The Foster’s journey through 2008

The “Year-End News Letter” has changed dramatically over the last 30 years, from letters in the post to faxes to emails. In an attempt to move gracefully into the 21^st century I will offer this one to my friends and family as the latest in technological wizardry “THE BLOG”. If you are reading this, you have found my site and can now keep up with my adventures and musings from around the world. And they say you can’t teach an old girl new tricks.

 

So here it is, 2008 in a blog-shell.

 

Travels – Alan and I spent quite a bit of time living out of our suitcases this last year. We visited churches in and around South Africa and caught up with worship leaders and teams who have become colleagues and friends. Our biggest adventure was our trip to Lagos, Nigeria in May. It was challenging in many ways. The city defies description. 15 million people with very little infrastructure, sporadic water and electricity, crumbling roads, chaotic traffic and in 10 days we saw only one traffic light that worked. Despite the challenges, the people we met were remarkable, full of hope and love and generosity. The conference was a success and we can’t wait to go back.

In June Alan took off for a 2 week trip to Malawi and Tanzania. It was a ‘roughing it in tents’ kind of trip which he loved. The conference venue was a reed boma and most of the delegates slept under the stars. We are learning more about Africa and how to take what we know and mix it with all we need to learn to be able to share in a new kind of multi-cultural worship for the churches we are involved with. We love what we are doing and thank God for this amazing opportunity.

 

Jesse and Hannah – Jesse finished his honours degree in English from WITS in November. He is currently looking at pursuing his dream of becoming a game ranger (a very well read and eloquent one) and should have some direction on that shortly. His passion for writing amazed us all and I wish I could have published his final portfolio. It was so typically “Jesse”. Funny, irreverent, clever and sensitive – all with a casual air that made for easy reading.

Hannah really came into her own in her second year studying jazz at Tshwane University. She played in several bands including an all girl jazz quartet and is now booking her own choice of musos for gigs she gets. She got involved in the Pretoria Vineyard and headed up their worship team last year as well. Her 21^st birthday was a musical celebration in true Hannah style, a beautiful spring night in the garden with friends and family. She spent New Year’s Eve in Paris and then a week skiing in Austria with the family she lived with this last year. God’s provision for Hannah never ceases to amaze me.

 

And Now – We are looking forward to 2009. We have lots of exciting things planned so keep checking the blog to see where we are and what we are up to. I am hoping to figure out how to get video on to this site so you can get a real feel for the places we go. It’s the only way to capture the sounds we get to hear and bring them home.

 

Keep in touch

 

Carroll (in Africa)