Tea with Jesus

Finally, after a ten day wait… We. Moved. In.  We checked out of our hotel before 8:30 in the morning and took a taxi over to our new home.  We decided the rare blue sky overhead was a good omen, and the taxi driver told us to take a picture of it because it will be a long time before we see it again.  Before we spent ten days in a 12x12 room, I had no idea how much I take a home for granted.  Little things like a refrigerator, an oven (sorry, a cooker over here) or a sink become much pined for when they not available.  Even though our refrigerator is the size of a large dorm fridge, and our cooker would not hold half of a Thanksgiving turkey, they are now finally available to us whenever we want.  Toby is also starting to perk up, too, in our home.  The past ten days without a proper spot to throw his precious Kong/toy has taken its toll on him and he is making up for lost time.  After the three of us started to settle in yesterday morning, the deliveries began.  As Toby and I returned from a quick walk around the block, we found the heating oil truck was parked out front delivering fuel to keep us warm.  Next, the Asda groceries were delivered right around the same time as the cable guy came to install our cable and internet.  Gordon, the cable guy, started getting visibly frustrated with the daft American and her inability to comprehend the UK television remote control until I buttered him up and told him that I had great-uncle named Gordon and thanked him for being so patient with me as I learned a foreign system.  He at least stopped walking away from me towards the door and one-last-time went over the buttons.  In the midst of all this, a red-head with tattoos for skin showed up and began painting the entire downstairs.  With the scent of new paint wafting in the air, we baked our gluten free pizza and settled in on the couch.  Sunday morning found us walking to church.  The first impression that struck us both was the elaborate architecture.  Flying buttresses soared in between music notes that were pumped out of an antique pipe organ.  We found our seats in pews built to make sure you don’t get too comfortable, let alone fall asleep.  We settled in as best we could onto our plank and listened to the service.  At one point, they invited the children up front to have the day’s gospel broken down into child-friendly language.  They were told that Jesus was so friendly that he would even have tea with people that most people didn’t like.  You could see the visibly shocked faces of the children as it registered with them that if Jesus drank tea with undesirable people, then that meant they would also have to drink their tea with people they don’t like.  Dave and I, too, had marked expressions on our faces, but it was more to do with learning about Jesus drinking tea.  However, it should be considered par for the course, as it seems everyone drinks tea all the time here, just like everyone drives on the wrong side of the road, and everyone is welcoming to the two Americans and their wee dog as they find their own niche in Belfast.