Loyalty Class

Merry Christmas and thank you to the Loyalty Class! We received your card about five minutes ago.



Friends we have never met read along about our savings program and then sent a card of encouragement and support. That is a very sweet Christmas gift. To the Loyalists, as I now refer to you, please post one of your emails in the comments (I will keep it private and not publish that online) so I can send a personal thanks and an update on how we use your contribution.

For others that might be like you and want to contribute, I plan to put up a permanent link on the sidebar, but until then feel free to visit these HOPE links:



A note on gifts:

Yesterday I was talking to a Rwandan church partner about economic development and women's empowerment. He said that if you give a widow some food or money today, she will come back next week and ask for more. The vision of microfinance is not to give money to the poor today and give money to the poor tomorrow, we want to give the poor the resources to end their own poverty, for today and tomorrow. Your giving goes towards the training of local leaders to empower their communities to save, build wealth, gain insurance, generate income sources ... but also to work together, reconcile communities, build confidence, and restore people to their created purpose, vocation, and identity as people of worth. Thanks for giving!

Christmas movie ranking

Because I can't help myself, one last Christmas post: Christmas movies – top 20 according to IMDB rankings with my top 10 in bold.

It's a Wonderful Life (1946, 8.6)
A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965, 8.4)
The Snowman (1982, 8.3)
How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1966, 8.3)
Scrooge (1951, 8.1)
The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993, 8.0)
A Christmas Story (1983, 8.0)
Miracle on 34th Street (1947, 8.0)
Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964, 7.9)
The Year Without a Santa Claus (1974, 7.9)
Santa Claus is Comin' to Town (1970, 7.8)
Mickey's Christmas Carol (1983, 7.7)
A Christmas Carol (1984, 7.7)
The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992, 7.4)
Christmas Vacation (1989, 7.3)
Frosty the Snowman (1969, 7.3)
White Christmas (1954, 7.2)
Elf (2003, 6.8)
Home Alone (1990, 6.8)
Scrooged (1988, 6.7)

Merry Christmas!

They're singing Deck the Halls, but it's not like Christmas at all, as I remember when you were here and all the fun we had last year ...

Christmas in Kigali



Christmas Eve was crossword puzzles, last minute gift shopping, remoulade and olive dips, candlelight service at Christ's Church, last minute grocery shopping for ham, calamari, and chocolate at Nakumatt, Christmas music and dancing at home, dinner while watching Elf, and going to bed.

Christmas Day is singing "Once in Royal David's City" in the St. Etienne's adult Christmas choir during morning service, Danielle directing the children's Christmas play [picture below], coming home and eating, listening to more music, playing Scrabble and Skipbo, maybe visiting with a few friends in the area, and talking to family on Skype.



The Christmas menu today includes French toast flavored with ginger, cinnamon, and caramel extract, and accompanied with local honey and local oranges that also taste like lime. We also enjoyed the best coffee from Kivu region near the lake in West Rwanda. In addition, Cadbury has introduced me to what I now consider to be what Christmas tastes like, the Grand Seville: a subtle blend of milk and plain chocolate with raisins, orange oil & orange liqueur flavour.

Danielle is wearing new, silver, dangling fish earrings and I am perusing the current Economist and Newsweek magazines.

Have a very merry Christmas!

More Christmas music

I posted our wedding Christmas playlist from December 2006, but we have added some favorites since then that are on heavy rotation. They are in alphabetical order, but I bolded some of my particular favorites. That's two Christmas playlists from me, but seriously, are there any other worthwhile Christmas songs out there? I'd love to hear your favorites that I can add to the list.

Blue Christmas - Elvis Presley
Christmas All Over Again - Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
Christmas in Hollis - Run-DMC
Christmas Will Really Be Christmas - Lou Rawls
Christmas Wrapping - The Waitresses
Do You Hear What I Hear? - Bing Crosby
The Little Drummer Boy - Johnny Cash
Little Saint Nick - The Beach Boys
Mamacita, Donde Esta Santa Claus - Guster
O Come O Come Emmanuel - Sufjan Stevens
Santa Baby - Eartha Kitt
Silent Night - Etta James
White Christmas - The Drifters
Wonderful Christmastime - Paul McCartney

Better than a Christmas tree

I just saw a picture of my parents' Christmas tree tonight on video Skype, it was beautiful. We don't have a Christmas tree, but what we do have is Christmas cards on the buffet right next to a beautifully Rwandan hand-carved nativity scene. Thanks to Brenna for both of our two Christmas cards, she was our house guest and the namesake of the O'Brien room upstairs. Danielle got a card, I got a card, very nice.



Can't say we're not nostalgic for a Christmas tree, but our Christmas is different this year, and we appreciate that. This year, it's us and our nativity scene … and some woven Christmas ball ornaments and Brenna's two cards.

