We're home

Weimin muscles

 30th of Dec is a special day. Prior to this, Dinah and I have been preparing our new home in Ting Kau Villa (TKV). Hong and our housemates helped. C-Mo mama first told us about TKV in July. She prepared a home for us!   

 Two Mondays ago Jason helped move some items. Today Weimin and I make three trips in his car to move our belongings to our new home. Moving is hard work. So he, Dinah and I enjoy a nice meal in Gold Coast!  

 Inside, our new housemates Catherine and Pei Er welcome us : )  Leora is still in Taiwan attending to her dad.

Welcome party

Dinah and I unpack till late. And she is still recovering from our overseas trip back from Tai Chung.  

We awake on Tue, 31st Dec with our backs rather sore. Turns out that we are not used to sleeping on hard mattresses. So we discover that mattress pads can help and we dont need to get new mattresses : ) 

First we go to our service apartment. We are in suite 770 for our final time. Our lease ends today.  I look out into the cove and admire the view. Then we give thanks to God for our 11 months here. We say goodbye to this place. And go to return the key.

We say goodbye to the staff whom we know. They wave us off. A new chapter begins. 

Goodbye Suite 770

 Off we go to Ikea to order a mattress pad. And we bump into Jojo who travelled to Tai Chung with us!  The three of us have an impromptu catch up here in Ikea : )

 Dinah and I head back to Ting Kau. We go meet up with Justin and June. They take us to a new tai pai tong for dinner. Always nice local food with J & J!

 After dinner the four of us head off to the Fortress prayer. It's Dinah and I my first time at this New Year Eve prayer time. Everyone worship and pray - all the way into the New Year.

 After prayer, we wish everyone Happy New Year and take photos. We get a ride home and it's already early the next day!            

Welcome Meal

Wed is a holiday here : ) Us housemates have an impromptu brunch together. This becomes our first meal of 2025 - with our new family! After an extended brunch, we go collect our mattress pad.  

At night Catherine and Pei Er organise a welcome dinner for us. Now we enjoy an extended dinner together : ) 

From this point - living in TKV, we both feel that we're home!

Four days in Tai Chung

Jiingjun's mom & niece

 Our first time in Taichung happened to coincide with our first-ever Christmas-time conference. It felt significant, almost poetic, that our introduction to this city was wrapped in worship, family, and the shared joy of believers gathered for the Tree of Life Family Gathering (Dec 23–26, 2024) for 611 Taiwan churches.

 Day One – Arrival and First Impressions

David our guide

 We awoke early—5:30 a.m. Breakfast was at Hong Kong International Airport with Jingjun after check in. There’s something grounding about beginning a journey over a simple meal. When we arrived, Taichung greeted us with a rainy 19°C temperature—wet and refreshing.

A warm cuppa with William and Mabel at the hotel set the tone. Next JoJo's husband David - our local guide - guided us to wander through 

Our cell group 

Eslite Spectrum - such a unique mall, more than just shopping, almost like a cultural space. The ladies enjoyed shopping while William and I grabbed a quick bite before a late lunch— featuring live cockles. It was a full day of travel and settling in. Dinah wasn’t feeling well, which reminded me how even in meaningful moments, there are quiet challenges running alongside the joy.

 Day Two – Receiving and Being Stretched

24th December began with breakfast again with William and Mabel—these small routines of connection became anchors for what's ahead.

Received

Session 1 stirred expectation. Lunch with our Hong Kong cell group felt like home away from home. Session 2 was especially impactful—spiritually passing through the mother’s birth canal spoke deeply about transition, uncertainty, and emergence into new life. It wasn’t teaching; it was healing. 

Receive & pray for

 When Joey called me up to receive and to pray, I felt both surprised and stretched. Later I was tired—physically and emotionally—but deeply glad. There’s a particular exhaustion that comes from being poured out spiritually, yet it carries a quiet joy. What a unique Christmas Eve!

Dining together on 24th

 Dinner with Catherine, Samuel, Cherie, Justine, June, Charlie and Mee Ling was filled with laughter and warmth. The session later, based on a true story, was deeply moving. Narrative carries power—the lived faithfulness of God through ordinary people.

Day Three – Tears and Celebration

Dessert w Kelly & hubby

 25th December didn’t feel commercial or hurried. It felt sacred.

 Sessions 4 and 5 continued to build layer upon layer. Lunch with folks from our former church and then dinner with friends from Tainan created breathing spaces between encounters. Conversations over meals often minister as much as the sessions themselves.

 The night session—the story of Peter and Daisy from Taipei—was a tearjerker. I found myself reflecting on faithfulness, endurance, and love that perseveres through seasons of suffering. Yet the tears gave way to celebration. It felt like Christmas in its truest sense: sorrow and joy intertwined, redemption shining through brokenness.

Day Four – Closing and Carrying It Home

Qingyun, Jessalyn & Tiffany

The final session (Session 7) carried a sense of completion, yet also commissioning. Conferences end, but what is deposited must continue. Lunch with Qingyun, Jessalyn, and Tiffany before flying back felt like a Singapore connection and like a gentle landing after an intense few days. This al fresco lunch was our final meal in Tai Chung. We walked around before we finally settled on a place. But it was fun as it was memorable. And the girls even introduced us to hot tea with bubbles. 

ToL Family Gathering

 As I reflect, a few things stay with me:

• Family matters. Shared breakfasts, spontaneous prayers and corridor convos were as formative as main sessions.

• Spiritual growth often feels like transition. The birth canal healing lingers—growth is rarely comfortable but leads to new life.

• God moves thru stories. True stories soften hearts in ways arguments never can.

• Firsts are gifts. Our first time in Taichung. Our first Christmas conference. Both marked by stretching, tears, fatigue, and deep gladness.

This trip wasn’t about presents or festivities. It was about presence—God’s presence, and the presence of spiritual family. And in that, Taichung will always hold a special place in our hearts.