Author: Sarah Bringhurst Familia

Mother’s Day, and other trying times

Sarah Bringhurst Familia

Mother’s Day. I’m not much in the mood for it this year. It’s been a long, hard year or two. I used to be the mother who sent her daughter with her own special healthy snack each week when she went to Nursery at Church, the mother who used the #1 ranked carseats and faced her children backwards until they were three years old, the mother who refused to send her children to preschool, but instead exhaustively researched educational theory to create a perfect developmental and educational environment just for them.

No more. Fast forward past ongoing health problems, an emotional meltdown, a series of financial disasters, and several international moves, and I’m not feeling like such a great mother anymore.… Read more

Fish Heads and Me

Sarah Bringhurst Familia

Remember this song from the early, early days of music videos? (If you want to skip the long, but mood-creating intro, the song begins at 2:10). When I first saw it in the 80’s, I never imagined that I would actually meet a fish head myself. My parents were not seafood fans. We were brought up on stories of how my mom was forced to eat squid cooked in its own ink on her L.D.S. mission to Spain. And shellfish were supposed to make us queasy. The closest we ever came to taking our part in depleting the world’s oceans were the occasional small rainbow trouts caught on camping trips, or the meal or two we convinced them to have at Long John Silver’s.… Read more

Wear the Baby

Sarah Bringhurst Familia

I am going to be an aunt! I know I’m already a mother, so maybe this shouldn’t be so exciting to me. And I became an instant aunt back when I got married. But there is just something special about picturing my own little brother as a dad. Not to mention my adorable, sweet sister-in-law as a mother. She really made me feel like a big sister last week when she emailed me for advice about having a baby. My own “baby” turns four next month, so I enjoyed going back and reliving some memories of when he and his big sister were tiny and new.… Read more

Crime and Punishment, Bin Laden-Style

Sarah Bringhurst Familia

Yesterday two friends (one Tunisian and one British) separately made a point of congratulating me on the killing of Osama bin Laden. At the time, I was so taken aback I had no response for them but a mumbled deprecation. You see, I had never before pictured what I would do if someone congratulated me on the death of another person. However, since then, and since Sunday, I have spent plenty of time giving it thought.

For my two well-meaning friends and for all of you, my response is twofold:

First, my sensibilities rebel at the idea of celebrating death. Anyone’s death.… Read more

Not Really a Fashion Blog Either

Sarah Bringhurst Familia

I lose things incorrigibly. Keys, papers, library books, driver’s licenses; you name it, I’ve lost it. This Sunday I lost my favorite hat. I left it in the taxi on the way to church in Tunis. Sigh. After vainly craning my neck to peer in every taxi that passed by for the rest of the day, I had to face the sad truth. My hat was gone, never to be found again.

I’m not a big sunscreen person. I have sensitive skin prone to break out either in zits or red blotches when stuff gets put on it. And I also wear glasses.… Read more

The Evolution of Orkin

Sarah Bringhurst Familia

A strange and mysterious script has been discovered on white boards and documents throughout this house. So far, the cryptic writing has not been deciphered. However, yesterday I received a clue as to its origins. In fact, I witnessed a shadowy character actually writing in what I now have cause to believe may be a metamorphosed dialect of Orkin, my children’s invented private language. Figure 1 (see above) is my subsequent secret photograph of the writing in question.

If you have ever lived in a country covered in Arabic graffiti, you might initially come to the same conclusion I did: Orkin must be a derivative of Arabic.… Read more

Tunisian Nature Walk

Sarah Bringhurst Familia

Since we don’t have a yard at our little beach bungalow, Tony and I decided to re-institute the classic Charlotte Mason practice of nature walks. I take the children out for an hour every morning, and we look for “nature.” Somehow, we always find it. And a few days ago, I took the camera out to document.

Our first step was our favorite anthill. Yes, we have a favorite anthill. Dominique spends at least fifteen minutes watching it every time we walk down our dirt road. Tunisia is quite a haven for ants. There are the tiny black “normal” ants we are used to, along with a couple of similar species in larger sizes.… Read more

Tragedy in Syria

Sarah Bringhurst Familia

It has been a month since I last wrote about Syria, but I have thought about my favorite Middle Eastern country every single day, and watched the news anxiously, hoping for some miraculous happy-ever-after. Since then, any illusions that President Bashar al-Assad might not be quite as bad as his infamous father have been washed away in rivers of blood. Over 500 civilians have died at the hands of the Syrian military during the past six weeks, with 62 killed just yesterday in protests that brought 15,000 Syrians to the streets of Damascus alone. The southern city of Daraa, where the protests began, is surrounded by a tank blockade that has cut off its citizens from water, electricity, medical support, and even milk for children.… Read more

Black Roses

Sarah Bringhurst Familia

After going out for a vaguely-defined afternoon errand, Tony came home and surprised me with this:

It was the Tunisian florist’s version of a dozen red roses. I think it turned out beautifully. And it smells divine. The funny thing is, when I last saw the vase in the morning, it did have a dozen red roses in it. The roses he bought me, oh, about three weeks ago. Needless to say, they were no longer looking quite their best. In fact, certain parts of them were in a rather advanced state of decay. I can’t help it, though. I just can’t bear to throw flowers away, even when they have gracefully faded, or turned into a malodorous mass of moldy algae.… Read more

Toys for a nomadic life

Sarah Bringhurst Familia

Yesterday we visited a Tunisian toy store. The little store was packed to bursting with a delightfully eclectic selection of toys, books, and stuffed animals. The owner told us that he gets a lot of hand-me-downs from the many tourists who visit Hammamet. He had games and books in Arabic, French, Italian, German and English. Our best find was an adorable little secondhand Haba game with tiny wooden wheelbarrows and farm animals.

I have what might be excessively particular tastes when it comes to toys. When we lived in the United States, I carefully sought out playthings that encouraged open-ended play, like blocks, balls, scarves, and stuffed animals.… Read more