So this is Christmas, and what have we done? What we have done is set a small Mennonite family in a largely Muslim country trying hard not to be sad about being away from home during this special season. And so we set out to do the best we could. Matthew got the Lego set he was wishing for (unbeknownst to him we bought the set in Rome and schlepped it all the way through Greece to Turkey). We walked into the St. Anthony Cathedral where they were having a Christmas Mass, and then attended two services, one in Turkish and the other in English. Both services were meaningful and it was a comfort singing Christmas Carols in any language. And then, to top it all off, we splurged (and I mean splurged) on a fancy Christmas dinner at the Four Seasons Hotel (thanks to Bernie's parents). (Thanks also to Elaine's Mom for teaching her how to use all the different forks.) In retrospect, it wasn't as hard a day as we were dreading but it did help to be in a country where the minarets call out prayers five times a day and decorated Christmas trees and funny Santas are the exception and not the norm.
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