of the water twister, but a few bloggers did.  Keli mentioned the news was talking about the tornado and that no one could ever remember such a weather event.

from BlogBaladi.com

The cold and windy weather that produced the funnel cloud, also led to hail and then snowfall in Beirut; Keli did take the picture of the resulting snow fall.  Beirut had experienced such hard rain and flash flooding over the past week, that inclement weather has kept children out from their schools.

But, through it all, we're doing just fine.  We praise God for shelter--though the villas (like most Middle Eastern structures) are not made to retain heat, we have heaters and blankets and layers of clothing--there are many homeless and poorly-homed people throughout this region that are having a difficult time.  Consider also the many refugees throughout the region--Heart for Lebanon and many other organizations have been distributing heaters, blankets, and winter coats--but countless thousands are still battling the abnormal conditions.

Though we often request your prayers for peace--pray this week for warm, drier air to return to the region; pray for gifts and provisions to be made to assist those with less; and pray the tornados are not seen again!

Keli's pic of the snow in Beirut yesterday

from the Twittersphere

I'm not a social networking kind of guy--maybe that's age, maybe that's me being antisocial--I don't know.  In fact, just writing that led to all sorts of "social network venting" through my fingertips and onto the keyboard--I've just deleted all of that because that's not why I'm writing today.

I'm writing about a couple of great stories that I've read through links "retweeted" or "RT" onto our Twitter feed.

Though I'm not into all of the social networking, I was a bit fascinated with the idea of Twitter and "tweeting" statements, pictures, and even videos out to those who may be interested.  There are so many things that I see/hear on a daily basis here in Egypt or internationally that remind me of someone, or I wish someone else could see/hear with me at the time.  Unfortunately, I cannot always capture an image while driving, or sometimes taking a picture is just not culturally appropriate within the crowds that I find myself--sometimes I can get that into words, and sometimes the moment passes and I let it go.

Twitter has connected us with a few back home in Alabama and throughout the US.  I see their random tweets and know what they're doing.  In the same way, they see and may comment on what we're doing.  But, I also like that I can "follow" certain individuals that I find interesting--and if their Twitter feed is not so interesting, I can simply "unfollow".


A couple of fascinating people I've been following via Twitter are @donaldmiller and @richardbranson --Donald Miller is an author best known for "Blue Like Jazz" and Richard Branson is the media/transportation mogul of the Virgin "empire"-- two really different personalities and worldviews, but fascinating people nonetheless who make me think.  They, like so many on Twitter, often tweet or retweet stories that they read in the news or other periodicals--two of which this week really caught my attention and I not only retweeted them myself, but also wanted to share them here...

First, courtesy of Donald Miller, is an article in Atlantic Monthly on "Creative Aging: the Emergence of Artistic Talents" -- the interesting article outlines how individuals with "decreased or declining" mental capacity can actually experience an emergence of artistic talents.  The same thing that leads to the impairment of the mental faculties also leads to an enhancement of other mental faculties that make creative expression possible.  This article is a part of a small series of articles that inform readers that those with Alzheimers and other forms of dementia have not necessarily lost the means to communicate or remember, but often need to communicate in different forms (see also this article "In Alzheimer's Disease, Maintaining Connection and 'Saving Face'").

Second, courtesy of Richard Branson, is an article from the Telegraph titled, "Emily Whitehead: Girl Whose Cancer was 'Cured' by HIV" -- the fascinating account of how doctors revamped the HIV virus to basically reboot her immune system so that it would fight the leukemia cells that chemotherapy was failing to destroy.  The article further shares how this has been a helpful tactic in fighting leukemia with many other patients as well.  I also read this article of a child battling leukemia in Alabama who has made a special friend in walking alongside of her and her family during their struggle, Bama quarterback AJ McCarron.

What I love about each of these articles is the hope that they convey.  Not just a hope that things may get better, but a hope in how they are getting better.  Each story reminds me of Joseph's words to his brothers when he reveals himself to them after years of deceit and loss: "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." (Genesis 50:20)

Alzheimer's and dementia scare us and threaten to not only take away our loved ones, but to do so in a tragic, lonely way.  But what if there are beautiful means of expression just waiting beyond what we have seen and how we had known before--what if even within this time of loss there was a time of "gaining" a different perspective of knowing our loved one than we could have known before?

Leukemia and cancer, especially among the young, is tragic; likewise, HIV and the destructive nature of AIDS has been a fearful disease.  Is it possible that what we have learned about this threat to life may actually save lives?  

The above stories reference perspectives and applications that were not readily seen--a lot of work, risk, and faith went into seeing and attempting new perspectives to bad situations.  Praise God for the imagination/inspiration, the creative, dedicated, and sacrificial work of so many intelligent and passionate individuals who are working on all these fronts and more that may have not only unlocked possibilities of great hope, but possibilities that turn negatives into positives.

From these, I'm also reminded of Jesus' words in John 10:10,

"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; 

I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full."

Amen.

Worth discussing:
Who are you "following" on Twitter and why?
What good articles or information have you discovered through Twitter recently?

What negative events in your life have you watched be turned to or provide an unexpected good?

For further thinking / discussion:  Patrick Nachtigall, our Three-Worlds team coleader, tweeted out this interesting article from the Christian Science Monitor, "The Coming Evangelical Collapse".  Read this predictive article and then, in keeping with the hope theme above, consider/discuss:

- if the predictions of the author are correct, what good may God bring out of such 'collapse'?  

- what work may need to be done to help catalyze such good results?

- how can you contribute to such positive redirection?

By the way, you can follow us on Twitter @ok2serve

... thanks for your ongoing interest and prayers...

Full of It

For eleven months of the year, we have the huge and wonderful benefit of living in the midst of a beautiful garden. Trees, flowers, and grass are not enjoyed daily by the vast majority of residents in this metropolis--those that do have 'garden' space may only have a little sliver of grass along the side of their building with a few flowers in pots.

Again, we have not only a large garden, but one that is annually recognized by the a local Garden Society when they award our gardener a certificate for his beautiful work throughout the community. There is the garden inside the wall, and outside--outside the wall, we've seen people walk their dogs, city workers take a nap, rugs get enrolled by those needing a place to pray, and kids will rest after playing soccer in the street.

Inside the wall is a wonderful place for more than just our family; CCF regularly holds fellowship or worship events, and we have hosted parties for different groups, as well as past workshops for national pastors.

All this for 11 months of the year--but for one month of the year, the garden is just full of it.

Literally.

Today starts that month of annual seeding and maintenance.  Keep in mind, the Nile valley is the most fertile ground in this spacious desert country of Egypt--but it cannot maintain vegetation without regular irrigation and fertilization. Nearly daily the garden is irrigated to the point of pooling water; and, annually, the ground is broken up, seeded, and covered in truckloads of manure.

For a month.

We've been told by past residents that this is a smelly, fly invested process. :(  For that reason, the process was done in December or 2011 before our arrival in January 2012; otherwise, the kids first month in Egypt would have "stunk" in addition to the other difficulties.

This year, all the flowering shrubs that line most of the inner walkways were completely cut back. I'm not sure what type of shrubs they are, but they regularly produce orange and yellow flower clusters.  They grow quickly and routinely need to be trimmed back from the walks and down, only to return to their original height within a week; however, they have grown too far into the grassy areas of the garden and needed to be drastically cut back during this seeding process. These shrubs hide/house a pair of tortoises who will have to find safe haven among the ferns that are nearer to the walls for a few months while the shrubs slowly grow back.

So, there you have it--beauty sometimes has a cost, and we'll be paying for it over he next month--but from inside the villas where we will do everything we can to keep the smell and flies out.