Easter Gathering…A Day to Remember (08.04.07)

This wonderful article appears courstesy of and was written by Dewi Somaschini*
Event occurred in Paris, Apr 8, 2007

Easter is a time of love,

A time of death and pain undone,

So we may know the power of

The love that lives in everyone.

Each love we feel, unstained and free,

Redeems us--as with you and me.

Celebrating Easter far away from our families and friends in Indonesia may be the last thing to consider. Yet, it happened to us. Fortunately, we were not alone as we still have some Indonesian couples within Schlumberger here in Paris. Not many, but enough to build a familiar atmosphere around us. With the spirit of togetherness, we took a chance to gather and celebrate Easter Day at Devita and Nadia’s place on the fresh sunny day of 8th April.

(Photo L to R: Lana, Nadia, Sasha and Naya (Lana's sister). Orel (Sasha's little brother) refused to take a picture with the gals :-))

There were some simple Indonesian dishes served. The idea of potluck indeed made the variety of the dishes interesting and colorful. After having a nice lunch, we played with the children. Novel, Devita’s husband, organized the game. He went to the small garden downstairs to hide several chocolate eggs, leaving all of us upstairs, wondering where he might put all the treasures. The next ten minutes were the real party. All the children were excited to find the hidden eggs. Every time they found one, they screamed happily. Parents enjoyed their time as well, helping and guiding the kids to find and reach their goals. Pride was obviously seen on their faces when their little ones got something. It was so much fun. Eventually, the game was over and Nadia was the winner. The cute little girl had been able to collect ten eggs, followed by Lana (first daughter of Hana and Rony Hendrawan) with nine eggs. Yet, the real actress that day was Sasha Celine, first daughter of Monica and Claude. She bravely sang a song to win another chocolate sweet. The happy moments still seemed incomplete without small incidents, where finally some melted chocolate was all over the faces and outfits of some children.

The simple but meaningful gathering finally came to an end as the sun set on the west side of Paris blue sky. Leaving the house of Devita and Nadia after all the excitements, the children were smiling as they got not only a bundle of chocolate in their hands but also a bundle of joy in their hearts.

__________________

Dewi is the wife of Gianpaolo Somaschini, an Italian colleague of mine. Despite of our recent first encounter (seems years ago), we have received a remarkably warm friendship offered by the couple. Dewi always brings a joyful atmosphere to our gatherings with her hilarious tales and gestures. Her stories always put smiles on people's faces. (I always encourage her to join "Srimulat"!) I was told that she has also been a contributor for some of the Indonesian magazines. Are we glad to have met Gianpaolo (who speaks Indonesian fluently) and Dewi (who speaks Italian like a Sicilian godmother! :-)) in Paris!