Family News: Our First Month in the USA
About this time last month, we said our farewells and boarded our USA-bound flight from London to begin preparing for seminary. Since arriving four weeks ago, we've experienced incredible hospitality and have already met some amazing people.
A lot has happened since we landed. For our first week, we stayed in Jacksonville, Florida with friends (the Garrisons) we met at St James Church in England many years ago. They kindly invited us to stay with them, where we got to enjoy some fishing, shooting, squirrel hunting (yup, you read that right!), playing football, and attending their local church.
After soaking up the fun and much-needed rest, we said our goodbyes and drove seven hours in a rental car across three states—starting in sunny Florida, passing through Georgia, and arriving in a very humid Alabama. We received a warm welcome from Beeson Divinity School and friends at Covenant Presbyterian Church (whom we had met earlier this year in Hounslow, London).
As I write this, we're in our apartment in Homewood, a suburb of Birmingham, Alabama. We're still figuring things out, learning heaps, asking lots of questions, encountering new situations, and adjusting to everything. It's fair to say we've not quite found a rhythm yet—the new normal, whatever that's eventually going to look like—but we're slowly getting there.
We've been warmly embraced by the Beeson Divinity School community and are quickly building a community of our own. It was amazing that the Dean, his wife, some current students, and faculty dedicated an entire day to give us a hand moving in. Having the Dean help us assemble the bunk beds was humbling and gave me my first glimpse that Beeson is a special place that prepares servant-hearted ministers of the gospel.
The seminary itself is located on the beautiful Samford University campus, which is very commutable from our apartment—I think I may have even found a pleasant, wooded trail leading directly onto campus!
Vic
I'll write more about my studies and classes in a separate post. They began last week and there's so much to share, but for now, I'd much rather you heard about Simi and the girls.
I'll quickly share this, though: in a pre-semester class I took to help blow off the cobwebs and get the wheels turning again, we began in prayer accompanied by reading Psalm 119:89–104. Amongst other things, I was thrilled that students then dived straight in by reading and discussing C.S. Lewis's classic 1944 preface to St Athanasius' On the Incarnation. The preface is also known as On the Reading of Old Books. If you enjoy theology but aren't quite sold on the idea of reading old books, start here—you won't regret it.
Simi
Simi's been busy! She's been working hard to make sure the girls are settled and making our apartment feel like home, all while learning to drive on the other side of the road and finding all the ingredients for Indian food, cake, and a proper cup of tea. She's doing a fantastic job—our place feels more like home each day thanks to her efforts. Her friendly and sociable nature has also already drawn lots of new friends our way.
Our friends in Florida, new church friends here in Birmingham, and the community at Beeson have blessed and helped us in so many practical ways. They've demonstrated genuine Christian love and hospitality in deeply tangible ways.
Pray that Simi continues to grow in God's grace, make community, and finds joy and rest in Jesus.
Amelia
For Amelia, leaving the UK was difficult. She struggled to imagine life in the USA away from family, friends, and all that is familiar to her. Upon arrival, the first week in particular was challenging for her. She found it somewhat difficult to accept that this was her new reality for the next few years. Naturally, these are big changes to her life. As parents, Simi and I get it. We think she was feeling a little lost, somewhat isolated, and mostly overwhelmed by the pace and scale of change to all our lives. It's understandable.
But thankfully by God's grace, things began changing quite quickly the moment she began making new friends. Their interest in her accent and Amelia's willingness to engage socially, has quickly made her a bunch of new friends. In addition, regularly having people over from local churches and the seminary has made her feel somewhat more connected.
Last week, we enrolled Amelia into the local middle school. Her sixth-grade classmates have made her feel welcome, and she's already had a few of them over for homework. We also signed her up to play with the local girls' football (soccer for our American friends) club.
Last week, I asked Amelia to journal a couple of sentences. This is exactly what she wrote without me editing any bits:
"My name is Amelia. I'm 11 years old, and my birthday is on December 27th. I enjoy football (not American football), writing and reading, friends, playing, and dogs, family, and reading the Bible. Some things which are different to England and America are that everything (at least most things) are bigger. The cars, shops, roads, houses, and food portions! People in America are very friendly, and most people will call people who they respect Sir or Ma'am. Somethings I miss are my friends, english accents, terry's orange chocolate and jaffa cakes being in most shops, our family and I do miss my school a bit. I recently started Homewood Middle School. It is BIG. Over 1,200 children in the whole school! Everyone is really friendly, and when I went to my first football practice, many children asked me to say bottle of water in my accent! In England, houses are made to keep the heat in, because usually, England isn't very hot for very long. In America (specifically speaking of Alabama) I went outside, and it actually HURT. But, at least there's air conditioning everywhere; without it, I might not be writing this, but be in the fridge. I miss you all, come to visit soon. Thank you for reading this!"
Pray that Amelia continues to read her Bible in the midst of business, and that she would make good friendships.
Grace
Grace is just happy to be here. She's getting to enjoy everything she always dreamed of. The unhealthy quantity of ice in the drinks, the swimming pool, the noisy cicadas, and all the dogs she's getting to hug. She's embracing it all and good for her. Simi and I are delighted to watch her adapt so quickly.
Like Amelia, we've enrolled Grace into a local elementary school. Grace is the tallest and oldest kid in her fourth-grade class (on account of her being born in the middle of September). It's a wonderful school, within walking distance of our apartment. Grace has also made some good friends and comes back with new stories each day. Her teacher taught in England under the Fulbright Scholarship some years ago, so was able to relate to Grace in a special way.
Next up for Grace is guitar classes and gymnastics (hopefully not at the same time though!).
I also asked Grace to journal a couple of sentences. Without any edits, here is what she wrote:
"My name is Grace. I'll be 10 in September and I have one sister.
The things I've enjoyed since we have gotten to America are snow cones, corn dogs, icee's, that kids get to wear their own clothes to school and just the really friendly people.
Things that I miss back in England are Cadburies, Jaffa cakes, orange chocolate, and my family and friends.
Things that are different are the people, the food, the traditions and celebrations and everything is so much bigger here.
Please pray for me to make friends and to enjoy my school. Please also pray for us to adjust nicely and quickly."
Pray that Grace knows and enjoys the God from whom all blessings flow.
Something to end with
I'll end with the lyrics of the hymn of the doxology. I praise God as I count all the blessings He has poured out on us.
Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;
Praise Him, all creatures here below;
Praise Him above, ye heav'nly host;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost!
Amen.
(Thomas Ken, 1764)
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