Note: Nostalgia is not Christmas, but that doesn't mean we won't vicariously enjoy pictures of your Christmas trees and presents and parties. Please send pictures. Email us if you have the address, post comments to picture links, otherwise, but we'd love to share your Christmas by seeing your pictures. You know we'll share ours.

Expatriate Christmas party

Eating, caroling, and glad-handing expatriates. It was actually quite a neat experience to celebrate Christmas carols with a room full of people we don't know who are also away from family and also doing work in Rwanda that is pretty strongly influenced by this baby Jesus we kept singing about.

Favorite carols this year: O Come, O Come Emmanuel and Little Drummer Boy (Johnny Cash version).

In the background of Danielle singing carols you can see Phil and son Sean playing guitar. Phil directs World Relief Rwanda, and Sean is finishing a policy master's at Duke. We see them both at St. Etienne's and we sing with them and Phil's wife Becca in the Christmas choir. Also, note the Christmas ornaments that we bought earlier today and brought to the party; they're in the background of the songbook shot below.

Babies for Christmas

I love Christmas, so Christmas is what I'm writing about once a day until the day. Today, it's babies and Christmas. That's what Danielle wants, but I was thinking a necklace or something. Seems like all of our friends are having babies, at least two of them (who blog about it):

jesse & keight plus one. Does Keight spell Kate like "K" and the number 8? Yes. Keight is what I consider a Christian with Turret's syndrome, so I expect wildly blunt and overly detailed descriptions of what pregnancy looks like. Hilarious.

The Del Angel Family. Tiffany posts monthly mug shots of her belly. I particularly like the sonogram of Madison throwing up the peace sign. They should soon be getting a pink baby blanket on the way from Rwanda via Pennsylvania.

Danielle is not getting a baby for Christmas this year, maybe on layaway. But what I can do is preview some potential Hartley baby names. Also, feel free to use these names, I have no problem with our children having the same exact names and growing up best friends. I think that's great. Merry Christmas Danielle [revised 12/27/2008]:

Elijah Paul (Eli)
Frederick Norris (Rick)
Joseph Elliot (Zeph)
John Francis (Jack)
Moses Oliver (Moses)
Luke Thomas (Luke)

Emma Catherine (Lucy)
Eleanora Mae (Nora)
Mary Alice (Alice)
Gabriella Ruth (Gabby)
Margaret Ansley (Maggie)
Evelyn Esther (Evie)

Our Christmas playlist, what's yours?

Thanks to Krista Greiner, I recovered my Christmas playlist that we made for our Christmas wedding 2 years ago. That makes Danielle and me pretty happy to hear those songs in that order. It also makes me happy to hear that Krista and also Marisa/Justin are still listening to those songs in that order.

Being far away from home, we would love to know what Christmas music you are listening to. Here is our list:

All I Want for Christmas is You - Mariah Carey
Sleigh Ride - The Ronettes
Run Rudolph Run - Chuck Berry
Jingle Bell Rock - Bobby Helms
Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree - Brenda Lee
This Christmas - Donny Hathaway
Christmas (Baby Please Come Home) - Darlene Love
Merry Christmas, I Love You - James Brown
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen - Barenaked Ladies
Please Come Home for Christmas - Eagles
Winter Wonderland - Bing Crosby
The Christmas Song - Nat King Cole
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas - Lou Rawls
It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year - Andy Williams
Baby, It's Cold Outside - Dean Martin
Carol of the Bells - Mormon Tabernacle Choir

Christmas present suggestions

What do you get someone who has everything? A mug. That question is much easier than most people make it out to be. Get him a mug.

If you're shopping for me, I would like a polo and some books. I have an Amazon wish list that takes care of all of my book needs, but where on earth (or online) can you find both a mug and a polo?

Besides alleviating world poverty, HOPE International has now solved the Christmas crisis. Mug? Polo? Same place: HOPE International >> Get Gear. Note: I would be proud to have friends wear HOPE, and though the detail on the polo is hard to see, I definitely want one. I'm not sure how it works, do HOPE employees get to pick out one piece of gear for Christmas?



Disclaimer: Please don't ship me that polo (or at least post in the comments that you are going to so I don't get 20 polos). I once said "please send socks" and now I'm getting socks, but really, I can buy them here for much less than you can ship them. It was rhetorical. But, yes, I do need socks, so thank you who've sent them.

Not too late for Christmas cards

Casa Cards. Do you like child advocacy AND Christmas? This may be right for you.

These Christmas cards are beautifully designed by abused kids who need advocacy. Buy 20 5x7" cards with envelopes for $16, order them today, make your address list while they ship to you, then you are ready to mail them back out for Christmas. Also, if you are like my mom, then you can buy cards in bulk - no matter the season - and save them for when you need them.

Let me know which ones you order, I have many favorites. We're in Rwanda this year, but next year you may see one of these cards in the mail from us. Here are my Christmas favorites: