Awesome day! I got up this morning and the rain was nowhere to be found. I walked down to my favorite Libreria and bought notebooks and pens for the women at Las Quimeras church. I got me a couple more notebooks, so that I can keep my studies separate, women’s groups separate, etc. I also picked up some masking tape, craft paint and brushes and a small set of dominoes. This little store has a little bit of everything. I got back to the Mission House and grabbed a shower. I was just fixing my oatmeal when Mike and Manuel came over.
Manuel and I had our special time together. I included me eating breakfast as part of our otherwise pretend time. It was nice of him to allow me to do that. We did the usual stuff and there were funny things that he said, but I can’t remember them at this moment. Just know that it is never dull with that little guy.
Sherry arrived and Leslie got here to talk with the workers. Sherry had made out a list for German to give to Alberto, but took it with him when he picked up the motorcycle. So Sherry made out another list. Always some hitch to the plans… and you just go with it and don’t even get frustrated most of the time. German is always on the go and so busy. I don’t know how that guy does it all.
The Hulsey’s took Leslie and I to lunch with them and we ate at Callejon for the third day in a row. Everyone loves it. I had my usually churrasco, beans and veggies. I am still stuffed! Then we stopped at La Unión for a few groceries.
Leslie and I returned to the Mission House to get ready for the Women’s Bible Study at Rose of Sharon CC church this afternoon. We had a couple of hours to kill. She had brought some laundry that she had finally gotten the chance to wash yesterday morning when there was no rain. But she didn’t get to hang it to dry because the rain came in the afternoon. We had talked her into bringing it to our place to use the dryer (and washer if she wanted). So she brought 2 loads to dry. While that was going on, we chatted a little bit and she also listened to me read some stories from my Spanish lesson book. She gave me some insight on some phrasing. I like getting help from everywhere I can.
At 3:30, her husband Jorge, came to get us in his taxi. He took us to Rose of Sharon CC church and waited while we had the Bible study. He then brought us back by the Mission House so I could drop off my Bible study materials and Leslie could get her clothes. Then we dropped Leslie off at home and Jorge took me to the Hulsey’s for my date with Manuel while the Hulsey’s had a date of their own. When Jorge dropped me off, Mike and Sherry got in the taxi. Then when Jorge brought them back home, I jumped in for my return trip to the Mission House. Jorge made good money off of us today! And we are so glad to give it to him.
Speaking of the Women’s Bible Study at Rose of Sharon CC church, it was wonderful! It was the first time for us to meet and there were 28 women there. The church is very mission minded and does feedings during the week and also provides the food and serves the meals at Las Quimeras church. They are very busy reaching out to people. They have 5 ladies who are their Women’s Leadership team. I am so excited to work with them!
We had a good introduction of this study and some participation. I know that I will learn a lot from some of these very godly women. I told them that I was collecting money from my friends in the US to buy some new Bibles for the women. They were very appreciative. Then they clapped very loud when we told them that the Bibles will be in large print. Another round of applause came when I told them that Sherry is planning on making cake for them one of these weeks. Few women here know how to make a cake, even if they have a stove and oven. It will be quite the treat.
I have a lot of study and review to do before next week’s Women’s classes. I’m also going to sew 15-20 tote bags for the ladies at the Las Quimeras church. Their Bibles will be delivered to me tomorrow afternoon. I have their notebooks and pens and a bookmark with the traits of the Virtuous Women from the Bible printed on it in Spanish. I can’t wait to give these to them next Wednesday. It will take me a few weeks to get enough money collected for the Bibles and notebooks for the ROSCC church ladies, and those same few weeks to sew the tote bags. I’m going to be a very busy woman! But I want to get them done before I start taking my Spanish classes in the mornings. Then my time will be very limited.
I’m planning on sewing most of tomorrow and Sunday after church. If it’s not raining on Monday morning, I need to run some errands, but will try to sew the rest of the afternoon until the VOH Bible study time. I should be done with the bags for Las Quimeras by then. I’m looking forward to staying home tomorrow, even if I wasn’t planning on sewing. Lots of running around goes on in my week. I love it all, but it sure makes the time go by very fast!
I told Leslie this evening after the Women’s Bible study that I feel so blessed with what God allows me to do here, that I almost feel guilty. She said I shouldn’t feel guilty because I work very hard. But it is such a pleasure to spend my time doing these wonderful things. I can’t imagine being anywhere else.
Tomorrow there will be a Youth event here at the Mission House, hosted by the visiting mission team and the church they are working with. It’s from 9am-3pm. I’m not sure what all they will be doing, but it will be fun to have happy voices around using this blessing of a facility. I think Alberto is looking forward to having some excitement around here, too.
Saturnino is working on the shelves for the storage room (previous hotel office). He has to wait for more wood. The pieces that they brought a week ago were just part of the order. The rest couldn’t come to León until the rains stopped. We’re hoping that since it didn’t rain until late afternoon yesterday and not until this evening, that the wood made it to town by today and will get here on Monday.
Tonight, Manuel and I had dinner (Sherry made tuna casserole and green beans for us) and then played a while. We had planned on watching a movie, but he chose to play instead. His little dog Buster is so funny. He is a miniature Doberman and is only about as big as my foot right now and he’s about 3 months old. He thinks he is really ferocious. Manuel decided he wanted to trade rooms with his mom and dad and got mad at me when I wouldn’t help him move all their stuff to his room and move him into theirs while they were on their date. He got frustrated with me and called his dad to report that I was not being cooperative. Of course Dad had something to say about him wanting to trade rooms and that made Manuel even more frustrated. So I let him move a couple of hats and a book in there and told him he could fall asleep in there, but we couldn’t move anything else. He decided to take a shower in their bathroom instead of his and put his dirty clothes in their clothes hamper instead of his. Then he brought his phone charger in to their room and unplugged some of their stuff. He’s funny. Overall, we had a good night, though.
I got home a little before 9 and am ready to read and go to sleep. Another great day and the end of a nice week. God has been very good to me and I am so content. Bless His Name!!
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Friday, October 21, 2011
Thursday, Oct 20, 2011 NICARAGUA
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Another great day! The sun was shining when we got up and it continued until mid afternoon! Woohoo!
I got up and wanted to hurry and take my shower so that Saturnino and Alberto could work in my room putting up my shelves. It was a tough decision not to walk first, but I didn’t want to waste any time or delay them getting it done. I was in the shower and turned on the knob and it was stripped or something and wouldn’t start the water. It just spinned. So I got redressed and went to find Alberto. He found a set of pliers and turned the water on for me. Then I got my shower and got dressed and went to find him to turn the water back off. Saturnino found a replacement knob from a new sink faucet set and put it on my shower. When he can get a new knob for the shower we will exchange the smaller sink faucet knob for it. The guys are pretty resourceful.
I got to spend some time talking with the ladies of the mission team staying with us while they had breakfast. I let them use my computer to check emails and facebook since I still had the internet cable. The Pastor showed me their church’s website. They seem to have a very nice church.
The Pastor asked if we had an iron and I had Alberto unlock some doors so that I could find it. The ladies asked to use the washer and dryer and I gave them some laundry soap and dryer sheets. They went out to start the washer and were looking at the water going in slowly and waiting for a little more water before they put in the washing powder. Alberto must have thought that they didn’t know how to use the washer (they aren’t common down here) and came and asked me to go and explain it to them. I was a little confused that they would need help, but went anyway. We all got a laugh about it when they said they were just waiting for the water to fill up more. It takes a long time for a load to go through since it fills up so slowly, but we are very thankful to have it.
The Pastor and his wife, who are our Landlords, came by to say hello to the mission team Pastor. They had rented rooms to them before in past years.
The Hulsey’s got here and Manuel and I had our special first five minutes together. Today we pretended to be husband and wife (as usual) and we drove to the airport to pick up a mission team. Of course the van broke down again, but we got it going. We got to the airport and Manuel was reading the ‘board’ that normally displays info for arriving and departing flights. But in our world, the board tells who is on the plane. We could pick and choose who we wanted to take with us. There were the usual people we know, and then Justin Beiber, Taylor Swift, Michael Buble and Usher came with us. We opted to leave Michael Jackson and Little Wayne behind. All together Manuel said we had 27 people in our little van. It was quite cozy. It also took 30 hours of driving to get back to the Mission House and we stopped at Sonic for cherry limeades on the way. We had fun playing.
It was nice enough for Manuel to go for a swim and I put my stuff back together in my room on my new shelves. I was doing a happy dance!
The Hulsey’s and I went to lunch at Callejon again today. I never get tired of it! I had churrasco today with beans, steamed veggies and a tortilla. Yum! We got back to the house and Manuel and I got to have an extra 5 minutes of play time. That was a treat. The Hulsey’s left for home and I was going to settle in for a short rest, but decided to change things around in my room. Then it was time to leave for English class.
I had decided to walk to class today since it wasn’t raining and I haven’t gotten to walk in forever. Alberto asked if I had called a taxi and I said no, that I wanted to walk. I had not even gotten to the gate before it started raining! Urgh! I called Rigoberto and he picked me up and took me to class. He said he could pick me up at 5:30 and bring me home, and I like that better than grabbing a taxi at the busy corner.
Jonathan was already at class when I got there, so we started talking about our day and such. Salvador arrived and we started talking about Nicaraguan culture and lifestyle. It was their assignment to share this info with me in English. They covered many topics. It was a very good discussion.
Here are some of the topics we discussed: Food (including their limited knowledge of the recipes for favorite foods like nacatamal, tiste, pinalia, indo Viejo, gallo pinto, gallina rellena, quesillos), favorite past-times (soccer, card games like desmoche which is like rummy, poker, solitare, blackjack and games like dominoes), movies at the cinema cost about $2, most people have TVs and cable with 80 channels that cost about $15 a month. If people have pets (if they can afford the food to feed them) they usually have a dog or lots of birds. They don’t have pet laws, but sometimes a vet will give free vaccinations to all dogs, including strays. I’m not sure who foots the bill for this. They put a special color ‘necklace’ on the dogs so that people can know that they have been vaccinated. They buy their clothes at small stores here in town and very rarely make it to Managua to buy anything at the very expensive mall. They don’t feel the need to have lots of clothes and will sometimes buy a new outfit for a special event. Men mostly wear jeans and t-shirts when out of the house, even in the hot weather. They wear shorts and sandals at home. They wear long sleeve shirts in winter (rainy season). Very few people have washing machines and only rich people have dryers. A lot of people, but not everyone have refrigerators. A lot of people have bicycles and few have cars. There are lots of taxis and people mostly use the city bus (which is a small truck with a tarp over the top that they cram lots of people into). There are driving schools to teach you to drive. A driver’s license is available through the police department. Usually, young people live at home until they marry, no matter what age. There is legal marriage and church marriage. (in the US they legal part is usually done by the licensed pastor, but here you have to do it separate) We discussed pregnancy prevention, abortion (illegal but available here and they are trying to change the laws to allow it), and over population of the world. We also discussed the life plan for each of these 2 gentlemen. Salvador is 22 and has been dating Jonathan’s sister for 4 ½ years. He is through with college and is going to try to get a job in marketing and publishing. His girlfriend, Shirley, is studying to be a lawyer. They haven’t set a wedding date yet, because they want to finish their ‘career studies’ and get jobs first. Jonathan is almost 25 and is planning on waiting until he is about 32 years old for marriage, although he didn’t mention a girlfriend. He wants to have a job and get a house and furnish it before he starts a marriage relationship. Good life plan!
We were running out of time and I asked them if they still wanted to discuss religion more, but they said no, they would just wait. They did promise to come to our Voice of Hope Bible study on Monday night. Perhaps that is where God has planned for them to meet Jesus. Keep praying for them. Juan, the teacher was working all day and evening translating for a mission team, so I led the whole class time. His wife Ana, who also teaches a class during that time, thanked me very much for helping out. Jonathan and Salvador thanked me very much, too. I gave them cookies again. I’m very blessed to be there.
While waiting for my taxi to pick me up, Ana and I got to talk a little bit. It’s hard for her when Juan is translating, because he is gone for long hours. They have a 5 year old girl and a 7 month old boy. She takes them to the sitter’s for the day when she is working. She said that she had mentioned that she wanted to rain to stop for a while. Her daughter told her to just pray to Jesus. She did and the rain stopped for most of today. Giant, practical faith in a little girl.
Rigoberto arrived to pick me up and he had a friend with him. She is originally from Nicaragua, but now has lived in Costa Rica for 19 years. She said that there are many North Americans in Costa Rica and that it is very expensive to live there compared to Nica. She speaks English very well and said that my Spanish was pretty good. We discussed how you just have to try and practice and keep on. I asked Rigoberto if he speaks any English (he was listening an English version of ‘Sittin on the Dock of the Bay’ when he picked me up earlier). He said he knows very little. I told him that he would have to practice with me when I rode in his taxi. He said he is embarrassed and shy to try it. I told him to do it anyway and that he shouldn’t be embarrassed around people who like and care for him. I’ll keep encouraging him every time I ride in his taxi.
I fixed a baked potato in my microwave and cut it up into my chicken noodle soup. I know, it’s weird, but it was what I was craving. I ‘baked’ apples in the microwave again. Yum!
Tomorrow we will start the Women’s Bible study at Rose of Sharon CC church. I’m looking forward to that.
While I was waiting for the taxi this afternoon, Alberto was standing with me at our little gate. We were chatting about various things. We ended up on the subject of Mike and Sherry and Alberto said that they are good people and called Mike a noble man. I think he very much likes working for them and I have to agree!
Things are getting busier and busier all the time. There is much to do and many people to share with. The time is going by so fast. I’m trying to make the most of every minute and not miss any opportunity that God brings my way. So much fun in this journey called ‘life’. So blessed…
Another great day! The sun was shining when we got up and it continued until mid afternoon! Woohoo!
I got up and wanted to hurry and take my shower so that Saturnino and Alberto could work in my room putting up my shelves. It was a tough decision not to walk first, but I didn’t want to waste any time or delay them getting it done. I was in the shower and turned on the knob and it was stripped or something and wouldn’t start the water. It just spinned. So I got redressed and went to find Alberto. He found a set of pliers and turned the water on for me. Then I got my shower and got dressed and went to find him to turn the water back off. Saturnino found a replacement knob from a new sink faucet set and put it on my shower. When he can get a new knob for the shower we will exchange the smaller sink faucet knob for it. The guys are pretty resourceful.
I got to spend some time talking with the ladies of the mission team staying with us while they had breakfast. I let them use my computer to check emails and facebook since I still had the internet cable. The Pastor showed me their church’s website. They seem to have a very nice church.
The Pastor asked if we had an iron and I had Alberto unlock some doors so that I could find it. The ladies asked to use the washer and dryer and I gave them some laundry soap and dryer sheets. They went out to start the washer and were looking at the water going in slowly and waiting for a little more water before they put in the washing powder. Alberto must have thought that they didn’t know how to use the washer (they aren’t common down here) and came and asked me to go and explain it to them. I was a little confused that they would need help, but went anyway. We all got a laugh about it when they said they were just waiting for the water to fill up more. It takes a long time for a load to go through since it fills up so slowly, but we are very thankful to have it.
The Pastor and his wife, who are our Landlords, came by to say hello to the mission team Pastor. They had rented rooms to them before in past years.
The Hulsey’s got here and Manuel and I had our special first five minutes together. Today we pretended to be husband and wife (as usual) and we drove to the airport to pick up a mission team. Of course the van broke down again, but we got it going. We got to the airport and Manuel was reading the ‘board’ that normally displays info for arriving and departing flights. But in our world, the board tells who is on the plane. We could pick and choose who we wanted to take with us. There were the usual people we know, and then Justin Beiber, Taylor Swift, Michael Buble and Usher came with us. We opted to leave Michael Jackson and Little Wayne behind. All together Manuel said we had 27 people in our little van. It was quite cozy. It also took 30 hours of driving to get back to the Mission House and we stopped at Sonic for cherry limeades on the way. We had fun playing.
It was nice enough for Manuel to go for a swim and I put my stuff back together in my room on my new shelves. I was doing a happy dance!
The Hulsey’s and I went to lunch at Callejon again today. I never get tired of it! I had churrasco today with beans, steamed veggies and a tortilla. Yum! We got back to the house and Manuel and I got to have an extra 5 minutes of play time. That was a treat. The Hulsey’s left for home and I was going to settle in for a short rest, but decided to change things around in my room. Then it was time to leave for English class.
I had decided to walk to class today since it wasn’t raining and I haven’t gotten to walk in forever. Alberto asked if I had called a taxi and I said no, that I wanted to walk. I had not even gotten to the gate before it started raining! Urgh! I called Rigoberto and he picked me up and took me to class. He said he could pick me up at 5:30 and bring me home, and I like that better than grabbing a taxi at the busy corner.
Jonathan was already at class when I got there, so we started talking about our day and such. Salvador arrived and we started talking about Nicaraguan culture and lifestyle. It was their assignment to share this info with me in English. They covered many topics. It was a very good discussion.
Here are some of the topics we discussed: Food (including their limited knowledge of the recipes for favorite foods like nacatamal, tiste, pinalia, indo Viejo, gallo pinto, gallina rellena, quesillos), favorite past-times (soccer, card games like desmoche which is like rummy, poker, solitare, blackjack and games like dominoes), movies at the cinema cost about $2, most people have TVs and cable with 80 channels that cost about $15 a month. If people have pets (if they can afford the food to feed them) they usually have a dog or lots of birds. They don’t have pet laws, but sometimes a vet will give free vaccinations to all dogs, including strays. I’m not sure who foots the bill for this. They put a special color ‘necklace’ on the dogs so that people can know that they have been vaccinated. They buy their clothes at small stores here in town and very rarely make it to Managua to buy anything at the very expensive mall. They don’t feel the need to have lots of clothes and will sometimes buy a new outfit for a special event. Men mostly wear jeans and t-shirts when out of the house, even in the hot weather. They wear shorts and sandals at home. They wear long sleeve shirts in winter (rainy season). Very few people have washing machines and only rich people have dryers. A lot of people, but not everyone have refrigerators. A lot of people have bicycles and few have cars. There are lots of taxis and people mostly use the city bus (which is a small truck with a tarp over the top that they cram lots of people into). There are driving schools to teach you to drive. A driver’s license is available through the police department. Usually, young people live at home until they marry, no matter what age. There is legal marriage and church marriage. (in the US they legal part is usually done by the licensed pastor, but here you have to do it separate) We discussed pregnancy prevention, abortion (illegal but available here and they are trying to change the laws to allow it), and over population of the world. We also discussed the life plan for each of these 2 gentlemen. Salvador is 22 and has been dating Jonathan’s sister for 4 ½ years. He is through with college and is going to try to get a job in marketing and publishing. His girlfriend, Shirley, is studying to be a lawyer. They haven’t set a wedding date yet, because they want to finish their ‘career studies’ and get jobs first. Jonathan is almost 25 and is planning on waiting until he is about 32 years old for marriage, although he didn’t mention a girlfriend. He wants to have a job and get a house and furnish it before he starts a marriage relationship. Good life plan!
We were running out of time and I asked them if they still wanted to discuss religion more, but they said no, they would just wait. They did promise to come to our Voice of Hope Bible study on Monday night. Perhaps that is where God has planned for them to meet Jesus. Keep praying for them. Juan, the teacher was working all day and evening translating for a mission team, so I led the whole class time. His wife Ana, who also teaches a class during that time, thanked me very much for helping out. Jonathan and Salvador thanked me very much, too. I gave them cookies again. I’m very blessed to be there.
While waiting for my taxi to pick me up, Ana and I got to talk a little bit. It’s hard for her when Juan is translating, because he is gone for long hours. They have a 5 year old girl and a 7 month old boy. She takes them to the sitter’s for the day when she is working. She said that she had mentioned that she wanted to rain to stop for a while. Her daughter told her to just pray to Jesus. She did and the rain stopped for most of today. Giant, practical faith in a little girl.
Rigoberto arrived to pick me up and he had a friend with him. She is originally from Nicaragua, but now has lived in Costa Rica for 19 years. She said that there are many North Americans in Costa Rica and that it is very expensive to live there compared to Nica. She speaks English very well and said that my Spanish was pretty good. We discussed how you just have to try and practice and keep on. I asked Rigoberto if he speaks any English (he was listening an English version of ‘Sittin on the Dock of the Bay’ when he picked me up earlier). He said he knows very little. I told him that he would have to practice with me when I rode in his taxi. He said he is embarrassed and shy to try it. I told him to do it anyway and that he shouldn’t be embarrassed around people who like and care for him. I’ll keep encouraging him every time I ride in his taxi.
I fixed a baked potato in my microwave and cut it up into my chicken noodle soup. I know, it’s weird, but it was what I was craving. I ‘baked’ apples in the microwave again. Yum!
Tomorrow we will start the Women’s Bible study at Rose of Sharon CC church. I’m looking forward to that.
While I was waiting for the taxi this afternoon, Alberto was standing with me at our little gate. We were chatting about various things. We ended up on the subject of Mike and Sherry and Alberto said that they are good people and called Mike a noble man. I think he very much likes working for them and I have to agree!
Things are getting busier and busier all the time. There is much to do and many people to share with. The time is going by so fast. I’m trying to make the most of every minute and not miss any opportunity that God brings my way. So much fun in this journey called ‘life’. So blessed…
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Wednesday, Oct 19, 2011 NICARAGUA
Another fun day. And yes, it’s still raining. It probably will rain for the rest of the month. I’m ready for a few hours of sunshine each day, but it’s not up to me. ☺ The rain does hamper some of the ministry work and for that reason I wish it would stop for part of the day.
The Hulsey’s got here early this morning and had a chance to visit with the team staying here. Manuel and I had our first five minutes time together. Today we pretended to be husband and wife and were going to buy a car. The car that cost $20 was too much, but he thought that $48 was a better bargain, so we bought that one. Then we had to toe it home because it didn’t run. You never know what he will come up with. Then he took me pretend grocery shopping.
Sherry brought me the internet cable and I quickly jumped on the computer to download some of the commentary for my Chronological Bible study. I also posted some blogs for the last week and emailed some people. It was wonderful to catch up!
Mike left with German. Sherry met with the workers (Leslie translated) and then Sherry, Manuel, Leslie and I went to Callejon for lunch. Yum! We found out today that the family that runs the restaurant is Jehovah’s Witnesses. We’re going to add them to our prayer lists. They are very sweet and remember me from eating there so much. Ha
We called Leslie’s husband to pick us up in his taxi. We dropped Sherry and Manuel off at home and then Leslie and I came back to the Mission House until time for the women’s Bible study. We got the chance to sit and talk for about 2 hours. It was very nice.
We had a certain taxi driver come to pick Leslie and I up to go to the Women’s Bible study in Las Quimeras. German couldn’t remember his name, but called him Brother Taxi since he is a Christian. It turns out that he is Rigoberto, who drove Sherry, Mary and I home to Poneloya one day from the grocery store. That was a hilarious, but long story. I asked if he remembered and of course he did. What a treat to see him again. There was confusion about the fee that German had negotiated, so I’m going to let German work that out. But it was nice to ride in Rigoberto’s clean taxi.
When we got to Las Quimeras, it was raining pretty steady. We arrived 15 minutes early and no one was there. That’s not unusual, but when no on was there at the start time, we decided to call Pastor Sergio. They had told about the Bible Study at church on Sunday, but because of the rain, no one was getting out. Also, some of them forgot. Pastor Sergio was walking down the muddy, deeply rutted road with an umbrella yelling for people to come. It was funny. We ended up with 6 ladies of various ages and some men, too.
As I was explaining what we are planning on studying each week (Twelve Extraordinary Women of the Bible), we had to delicately explain that the Women’s Bible study is for Women. I told the men that as much as we love them, that sometimes women need to gather together to pray together, encourage each other, and sometimes talk about men. They seem to understand. The ladies seem very excited about getting the study started.
I told them that I would provide them with a new Bible (one with large print, which is very important here where there is not good lighting and many people have sight problems but don’t have glasses), a notebook, pen and a tote bag (which I will make for them). They were really excited about the large print in the Bibles. Leslie gave me good advice to choose that one to order. I’ll start making the tote bags tomorrow.
I think we will have about 10 women to start with next week. It’s a small community, but there are people who live across the main road in another community that might come once we get started. They always send their kids when we have Fiestas and VBS there. I am soooo excited to get to be with these women and to get to know them better. I know that God is going to grow each of us very much from this new opportunity.
This church is one that we have spent much time at over the last year. We have had teams come down and help provide (and do construction on) the walls and floor. They keep it clean with a broom made from tree limbs tied to a handle. They have built a little ‘lean-to’ type of structure that houses the outdoor fire pit and ‘kitchen’ that they use to prepare the meals for 120 kids each weekday. We are happy to be a part of this feeding ministry. Pastor Sergio is proud of the facility and the way that the church is stepping up to serve. I hope to get to go out to help at a feeding every once in a while, but the cost of a taxi out that far is kind of pricey. Maybe later when we have access to the van more of the time…
Leslie and I got back to the Mission House and waited for her husband to pick her up. We talked with Alberto about various things. He enjoys the company. Once Leslie left, I went to my room and fixed some cream of mushroom soup, veggie chips and ‘baked’ an apple in the microwave for dessert. Yummy.
I still have the internet cord, so I’ll get this posted and do other catching up on friends’ blogs to see what God is doing in other parts of the world. Then it will soon be bedtime.
Saturnino and Alberto are going to build and hang my shelves tomorrow (I think), so I have to move stuff from that end of the room. I can’t wait to get them up! I’ve been talking about them for weeks, huh?
Tomorrow is another English class. The guys said that they want to talk about religion again. I’m praying about getting the chance to share the Gospel with them. I am always happy for our time together for them to practice their English. And they are always so appreciative of me taking the time to work with them.
Friday will be the first day of Women’s Bible Study at Rose of Sharon CC church. Fun!!
If you want to help support the Women’s Bible Studies…
Please pray for the women and their families.
Make a $20 donation to the Voice of Hope Ministry website centralamericahope.org by clicking the donate button. Note that the money is for the Women’s Bibles and if you want a tax receipt, please note your name and address.
I can’t wait to present these ladies with their new Bibles and materials. It’s going to be so good to be with them every week. God is so good!
The Hulsey’s got here early this morning and had a chance to visit with the team staying here. Manuel and I had our first five minutes time together. Today we pretended to be husband and wife and were going to buy a car. The car that cost $20 was too much, but he thought that $48 was a better bargain, so we bought that one. Then we had to toe it home because it didn’t run. You never know what he will come up with. Then he took me pretend grocery shopping.
Sherry brought me the internet cable and I quickly jumped on the computer to download some of the commentary for my Chronological Bible study. I also posted some blogs for the last week and emailed some people. It was wonderful to catch up!
Mike left with German. Sherry met with the workers (Leslie translated) and then Sherry, Manuel, Leslie and I went to Callejon for lunch. Yum! We found out today that the family that runs the restaurant is Jehovah’s Witnesses. We’re going to add them to our prayer lists. They are very sweet and remember me from eating there so much. Ha
We called Leslie’s husband to pick us up in his taxi. We dropped Sherry and Manuel off at home and then Leslie and I came back to the Mission House until time for the women’s Bible study. We got the chance to sit and talk for about 2 hours. It was very nice.
We had a certain taxi driver come to pick Leslie and I up to go to the Women’s Bible study in Las Quimeras. German couldn’t remember his name, but called him Brother Taxi since he is a Christian. It turns out that he is Rigoberto, who drove Sherry, Mary and I home to Poneloya one day from the grocery store. That was a hilarious, but long story. I asked if he remembered and of course he did. What a treat to see him again. There was confusion about the fee that German had negotiated, so I’m going to let German work that out. But it was nice to ride in Rigoberto’s clean taxi.
When we got to Las Quimeras, it was raining pretty steady. We arrived 15 minutes early and no one was there. That’s not unusual, but when no on was there at the start time, we decided to call Pastor Sergio. They had told about the Bible Study at church on Sunday, but because of the rain, no one was getting out. Also, some of them forgot. Pastor Sergio was walking down the muddy, deeply rutted road with an umbrella yelling for people to come. It was funny. We ended up with 6 ladies of various ages and some men, too.
As I was explaining what we are planning on studying each week (Twelve Extraordinary Women of the Bible), we had to delicately explain that the Women’s Bible study is for Women. I told the men that as much as we love them, that sometimes women need to gather together to pray together, encourage each other, and sometimes talk about men. They seem to understand. The ladies seem very excited about getting the study started.
I told them that I would provide them with a new Bible (one with large print, which is very important here where there is not good lighting and many people have sight problems but don’t have glasses), a notebook, pen and a tote bag (which I will make for them). They were really excited about the large print in the Bibles. Leslie gave me good advice to choose that one to order. I’ll start making the tote bags tomorrow.
I think we will have about 10 women to start with next week. It’s a small community, but there are people who live across the main road in another community that might come once we get started. They always send their kids when we have Fiestas and VBS there. I am soooo excited to get to be with these women and to get to know them better. I know that God is going to grow each of us very much from this new opportunity.
This church is one that we have spent much time at over the last year. We have had teams come down and help provide (and do construction on) the walls and floor. They keep it clean with a broom made from tree limbs tied to a handle. They have built a little ‘lean-to’ type of structure that houses the outdoor fire pit and ‘kitchen’ that they use to prepare the meals for 120 kids each weekday. We are happy to be a part of this feeding ministry. Pastor Sergio is proud of the facility and the way that the church is stepping up to serve. I hope to get to go out to help at a feeding every once in a while, but the cost of a taxi out that far is kind of pricey. Maybe later when we have access to the van more of the time…
Leslie and I got back to the Mission House and waited for her husband to pick her up. We talked with Alberto about various things. He enjoys the company. Once Leslie left, I went to my room and fixed some cream of mushroom soup, veggie chips and ‘baked’ an apple in the microwave for dessert. Yummy.
I still have the internet cord, so I’ll get this posted and do other catching up on friends’ blogs to see what God is doing in other parts of the world. Then it will soon be bedtime.
Saturnino and Alberto are going to build and hang my shelves tomorrow (I think), so I have to move stuff from that end of the room. I can’t wait to get them up! I’ve been talking about them for weeks, huh?
Tomorrow is another English class. The guys said that they want to talk about religion again. I’m praying about getting the chance to share the Gospel with them. I am always happy for our time together for them to practice their English. And they are always so appreciative of me taking the time to work with them.
Friday will be the first day of Women’s Bible Study at Rose of Sharon CC church. Fun!!
If you want to help support the Women’s Bible Studies…
Please pray for the women and their families.
Make a $20 donation to the Voice of Hope Ministry website centralamericahope.org by clicking the donate button. Note that the money is for the Women’s Bibles and if you want a tax receipt, please note your name and address.
I can’t wait to present these ladies with their new Bibles and materials. It’s going to be so good to be with them every week. God is so good!
Tuesday, Oct 18, 2011 NICARAGUA
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
What a great day! It’s still rainy off and on, but not quite as bad as the previous few days. I woke up to a very light knock on my door. German was here to get his motorcycle and I had the key in my room (at Alberto’s suggestion). I’m sure they hated to bother me, but it was no big deal. I got up and did some exercises in my room since I don’t trust the weather enough to take long walks. Then I showered and dressed and fixed oatmeal for breakfast. The team that is staying here this week were sitting under the rancho having breakfast provided by the church that they are working with. The ladies asked if I was familiar with gallo pinto. Oh yeah… If you are in Nica for more than a day, you learn about this beans and rice breakfast item.
I got the chance to chat with the ladies a little bit more this morning. It was so fun to talk about their walk with the Lord and how He has called them to be here this week. Since they live in New Jersey, we shared a lot about living in NYC, too. They think I am pretty lucky to get to live here and serve full time and I agree. They left for their assignments for the day and we plan to talk more later in the week when we run into each other.
Mike and German went to Managua today and Sherry called to say that she and Manuel were staying at home today. So it was just me and Saturnino and Alberto. They guys were busy doing chores and I got out the sewing machine and made stuff out of towels and some fabric that I had brought with me. I ended up making more cleaning cloths for Aracelys and an apron for her, a skirt for Coco and cut up some more towels for a bathmat and a doormat.
I spent some time talking with Alberto while he enjoyed lunch. Saturnino was very busy today. At one point I could hear him talking to Alberto, but could only see Alberto. Then I looked up and there was Saturnino on the roof of one of the little building fixing a leak. If I understood Saturnino correctly, I think they will start on my shelves tomorrow. I finished up my sewing for now so that I can move stuff out of their way if need be.
I had some chicken noodle soup for lunch. Before long, it was time to get ready for English class. Juan is translating this week, so I am leading the class today and Thursday. I called a taxi because I didn’t trust the weather for walking. Last Thursday, I walked to class and got rained on 3 times. I wasn’t sure if I was going to have enough Córdovas for a taxi there and back. I hadn’t exchanged any US money lately. I had the taxi drop me off at the corner by the bank close to the English school. They only let a couple of people in at a time and there was already someone waiting there by the guard when I pulled up. So I decided to go on to the school and figure exchanging money later. But when I walked across the street there was a money exchange guy right there. They are out sometimes, but I hadn’t seen him at all until that moment. Hmmmm… Anyway, I exchanged some money and was ready for the next few days of taxis.
I got to the class first and looked through my Spanish book. Then Salvador came in and we had a really nice chat. He is pretty quiet and doesn’t talk as much as Jonathan in class, so it was good to have one on one time with him. Jonathan came rushing in and then Mario came a little later.
We discussed all kinds of things today; idioms, trips we’ve taken, where we would go if we could pick anywhere in the world, politics, and then they asked me to tell them about my life. That was a long story! At one point, Mario asked me what is the most important thing in my life. Well, I was ready to share about my Jesus!!! I could tell from their reactions to ‘religious’ conversations that they weren’t comfortable at first, but I asked pointed questions (just getting to know them) and they shared that Salvador and Jonathan are Catholic, but don’t go to church much. Mario doesn’t go at all. As we were talking, I asked them what would they say to God if He asked them why He should let them into Heaven. That got the ball rolling! I then talked about Christ and the only way to eternal life is through Him. We talked about religious denominations and how others worship and how Catholics pray to their saints (although the guys called them idols) and how some denominations care more about what you wear or how you look on the outside. We even talked about my tattoo and that it is a scripture reference about going out to tell people about Jesus. It was a very good discussion. Some healthy seeds were planted.
When I asked them what topic they want to discuss on Thursday, they say religion again. I’m going to present the Gospel and share the best I can. I’m so thankful for this opportunity to talk with them.
I can’t believe how well they speak English, especially after 7 weeks. They were telling me about an eclipse of the sun, asking how I feel about the US participation in the war in the Middle East, and numerous other things. It blows my mind how much they have learned. They are taking the 4 month class in accelerated time and are doing great. They want to learn English as much as I want to learn Spanish. Juan, the teacher came into the school as we were wrapping up. After class, we talked for a while and then he walked me to the corner and ordered some chicken for me from a street vendor that German had taken us to before. (hope it’s still safe) And then I got a taxi home.
Alberto opened the door for me and the group of 5 mission team was preparing to leave for church. They had to split up into 2 groups, so the ladies and 1 guy left in my taxi. While they were waiting for another taxi, I talked to the 2 other guys. It’s cool that they are Hispanic, live in the states and come here to stay while they are working in Nica. I feel that God has blessed me with such a treat in getting to meet them. Especially, since we can talk about NYC. We talked about learning other languages and doing mission work. I am really enjoying them.
I fixed a baked potato to go with my chicken and then settled in to do some hand sewing. I was really missing video stimulation, so I put a Disney movie that Sherry loaned me into my computer and watched Beauty and the Beast. That was a nice change of pace.
A group of people from the church that the mission team is working with came by to bag up the rice and beans to be given out to 100 families. It didn’t take them long to get everything prepared. Now it’s just me and Alberto until the team comes back from church service. I’ll probably be in bed by then, but I hope to see them in the morning.
I can’t wait to surprise Aracelys tomorrow morning with her new apron. And all I lack on Coco’s skirt is to put some elastic in the waist. It’s even hemmed. I wonder if I can find and afford elastic down here. We’ll see.
Tomorrow afternoon is the first Women’s Bible Study at Las Quimeras church. It will be so fun to get to know the ladies. I hope the rain holds off, because that road from the highway is all rugged dirt.
I guess I should head to bed for today. It’s been such a pleasant day. I love living here at the Mission House. So much better than the old one. Lots more opportunity to interact with people, too. Life is sweet!!!
What a great day! It’s still rainy off and on, but not quite as bad as the previous few days. I woke up to a very light knock on my door. German was here to get his motorcycle and I had the key in my room (at Alberto’s suggestion). I’m sure they hated to bother me, but it was no big deal. I got up and did some exercises in my room since I don’t trust the weather enough to take long walks. Then I showered and dressed and fixed oatmeal for breakfast. The team that is staying here this week were sitting under the rancho having breakfast provided by the church that they are working with. The ladies asked if I was familiar with gallo pinto. Oh yeah… If you are in Nica for more than a day, you learn about this beans and rice breakfast item.
I got the chance to chat with the ladies a little bit more this morning. It was so fun to talk about their walk with the Lord and how He has called them to be here this week. Since they live in New Jersey, we shared a lot about living in NYC, too. They think I am pretty lucky to get to live here and serve full time and I agree. They left for their assignments for the day and we plan to talk more later in the week when we run into each other.
Mike and German went to Managua today and Sherry called to say that she and Manuel were staying at home today. So it was just me and Saturnino and Alberto. They guys were busy doing chores and I got out the sewing machine and made stuff out of towels and some fabric that I had brought with me. I ended up making more cleaning cloths for Aracelys and an apron for her, a skirt for Coco and cut up some more towels for a bathmat and a doormat.
I spent some time talking with Alberto while he enjoyed lunch. Saturnino was very busy today. At one point I could hear him talking to Alberto, but could only see Alberto. Then I looked up and there was Saturnino on the roof of one of the little building fixing a leak. If I understood Saturnino correctly, I think they will start on my shelves tomorrow. I finished up my sewing for now so that I can move stuff out of their way if need be.
I had some chicken noodle soup for lunch. Before long, it was time to get ready for English class. Juan is translating this week, so I am leading the class today and Thursday. I called a taxi because I didn’t trust the weather for walking. Last Thursday, I walked to class and got rained on 3 times. I wasn’t sure if I was going to have enough Córdovas for a taxi there and back. I hadn’t exchanged any US money lately. I had the taxi drop me off at the corner by the bank close to the English school. They only let a couple of people in at a time and there was already someone waiting there by the guard when I pulled up. So I decided to go on to the school and figure exchanging money later. But when I walked across the street there was a money exchange guy right there. They are out sometimes, but I hadn’t seen him at all until that moment. Hmmmm… Anyway, I exchanged some money and was ready for the next few days of taxis.
I got to the class first and looked through my Spanish book. Then Salvador came in and we had a really nice chat. He is pretty quiet and doesn’t talk as much as Jonathan in class, so it was good to have one on one time with him. Jonathan came rushing in and then Mario came a little later.
We discussed all kinds of things today; idioms, trips we’ve taken, where we would go if we could pick anywhere in the world, politics, and then they asked me to tell them about my life. That was a long story! At one point, Mario asked me what is the most important thing in my life. Well, I was ready to share about my Jesus!!! I could tell from their reactions to ‘religious’ conversations that they weren’t comfortable at first, but I asked pointed questions (just getting to know them) and they shared that Salvador and Jonathan are Catholic, but don’t go to church much. Mario doesn’t go at all. As we were talking, I asked them what would they say to God if He asked them why He should let them into Heaven. That got the ball rolling! I then talked about Christ and the only way to eternal life is through Him. We talked about religious denominations and how others worship and how Catholics pray to their saints (although the guys called them idols) and how some denominations care more about what you wear or how you look on the outside. We even talked about my tattoo and that it is a scripture reference about going out to tell people about Jesus. It was a very good discussion. Some healthy seeds were planted.
When I asked them what topic they want to discuss on Thursday, they say religion again. I’m going to present the Gospel and share the best I can. I’m so thankful for this opportunity to talk with them.
I can’t believe how well they speak English, especially after 7 weeks. They were telling me about an eclipse of the sun, asking how I feel about the US participation in the war in the Middle East, and numerous other things. It blows my mind how much they have learned. They are taking the 4 month class in accelerated time and are doing great. They want to learn English as much as I want to learn Spanish. Juan, the teacher came into the school as we were wrapping up. After class, we talked for a while and then he walked me to the corner and ordered some chicken for me from a street vendor that German had taken us to before. (hope it’s still safe) And then I got a taxi home.
Alberto opened the door for me and the group of 5 mission team was preparing to leave for church. They had to split up into 2 groups, so the ladies and 1 guy left in my taxi. While they were waiting for another taxi, I talked to the 2 other guys. It’s cool that they are Hispanic, live in the states and come here to stay while they are working in Nica. I feel that God has blessed me with such a treat in getting to meet them. Especially, since we can talk about NYC. We talked about learning other languages and doing mission work. I am really enjoying them.
I fixed a baked potato to go with my chicken and then settled in to do some hand sewing. I was really missing video stimulation, so I put a Disney movie that Sherry loaned me into my computer and watched Beauty and the Beast. That was a nice change of pace.
A group of people from the church that the mission team is working with came by to bag up the rice and beans to be given out to 100 families. It didn’t take them long to get everything prepared. Now it’s just me and Alberto until the team comes back from church service. I’ll probably be in bed by then, but I hope to see them in the morning.
I can’t wait to surprise Aracelys tomorrow morning with her new apron. And all I lack on Coco’s skirt is to put some elastic in the waist. It’s even hemmed. I wonder if I can find and afford elastic down here. We’ll see.
Tomorrow afternoon is the first Women’s Bible Study at Las Quimeras church. It will be so fun to get to know the ladies. I hope the rain holds off, because that road from the highway is all rugged dirt.
I guess I should head to bed for today. It’s been such a pleasant day. I love living here at the Mission House. So much better than the old one. Lots more opportunity to interact with people, too. Life is sweet!!!
Monday, Oct 17, 2011 NICARAGUA
Monday, October 17, 2011
Another rainy day, but not the whole day. Just off and on. But when it starts raining, it pours. Everyone keeps saying ‘Just one more month of winter (rainy season)’. I’m ready for some sunshine! But it’s not depressing. Just refreshing and natural. It’s just a little unhandy sometimes.
I woke up this morning and stretched and fell back asleep until 8:30!!!! It felt wonderful, but I didn’t get my walk in. But it was raining off and on anyway. I sleep very well here. My bed is solid and a little bit hard, but I like it that way.
I had some quick cereal and a quick shower and some quick Bible study and then it was time to get busy around here. Aracelys was here cleaning and Saturnino and Alberto were working on the grounds. I thought I heard someone knocking at the little gate, but it was Saturnino and Alberto in the next room putting up curtain rods. By the way, you can’t buy ready made curtain rods here like in the states. You have to have them made out of wood. We’ve been waiting for the curtain rod guy for a bout a week. He couldn’t come because it was raining. ☺
German called to say that there was going to be meeting here and to make sure that Alberto got the tables and chairs put out. He was sweeping up the leaves on the ground and the wind would just blow them right back where they were. Poor guy. He was doing his best!
The first 2 people arrived for the meeting. Danilo was driving the van and I got a big hug from him. It was so good to see him. The couple are from the states and actually live in Noblesville IN, just an hour from where my family lives. They told me that they could hear a southern accent in my voice. I told them that I have lived in Arkansas for 21 years now, so it’s rubbing off on me.
Sherry and Manuel got here shortly after. Mike stayed home working on the computer. German arrived, as did others for the meeting. Sherry spoke with the Saturnino and Alberto (through Leslie) about their duties and how things are going and what materials they need for their chores. I got the chance to put a load of towels in the washer and Aracelys dried them for me. Sherry showed the guys how to vacuum the pool. They think it’s very ‘interesting’ to say the least. She explained that the pump needs to run 12 hours every day and that the bottom needs to be vacuumed everyday. Alberto seems to like skimming the top for leaves, too. It’s important to keep the pool as clean as possible here since the water is not filtered otherwise.
Manuel and I had our first 5 minutes of playing together today. He’s so funny. He seems to do well if he can get my (or anyone’s) undivided attention for a little while. Then he doesn’t mind so much having to share us with others. After playing, he decided to lay on my bed to rest and I sat in my rocker and we talked a little bit. His mom thought that was funny.
I asked Aracelys if she has a prefernce on styles of aprons. She wears one everyday when working. I’m going to make her some. She is such a hard worker and a very wonderful, sweet person.
Sherry, Manuel, Leslie and I went to have lunch and run errands. We get tired of eating chicken all the time (except for Manuel). Leslie was having a hard time figuring out restaurants for us gringos, since we need to have the food cooked with purified water, etc. Sherry remembered a new restaurant in down by the square. I think the name is Al Cabón. It was a very nice place and had delicious food. It took forever, but was worth the wait. The bathrooms were great, too. That’s a very important thing for down here.
We then went to a $1,2,3 store and found some mirrors for the rooms. I grabbed some little plastic bins to put my sewing notions in.
Then we were off to La Unión for groceries. You have to restock on fresh stuff every few days. I was out of OJ, milk and cereal. I’m good on everything else for now. Although, I always check the snackpack pudding aisle. They were down to the last package of chocolate and they don’t replenish for months, so I grabbed it for my little pantry. We split up at that point and Sherry and Manuel went home in one taxi and I went home in another. Leslie went home by bus, I think. The taxi I got in already had a fare going to a school. The guy decided we could drop off that kid and then take me home. On the way, he stopped to see 2 other people were going our way. He was making the best of his route! His taxi was missing the inside door panels. It’s funny to see the condition of vehicles here. You are thankful for anything than runs.
The people who are renting rooms this week got here finally. They are attending a conference and are staying here at the Mission House. This helps them out and also helps us out with the rent payment. I was told they were from El Salvador. I was talking with the ladies of the group and they told me that they speak English. I think the ladies are actually from the states. She said they left New Jersey this morning and was tired of travel. One of the guys said that it was one lady’s first time in Nica and the other’s 3rd time. One asked me what in the world brought me to Nica. I’m always glad to share my story. They got settled into their rooms and then left for dinner and the beginning of the conference. They got back this evening right when a downpour hit so I gave them some extra towels. I think I hear them outside on the veranda packaging the rice that they brought in huge bags. I hope to find out more about what they are doing this week. It’s always fun to see what God has people working on.
Our VOH Bible study was good tonight. Just German, Oscar, Me and Sherry were there, due to work schedules and the rain, of course. Mike did a good job of explaining things and we all had good discussions. German had ridden his motorcycle here and then the van was returned from its day of work, so German took everyone home and left the bike here. Good thing, since right when they were leaving it started a downpour. I told him that I would take the bike for a spin, but I don’t think he believed me.
Alberto’s nephew, Juvel is staying over tonight again. He is very nice and helps Alberto. Sherry had made some sandwiches and coffee for tonight and gave them some.
Coco came to take care of kids tonight during the Bible study. She only had Manuel and her son Joshua. She works for Sherry and is Aracelys’ aunt. She always wears her skirts with the zipper part way down, because they are too small for her. Sherry wants to give her some clothes. I asked Coco tonight if I could measure her waist to make her some skirts. She was very grateful. I can’t wait to whip some up for her. I don’t have much fabric here right now, but I’ll use what I have and then when I come back in Feb and when the FBCR team comes in March, I’ll have tons to use!
I talked to Juan Pacheco tonight (teacher at the English school). He has to work this week as a translator, and usually has to cancel his English classes when he is gone. This week, I’ll teach our little class so that the guys can still be there. I can’t wait. I enjoy so much our time together. I won’t be staying late this week, since Juan won’t be there to tutor me. I’ll have to spend more time studying on my own and surprise him next week!
I got my questions answered for the Tuesday morning Chronological Bible study back in Rogers. I usually email my answers to Cathy, our small group leader, to share with the class. Since I didn’t have access to the internet cord this time, I just called her and told her that I couldn’t send them. We had a nice chat. I told her to give my greetings to the gals. I really enjoy that study. I’m even ahead a few days on my reading. I can’t believe it will be finished in just a couple of months. Of course, I’m raring to go and start over again in January.
I guess I should go for now. Can’t think of much else to share for today. God has been gracious and generous with His blessings today. I’m going to sleep a very contented woman.
Another rainy day, but not the whole day. Just off and on. But when it starts raining, it pours. Everyone keeps saying ‘Just one more month of winter (rainy season)’. I’m ready for some sunshine! But it’s not depressing. Just refreshing and natural. It’s just a little unhandy sometimes.
I woke up this morning and stretched and fell back asleep until 8:30!!!! It felt wonderful, but I didn’t get my walk in. But it was raining off and on anyway. I sleep very well here. My bed is solid and a little bit hard, but I like it that way.
I had some quick cereal and a quick shower and some quick Bible study and then it was time to get busy around here. Aracelys was here cleaning and Saturnino and Alberto were working on the grounds. I thought I heard someone knocking at the little gate, but it was Saturnino and Alberto in the next room putting up curtain rods. By the way, you can’t buy ready made curtain rods here like in the states. You have to have them made out of wood. We’ve been waiting for the curtain rod guy for a bout a week. He couldn’t come because it was raining. ☺
German called to say that there was going to be meeting here and to make sure that Alberto got the tables and chairs put out. He was sweeping up the leaves on the ground and the wind would just blow them right back where they were. Poor guy. He was doing his best!
The first 2 people arrived for the meeting. Danilo was driving the van and I got a big hug from him. It was so good to see him. The couple are from the states and actually live in Noblesville IN, just an hour from where my family lives. They told me that they could hear a southern accent in my voice. I told them that I have lived in Arkansas for 21 years now, so it’s rubbing off on me.
Sherry and Manuel got here shortly after. Mike stayed home working on the computer. German arrived, as did others for the meeting. Sherry spoke with the Saturnino and Alberto (through Leslie) about their duties and how things are going and what materials they need for their chores. I got the chance to put a load of towels in the washer and Aracelys dried them for me. Sherry showed the guys how to vacuum the pool. They think it’s very ‘interesting’ to say the least. She explained that the pump needs to run 12 hours every day and that the bottom needs to be vacuumed everyday. Alberto seems to like skimming the top for leaves, too. It’s important to keep the pool as clean as possible here since the water is not filtered otherwise.
Manuel and I had our first 5 minutes of playing together today. He’s so funny. He seems to do well if he can get my (or anyone’s) undivided attention for a little while. Then he doesn’t mind so much having to share us with others. After playing, he decided to lay on my bed to rest and I sat in my rocker and we talked a little bit. His mom thought that was funny.
I asked Aracelys if she has a prefernce on styles of aprons. She wears one everyday when working. I’m going to make her some. She is such a hard worker and a very wonderful, sweet person.
Sherry, Manuel, Leslie and I went to have lunch and run errands. We get tired of eating chicken all the time (except for Manuel). Leslie was having a hard time figuring out restaurants for us gringos, since we need to have the food cooked with purified water, etc. Sherry remembered a new restaurant in down by the square. I think the name is Al Cabón. It was a very nice place and had delicious food. It took forever, but was worth the wait. The bathrooms were great, too. That’s a very important thing for down here.
We then went to a $1,2,3 store and found some mirrors for the rooms. I grabbed some little plastic bins to put my sewing notions in.
Then we were off to La Unión for groceries. You have to restock on fresh stuff every few days. I was out of OJ, milk and cereal. I’m good on everything else for now. Although, I always check the snackpack pudding aisle. They were down to the last package of chocolate and they don’t replenish for months, so I grabbed it for my little pantry. We split up at that point and Sherry and Manuel went home in one taxi and I went home in another. Leslie went home by bus, I think. The taxi I got in already had a fare going to a school. The guy decided we could drop off that kid and then take me home. On the way, he stopped to see 2 other people were going our way. He was making the best of his route! His taxi was missing the inside door panels. It’s funny to see the condition of vehicles here. You are thankful for anything than runs.
The people who are renting rooms this week got here finally. They are attending a conference and are staying here at the Mission House. This helps them out and also helps us out with the rent payment. I was told they were from El Salvador. I was talking with the ladies of the group and they told me that they speak English. I think the ladies are actually from the states. She said they left New Jersey this morning and was tired of travel. One of the guys said that it was one lady’s first time in Nica and the other’s 3rd time. One asked me what in the world brought me to Nica. I’m always glad to share my story. They got settled into their rooms and then left for dinner and the beginning of the conference. They got back this evening right when a downpour hit so I gave them some extra towels. I think I hear them outside on the veranda packaging the rice that they brought in huge bags. I hope to find out more about what they are doing this week. It’s always fun to see what God has people working on.
Our VOH Bible study was good tonight. Just German, Oscar, Me and Sherry were there, due to work schedules and the rain, of course. Mike did a good job of explaining things and we all had good discussions. German had ridden his motorcycle here and then the van was returned from its day of work, so German took everyone home and left the bike here. Good thing, since right when they were leaving it started a downpour. I told him that I would take the bike for a spin, but I don’t think he believed me.
Alberto’s nephew, Juvel is staying over tonight again. He is very nice and helps Alberto. Sherry had made some sandwiches and coffee for tonight and gave them some.
Coco came to take care of kids tonight during the Bible study. She only had Manuel and her son Joshua. She works for Sherry and is Aracelys’ aunt. She always wears her skirts with the zipper part way down, because they are too small for her. Sherry wants to give her some clothes. I asked Coco tonight if I could measure her waist to make her some skirts. She was very grateful. I can’t wait to whip some up for her. I don’t have much fabric here right now, but I’ll use what I have and then when I come back in Feb and when the FBCR team comes in March, I’ll have tons to use!
I talked to Juan Pacheco tonight (teacher at the English school). He has to work this week as a translator, and usually has to cancel his English classes when he is gone. This week, I’ll teach our little class so that the guys can still be there. I can’t wait. I enjoy so much our time together. I won’t be staying late this week, since Juan won’t be there to tutor me. I’ll have to spend more time studying on my own and surprise him next week!
I got my questions answered for the Tuesday morning Chronological Bible study back in Rogers. I usually email my answers to Cathy, our small group leader, to share with the class. Since I didn’t have access to the internet cord this time, I just called her and told her that I couldn’t send them. We had a nice chat. I told her to give my greetings to the gals. I really enjoy that study. I’m even ahead a few days on my reading. I can’t believe it will be finished in just a couple of months. Of course, I’m raring to go and start over again in January.
I guess I should go for now. Can’t think of much else to share for today. God has been gracious and generous with His blessings today. I’m going to sleep a very contented woman.
Sunday, Oct 16, 2011 NICARAGUA
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Nice and tired this evening. Got up early (after sleeping quite well, except for a drum procession going down the street towards the cemetery at 5am) and did my usual morning things. Got ready for church and sat and rocked and talked to God until German and the Hulsey’s picked me up for church. We went to pick up German’s family and then got to Rose of Sharon church at Country Club on time. Of course, that means we were about 30 minutes earlier than it actually started…
The music was good. Pastor Marvin leads the songs and he has a good voice. This church has a tin room and cement block walls most of the way up. They leave the top of the walls open for ventilation. It was raining off an on all day, really hard one minute and then nothing the next. It was raining in at the church and I moved up front to hear better and to try to stay dry. I enjoyed the message and it reminded me of being in church with Cuerpo Vivo back in Rogers. I try to listen and pick up what I can in Spanish. German was translating for Mike and Sherry and I didn’t want to be able to hear him, otherwise I wouldn’t try to pick up on the Spanish. I enjoyed it.
Pastor Marvin welcomed Voice of Hope to the service and mentioned that I would be starting the women’s Bible study on Friday. The ladies are excited. They are inviting lots of women from the community. I hope a lot of them come! Pastor Marvin also introduced me to Hermana Teresa, who kind of leads the women of ROSCC church. I told her that I was looking forward to spending time with her and the other ladies.
I found out that one of my favorite ladies at the church is actually Pastor Marvin’s mother. Her name is Maria Luisa. She is a dear. We prayed together before and she was supervising when I helped the ladies cook for the feeding one day. She always gives me a big hug and smile. I can’t wait to get to know the other ladies better.
After church, we went to Suyapa for lunch. I had my usual grilled fish. They were out of the boiled potatoes, so they brought me mashed potatoes. They were rolled into 4 little balls about the size of ping pong balls. They were good. My fish was grilled just right, very crispy on the bottom. Yum!
After lunch, we drove by the beach at Poneloya. The waves are so strong and scary. The beach is so beat up and eroded. It’s a hard time of the year for the beach.
We got back to the Mission House and a family was here to speak with German and Mike about having a Quinceaños here. It’s the party for the Quineñeros (girl who turns 15). The date is December 10. It will be quite a party.
It was still raining and the ground was pretty muddy. I’m ready for the sun to dry things up a bit. Maybe tomorrow…
Everyone went home and I came inside my room and started sewing. I made a cover for the stacking shelves that house my little pantry in my room. I also made a smaller cover for the shelves under the sink in my bathroom. Then I found some random fabric that I had used to pack around the sewing machine for bringing down here. It was just the right colors for my room. I made a long pillow cover for my body pillow and 2 regular size pillow covers for my bed pillows. During the day, I put these along the back of my bed to make it look like a daybed. It looks pretty good. Glad that God had me pack that particular piece of fabric!! It took about 3 hours to get everything made. I love the little sewing machine! It’s going to get a good work out around here!
I fixed a baked potato for dinner and had some pudding. Not very healthy, but yummy. I’m too tired to fix anything else. I skipped my nap in lieu of sewing, so I will be ready for bed soon.
Tomorrow is the beginning of a very busy week. Time to get crackin’!! Can’t wait to see what all God is going to do with us!
Nice and tired this evening. Got up early (after sleeping quite well, except for a drum procession going down the street towards the cemetery at 5am) and did my usual morning things. Got ready for church and sat and rocked and talked to God until German and the Hulsey’s picked me up for church. We went to pick up German’s family and then got to Rose of Sharon church at Country Club on time. Of course, that means we were about 30 minutes earlier than it actually started…
The music was good. Pastor Marvin leads the songs and he has a good voice. This church has a tin room and cement block walls most of the way up. They leave the top of the walls open for ventilation. It was raining off an on all day, really hard one minute and then nothing the next. It was raining in at the church and I moved up front to hear better and to try to stay dry. I enjoyed the message and it reminded me of being in church with Cuerpo Vivo back in Rogers. I try to listen and pick up what I can in Spanish. German was translating for Mike and Sherry and I didn’t want to be able to hear him, otherwise I wouldn’t try to pick up on the Spanish. I enjoyed it.
Pastor Marvin welcomed Voice of Hope to the service and mentioned that I would be starting the women’s Bible study on Friday. The ladies are excited. They are inviting lots of women from the community. I hope a lot of them come! Pastor Marvin also introduced me to Hermana Teresa, who kind of leads the women of ROSCC church. I told her that I was looking forward to spending time with her and the other ladies.
I found out that one of my favorite ladies at the church is actually Pastor Marvin’s mother. Her name is Maria Luisa. She is a dear. We prayed together before and she was supervising when I helped the ladies cook for the feeding one day. She always gives me a big hug and smile. I can’t wait to get to know the other ladies better.
After church, we went to Suyapa for lunch. I had my usual grilled fish. They were out of the boiled potatoes, so they brought me mashed potatoes. They were rolled into 4 little balls about the size of ping pong balls. They were good. My fish was grilled just right, very crispy on the bottom. Yum!
After lunch, we drove by the beach at Poneloya. The waves are so strong and scary. The beach is so beat up and eroded. It’s a hard time of the year for the beach.
We got back to the Mission House and a family was here to speak with German and Mike about having a Quinceaños here. It’s the party for the Quineñeros (girl who turns 15). The date is December 10. It will be quite a party.
It was still raining and the ground was pretty muddy. I’m ready for the sun to dry things up a bit. Maybe tomorrow…
Everyone went home and I came inside my room and started sewing. I made a cover for the stacking shelves that house my little pantry in my room. I also made a smaller cover for the shelves under the sink in my bathroom. Then I found some random fabric that I had used to pack around the sewing machine for bringing down here. It was just the right colors for my room. I made a long pillow cover for my body pillow and 2 regular size pillow covers for my bed pillows. During the day, I put these along the back of my bed to make it look like a daybed. It looks pretty good. Glad that God had me pack that particular piece of fabric!! It took about 3 hours to get everything made. I love the little sewing machine! It’s going to get a good work out around here!
I fixed a baked potato for dinner and had some pudding. Not very healthy, but yummy. I’m too tired to fix anything else. I skipped my nap in lieu of sewing, so I will be ready for bed soon.
Tomorrow is the beginning of a very busy week. Time to get crackin’!! Can’t wait to see what all God is going to do with us!
Saturday, Oct 15, 2011 NICARAGUA
Saturday, October 15, 2011
I woke up so relaxed this morning. I really slept well. The rain must have been a lullaby for me. I had oatmeal for breakfast, got my shower, did a little Bible study and hoped the rain would hold off so that I can get some laundry done.
I have many things on my to-do list. Some have sort-of deadlines and other can be done anytime. There’s always plenty to do, even when you live in one room and have a relatively simple schedule. I want to watch the video & read the instruction manual for the sewing machine (so I can have someone bring more bobbins and such down). I want to watch the instruction video for the Proclaimers (the devices that have the Bible recorded in Spanish) that I brought down to give to the small groups as we start them. I want to sew up the cover for my kitchen stacking shelves, and a cover for my new body pillow, and a bedspread. I want to study more to prepare for the women’s Bible study class next week. I want to diligently study my Spanish lesson book. I want to prepare the discussion outline for the English Academy classes next week. I want to cut apart the pieces for the patterns that I brought down from the states. I want to sew up some samples of the bags and other things in my plans. I have plenty of books to read on my Kindle. Sherry loaned me some Disney dvds to watch when I need a media fix. Social engagements with friends are always on my mind. And there is always time to be spent in my comfy rocker.
There is a birthday party hosted by a church that is going to happen here this afternoon. Some of the youth are here early to decorate. They are blowing up balloons and tieing them together in bunches and hanging them from the frame of the rancho (thatched roof living area). The rain and wind keep whipping up for a short time and then calming down and then whipping up again. The youth are doing a good job of holding on to everything. I hope it clears up and stays that way for the rest of the afternoon so that their party will be fun. Alberto’s son will be here, for this is his church. Maybe I will get to see his grandsons, who visited me last week.
I’m trying to get at least one load of laundry washed and dried today. The washer and dryer are outside a building, but under an awning. My main challenge is walking to them in the slippery mud and grass with all the rain. But it will be fine. I love to hang my clothes on the line to dry, but today’s weather is just too wet. We had our dryer fixed last week. It just keeps chugging along.
There was a small snake on the walk this morning. I called Alberto and Saturnino over to kill it. Alberto was amazed that I was afraid of snakes. I said this is truly the Garden of Eden now, we have our own snake. We also have some frogs. German said we can have a zoo and can charge people to come and see the animals. Haha. He’s always trying to find ways to support the ministry!!
Manuel called me this morning and asked me to send text messages to his imaginary friends. He said he slept well and was going to try to have a very good day. I told him I would pray for him to have a good day. He has some challenges that cause him to have emotional swings and other issues. He is a sweet boy and growing up is hard enough for anyone. I love spending time with him. He has such an imagination and such a heart to share Jesus with people. It’s a blessing to watch him grow up. I think he will get to stay here at the Mission House with me overnight some. That will be interesting. He will have a blast swimming. I hope the weather permits it! I know we will have lots of meetings!!
Better check on my laundry while the rain has taken a small break.
I woke up so relaxed this morning. I really slept well. The rain must have been a lullaby for me. I had oatmeal for breakfast, got my shower, did a little Bible study and hoped the rain would hold off so that I can get some laundry done.
I have many things on my to-do list. Some have sort-of deadlines and other can be done anytime. There’s always plenty to do, even when you live in one room and have a relatively simple schedule. I want to watch the video & read the instruction manual for the sewing machine (so I can have someone bring more bobbins and such down). I want to watch the instruction video for the Proclaimers (the devices that have the Bible recorded in Spanish) that I brought down to give to the small groups as we start them. I want to sew up the cover for my kitchen stacking shelves, and a cover for my new body pillow, and a bedspread. I want to study more to prepare for the women’s Bible study class next week. I want to diligently study my Spanish lesson book. I want to prepare the discussion outline for the English Academy classes next week. I want to cut apart the pieces for the patterns that I brought down from the states. I want to sew up some samples of the bags and other things in my plans. I have plenty of books to read on my Kindle. Sherry loaned me some Disney dvds to watch when I need a media fix. Social engagements with friends are always on my mind. And there is always time to be spent in my comfy rocker.
There is a birthday party hosted by a church that is going to happen here this afternoon. Some of the youth are here early to decorate. They are blowing up balloons and tieing them together in bunches and hanging them from the frame of the rancho (thatched roof living area). The rain and wind keep whipping up for a short time and then calming down and then whipping up again. The youth are doing a good job of holding on to everything. I hope it clears up and stays that way for the rest of the afternoon so that their party will be fun. Alberto’s son will be here, for this is his church. Maybe I will get to see his grandsons, who visited me last week.
I’m trying to get at least one load of laundry washed and dried today. The washer and dryer are outside a building, but under an awning. My main challenge is walking to them in the slippery mud and grass with all the rain. But it will be fine. I love to hang my clothes on the line to dry, but today’s weather is just too wet. We had our dryer fixed last week. It just keeps chugging along.
There was a small snake on the walk this morning. I called Alberto and Saturnino over to kill it. Alberto was amazed that I was afraid of snakes. I said this is truly the Garden of Eden now, we have our own snake. We also have some frogs. German said we can have a zoo and can charge people to come and see the animals. Haha. He’s always trying to find ways to support the ministry!!
Manuel called me this morning and asked me to send text messages to his imaginary friends. He said he slept well and was going to try to have a very good day. I told him I would pray for him to have a good day. He has some challenges that cause him to have emotional swings and other issues. He is a sweet boy and growing up is hard enough for anyone. I love spending time with him. He has such an imagination and such a heart to share Jesus with people. It’s a blessing to watch him grow up. I think he will get to stay here at the Mission House with me overnight some. That will be interesting. He will have a blast swimming. I hope the weather permits it! I know we will have lots of meetings!!
Better check on my laundry while the rain has taken a small break.
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