Three Came Home

I just finished a great book called Three Came Home by Agnes Newton Keith. It is the biographical account of a woman who survived a Japanese internment camp during WWII in Borneo. She and her fellow prisoners, including her husband and son, went through starvation, disease, and beatings among other things.

Being in Singapore I have learned more about the Pacific side of WWII and how people were treated in POW/internment camps in this area. I enjoyed the book in the sense that it was well written and a first hand account of what war can do to innocent people. It was hard to read the content of what Mrs. Keith went through, but I think it's better to know what really happened.

The biggest impression it made on me was that Mrs. Keith drew closer to God through this horrible time in her life. It would have been so easy to curse God and fall away, but she did not. Her faith grew throughout her 3 1/2 years in prison. While in captivity she shared her camp with nuns and she noted that they were happy because they had all they needed: God. (p. 95)

Her last few sentences are as follows:

Tears come. This is our son. He lives. God has been good.

Plus her thoughts on war and her enemies is insightful. Here is a quote from a side note at the beginning of her book:

The Japanese in this book are as war made them, not as God did, and the same for the rest of us. We are not pleasant people here, for the story of war is always the story of hate; it makes no difference with whom one fights. The hate destroys you spiritually as the fighting destroys you bodily.

On the last page of her book she makes this statement:

I believe that: While we have more than we need on this continent [N. America] and others die for want of it, there can be no lasting peace. When we work as hard in peacetime to make this world decent to live in, as in wartime we work to kill, the world will be decent, and the causes for which men fight will be gone.

I think this book is worth a read.

Bird Park

Since we have been in Singapore we have only been to the bird park a handful of times. (Probably since we don't have a membership.) Today we went back and enjoyed a wonderful morning with some friends among the birds.

The three older girls (Savannah, Sophie and Elyse) checking out the pelicans.

The beautiful Waterfall Aviary

This is the best we could do with having the older girls pose for a picture. 2 out of 3 looking at the camera, not bad.

Where to next?

The Water at VivoCity

Elyse and I go to VivoCity/Harbour Front every week for Gymboree, but Elyse hasn't played in the water there since we moved to Singapore. Today we (the three of us) went with the agenda of looking at double strollers and playing in the water. I found a double stroller that could work for a mere S$735 (I think we might go another route) and Elyse enjoyed playing in the water. She seems all grown up since the last time she was there. You can click here to see her at 14 months playing in the water.

To Cate From Elyse

Bollywood!

Last night Toby and I went to a musical extravaganza at the Esplanade Theatre called The Merchants of Bollywood. It was amazing! For those who don't know, Bollywood is like the Hollywood of India in the sense that it makes tons of movies. Bollywood has it's own style that has become a style all of its own. It is hard to describe. It's bright, colorful, and energetic to say the least. It's hard to believe that the dancers were standing, let along dancing, at the end of the show. I wouldn't have made it past the first Act. This performance paid tribute to different Bollywood films and also told a real life story of one choreographer who left her hometown- with the disapproval of her grandfather- to pursue her dreams in Bollywood. I recommend you check out the link and see some of the videos yourself.

I had such a good time. I had a smile on my face most of the performance and Toby did too. The crowd even got into it by clapping along. Thank you Mom and Dad for the great Christmas gift.

Friends at the Zoo

It is so great to have wonderful friends here in Singapore with kids very close to Elyse's age. It makes it so much fun to go out and about- of course it can cause drama too, but that's just part of having friends at any age.

Today we went to the zoo with our friends. This blog is focusing on our little wild animals (not the ones in the zoo).

Elyse with an Elephant mask

Elyse and Levi checking out the tigers

Caleb admiring the pygmy hippos

All of our "wild animals" (minus Miriam)

Gotta love the Ben and Jerry's Cow

I love the expression on Levi's face- pure joy

Elyse and Sofie

Hugs ( or cuddles for those from S. Africa)

Chicka-Chicka Boom Boom

For Christmas Toby and I got Elyse a play post office. Included in it were 2 people; one named Mr. Percy and one named Mrs. Morris. Elyse calls the man Percy, but when I asked her what the lady's name was she said Mrs. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom and the name stuck. (For those who don't know, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom is a book about the alphabet.)

In addition to sharing a cute story, I wanted to show you Elyse's chipped tooth. If you can't see it in the first picture, check out the second one.

Mrs. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom: