A Tender Tropical Christmas

Since moving to Indonesia, I have developed a love hate relationship with Christmas music.  It is hard to put into words the feelings that arise within this expatriate at the little stands that are built all over the town, and rural areas that blare and I mean BLARE Christmas music for at least 4 weeks.  We hear it all, secular, Christian, pop, traditional, English, Indonesian and it is the loudness that makes it mostly obnoxious.  So hearing “use to be” favorites, played in this manner lends to this love hate attitude.  Another emotion that Christmas music drums up in me, is nostalgia.  “I’ll be home for Christmas”, seems like a lie……but then it gets to the truth, “If only in my dreams.”  Sigh.  Nostalgic to the core.  Yet, music does help to get one in the spirit……as putting up the tree in hot humid weather seems out of place.  And holiday baking, is simply not holiday baking without some good Christmas music to set the atmosphere.  Also, the music points to why we do what we do at Christmas……but this year, we broke all traditions and enjoyed a truly tropical Christmas.
Oh the tree did go up and the lights did twinkle.  And children dreamed of special gifts.  Goodies were baked and calories consumed.  And the music did play. 
Then suddenly there was no more music.
Except the rhythm of the pounding surf.  Ever playing it’s harmony and melody.  As 2 days before Christmas we packed up “everything but the kitchen sink” (said Darron) and headed to the beach on the Pacific Ocean.  The boat driver assured us that if we left early in the day that the waves would not be tall.  This is the season of big waves.  When we merged out of the bay into the vast ocean, the boat driver also commented that this was the place where he could turn around.  So I knew that my fear was validated…..that this journey could be dangerous.  He went on to say that the waves were not too big, as they were only crashing half way up the cliffs not all the way to the top. 


When we arrived at the beach, a group was leaving.  Then it was just us.  For three nights and parts of four days…..no one, but us.  After hours of stringing tarps and setting up the kitchen area and the parents and little guys tent (Nathaniel, 8 ,slept by himself in his own tent each night)…..Aubrey and Andrew had their hammocks (complete with tarps and mosquito nets) set up in 15 minutes or less.  They shook their heads in disbelief at our complicated lives and were proud of their simple compact comfortable sleeping accommodations.  The comment was made, “What are we going to do here for 3 days with no computers or internet?”  “Exactly, my child, exactly!!!  We are going to listen to a new song and reconnect and be a family and tell stories and explore and eat and play games and relax and read.”





The waves were quite strong over the next 3 days equaling fun in the surf along the shore, but poor conditions for snorkeling or trying to catch bigger waves over the corral.  So we spent many hours being reflective, quiet, reading, eating, etc.  We forgot dry kindling and lighter fluid or paper, so as much as we coxed and coughed over smoking fires we couldn’t get a good fire lit.  Smore’s were made over the little camp stove and nobody went hungry or cold!





I read a whole book for my own leisure and read out loud for hours to the younger boys.  They would coax me to read longer, offering to play with my hair.




One wonderful thing about this beach is that there is a source of fresh water.  It is a short hike into the jungle from the camping spot and the pipe makes a perfect place for filling up a bucket to run through the filter for cooking and drinking.  Also for bathing.  Or throwing whole buckets of water at your brothers.



Christmas eve came and we went out onto the beach in the dark and took in the stars and shot off Roman candles.  And when the noise of the fireworks stopped, with just the ocean noise and the back ground jungle sounds…..it was a “Silent Night”.
Christmas day came.  It all felt like just another day in the tropics, but at the beach.  We missed our family and our friends and though we had a great time……it was somewhat wonderful to break tradition and somewhat not right.


Our last night of camping it poured rain and our tarp leaked.  We packed up with storm clouds on the horizon and wondering if the waves were too rough for the boat driver to come and pick us up.  With no way to communicate with him, we decided we better just assume we were leaving and the worst case scenario would be, that it would all get set back up.  About 15 minutes after the last of our gear was placed in the pile to go, we spotted a very tiny boat coming around the jagged rocks in the distance.  It would disappear in between swells.  I thought “surely that is not our boat?”  It was.  The man hollered for us to load our gear as the wind was coming.  Hurriedly we loaded into the boat and roared through the channel where months before one of our fellow teachers almost drowned. As life jackets offered minimal comfort in the powerful sea and clinging to the plank board seat, we pushed through to civilization.  My son, who loves roller coaster rides, yelled above the pelting rain and tossing surf, “We are complete idiots”.  Nothing like a little adrenaline for some Christmas memories.  “Dashing through the waves, with a 40 horse power engine, screaming all the way……”
Upon arriving home we had to set up all the gear to dry…..yes you know the routine!  In the tropical heat, it was all dry within 2 hours.  Oh how nice those hot showers felt and our beds.  Sleep In Heavenly Peace.
And that my friends is how we spent our tender tropical Christmas.  Would I have traded it for a tender Tennessee Christmas?  Probably.  Yet to step away from the busyness of life and reconnect as a family with only nature as our distraction, was our gift from God this season.  Blessing to one and all!