Starting up

53 - That's this year's number represented by the student body at Black Forest Academy this school year.  Fifty-three different countries they've lived in and their families have served or are serving in. Below are pictures of this year's Seniors - my population - waiting to parade in for opening ceremonies.   

I love working with these kids and we're off to a very positive start.

This year's theme banner "Grace Alone" with our friend Rob Shuman addressing the audience as the new Assistant Principal. 

I've moved - my new classroom before the action starts

Carl on opening day

One of our frequent rainbows as seen from the apartment window.

But we do miss the folks back home.  Here's a shot of our kids and grandkids when we were in the same continent/country/state.

Grandma & Isaiah

Visiting with our FBCN small group.

Diane runs into BFA'ers in Wheaton.

Isabelle in Grandma's lap and enjoying her first birthday's cake.

One month of the year.

For one month of the year, give or take a few days, we do our Home Assignment. In that brief time we try to re-connect with families (large on both sides and including our own kids and grandkids), churches that support us or show an interest in our ministry (six this time through) and friends and individual supporters. Additionally this year Diane needed to spend five days of these 30 in Wheaton, IL for leadership meetings. We also try to knock off doctor and dentist visits and other practical needs best met while in the USA. We also try to expand our support base by inviting new folks to partner with us. None of this gets done anywhere near perfectly as it's too much to do in the time allotted. That being said, it is exciting to have the opportunity to boast on God and what He is doing in areas of our ministries. And it sure is great to be local grandparents for a few weeks.

Grad 2011

Graduation at BFA is always a wonderful time but also a bittersweet time. Each graduating senior is honored with a personal tribute and a verse from Scripture (makes it a long but touching ceremony). The bittersweet comes as the realization becomes truly real that within a day most of these kids will have scattered across the globe and will not see each other agian for a considerable time.

Seniors lined up awaiting the big moment!

The Class of 2011

Parents, students, staff, and friends crammed together trying to say goodbye

The Korean class members and their families

One of our seniors saying goodbye to her dorm parents (where we have subbed)

Shots from our recent M-trip:

Getting acquainted with some of our kids in China ∇∆

Walking around one of China's prosperous city centers∇∆

Making camp∆ Lunch∇

Some of the younger crowd ∆

Some of the local buffalo∇∇

A round of "SPUD" ∆

Adventures on the Dragon River∆∇

Our raft-mate Abby ∇

It's fresh, it's genuine, it's what's for lunch∇

Famous noodle breakfast seated on comically small chairs ∇∆

Lunch prep ∇

Breaking camp ∇

Tea tasting ∇

Ice cream break in another Southeast Asian city∇

Family transport∆

Eager students at English Learning Center ∆

Third quarter at BFA has flown by and we should be about the business of updating his blogsite. It has been one of those seasons that are so busy that it's hard to remember all that has happened. We both work through the week and try to take some down time on Saturdays - this is a new sort of discipline for us - sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.

Diane continues to juggle a whole lot of plates (an idiom meaningful to those of a certain age who remember the talents exhibited on The Ed Sullivan Show). The Brazil English Camp came off well. Participants and staff sent along encouraging reports and Diane was able to not travel there due to a good staffing situation on the ground in Brazil - a blessing as we look ahead over the next few months. Belarus, Moldova, Switzerland, Germany are all definite camps for this summer. With a team of volunteers one could run in Portugal as well. Hiring staff for language learning centers in a SE Asian city and another for work here in Germany also take up a lot of her time, thought, and cyber traffic all sort of nuanced by time zone differences. Additional administrative teams she belongs to as TeachBeyond continues to grow call on her time and concentration. The work is amazing, however, as God seems to provide for many of these needs in the most timely manner.

Russ' classes continue to go well and as we enter this last quarter of BFA for his seniors he is helping them to think about the transition they'll face. A challenging part of this is the fairly widespread belief of many of is students that transition is not that big a deal for them. Experience with past kids demonstrates that it can be a big deal, a deal, or not so much of a deal for BFA grads - you just don't know beforehand who will suffer greatly and who will sailing through relatively easily. So framing transition in a way that kids don't just ignore the "warnings" or fail to attempt the work of leaving and of going is a challenge.

Transition happens with all high school kids. They leave high school and go off to work or college. Some live with parents, some live on their own. Some succeed, some fail in "launching". BFA kids leave high school (a place where relationships are intense, safe and constant) they leave each other, literally overnight as they board planes to various continents and futures, they leave their sets of culture (where their parents work, where they go to school, the non-English languages they speak), they often don't get to go home for the weekend or even Thanksgiving, and they go (usually) to North America which can be extraordinarily "different" to them as familiar as it is to the average North Americans. They have often "transitioned" before but this one can be a real big one. Some succeed, some fail. We'd like to contribute to their success.

We're also quite focused on our upcoming trip as leaders of an M-trip to China. It is an exciting opportunity to take 17 kids to work with 60 kids at a school in one of China's largest cities. We'll (all 3 Kraines') also stop off in the city of the above mentioned language learning centers for two days on the way home to Germany. We both sense that this trip is under spiritual pressure. There have been a series of frustrations along the way (we know that all M-trips experience them but this seems a bit odder) -financial, travel arrangements, team cohesion and coming together - all seem a few beats off. Pray for this. Pray also for our health. Diane especially is dealing with very painful sciatica (still after 10 physical therapy sessions) and Russ' back is also a bit problematic. So, yeah, please pray.

The holiday season has passed and we’re back into the rhythm of normality. It was great to have a break. Our Hannah spent three weeks here in Germany and we were able to confirm first hand that she’s doing well with her new life at university. It must have been a bit of a shock for her to walk off the plane in Zurich (wearing flip-flops, of course) into snow after leaving the sun and warmth of southern California. We enjoyed a white Christmas together.

Above: our little tree. Below: gift time.

Break was not especially event filled and that was just what we needed. One day trip to a French Christmas Market with friends and we did get to spend a few days in Switzerland – one of those days we went sledding as a family. Mom and Dad are still working through the back pains from that but we had a blast together.

Strasbourg, France at Christmas Market time.

I know that might sound like we get around with all the country name -dropping, but today our very ordinary errands took Russ through three countries in and hour and a half. Most of the groceries were obtained in town but the cheapest gas is over the border in Switzerland and a coupon worth the equivalent of $9 convinced him to stop at a French “superstore” for printer paper, split peas, and some inexpensive pork chops – we have no idea why they were the equivalent of $1 – that’s an unheard of price! Guess what’s for dinner tomorrow.

Above: Street view in Grabunden Alps. Below: geared up for a sled run.

Another popular vacation activity:

Classes are going well for Russ as his seniors begin the five-month slide to graduation. Diane’s work keeps expanding with new ideas, initiatives, and opportunities to use language learning as a tool to open doors for the Kingdom. Amazing things are happening with her ministry! Over the next few months we’ll have the additional task and privilege of preparing with our team (17 students, 5 staff) for the spring M-trip to southern China – we’re getting all our shots Tuesday. If you’re curious on details, check out our monthly newsletter. (If you’d like to subscribe, send us an email at rkraines@teachbeyond.org).

"Our" castle in the mist - as was much of Christmas break.