Day 6, Thursday, June 13th

The night had been extremely difficult for me. My stomach was crampy and nauseated throughout. I woke up, took my shower and then laid back down again and fell asleep. The girls got up and I lay there thinking, "This is our last day here and I feel like crap! How am I going to do this?"

So, about 10 minutes before we had to meet in the lobby of the hotel, I got up. We had to walk on this day as our bus driver, Vinson, was driving the other group to the water taxi for their day of R&R. We were up in the mountains and the hills were steep. I could do it. I'm a fitness instructor- let's see how I do in the heat exerting energy while feeling sick.

I lagged. Took my time. Kayla walked with me. She mentioned that she was kind of glad I wasn't feeling 100% as seeing me have so much energy and doing so much was somehow making her not feel as positive about what she was giving or doing on the trip. Something like that. I didn't take offense. I actually understand it. I have been told similar things before. Sometimes, people are somehow intimidated (not sure if that's the best word) by a person with my personality. I am a "go-getter". I make lists and check them off. I give as much as I can to whatever I am doing, or to me, it isn't worth doing. I don't care what other people choose to do- but I somehow can cause others (unintentionally to feel like less- or be intimidated by). I was once a Strength's Coach for Gallop. This Coaching helps people see the way they "do life" in a positive light. It isn't uncommon for people to hear negative comments from others who don't understand how they operate and when you can get an appreciation for how you operate and how others do it helps teams work together, people feel better about how they are and helps people take on roles and jobs that best suit them. My top five themes (which make up how I do life) are "Achiever"- list making and checking off then starting a new list, "Maximizer"- make good better or best- don't bother if it isn't going to happen or isn't a strength of mine- let someone else, "Relator"-relating to people- do well one on one or small groups, "Strategic"- always thinking "what if" looking at possibilities, "Responsibility"- If I say I am going to do it, I am going to... or I will kill myself trying! Now, don't get me wrong. I also relax and play with the same passion and conviction as I work. When I take a day off- I DO NOTHING. AT. ALL. When I play, I PLAY HARD! I say all this to say- no matter how you are made- you have been made in such a way to do whatever is in front of you to do in a unique way! Being different from another isn't bad- it's actually very good as it helps give well-roundedness to the world or project and more completion than if it was only one way accomplished from one viewpoint or one standard or one way of doing it. BE YOU! YOU are NEEDED!! :)


Kayla and I stop at the store right before the church and she buys me a ginger ale. I am trying to feel good and have energy!



So, we get there.... I am giving it the best shot I have. I DO NOT WANT TO MISS THE LAST DAY!
However, I couldn't eat. I was forcing pieces of breakfast fruit down my throat little by little- but it was VERY little. Ginger ale....that was good. Canada Dry- just like at home. I helped put the frames together for VBS. This require little from me. I wouldn't help finish painting today. I would keep laying low and see how far I could push myself. I soon found myself exhausted. I would succumb to it from time to time - but tried to deny it as well. I joked with the students... slept. Tried to do the Cha-Cha slide.... slept. Weird thing was I was sleeping on the tiled floor with no pillow or blanket, loud music playing and people all around me talking loudly. (Totally out of character for me. I usually need complete darkness, no noise and comfort.)



So, eventually, it was time for lunch and I just couldn't bring myself to eat. I kept making myself drink water. I was extremely tired of the water. Jen, one of the PPM staff asked me what I would be able to consume. I needed to have SOMETHING. I said, "Chicken Noodle soup, saltines and ginger ale- but I already had ginger ale- gatorade was probably a better choice." She did what she could to get me some! Along with her air mattress and a fan so I could sleep more comfortably until the bus arrived and could take me back to the hotel and the air conditioning.

Sleep. That was all I could do.



We got to the hotel and I went to my bed right beside the window air conditioner. I slept another couple of hours before I was finally able to sit up and eat the Ramen noodles and the crackers Jen brought me. I also drank the gatorade she got and then I finished off the water I had in my bottle. Water had to be filtered there. I didn't dare walk outside to go find some or get more Gatorade. What if I was too weak? What if I fainted? I took a quick, cold shower to ensure I was cooling off. Then I decided to lay down and sleep more- after I emailed home to have some human connection. I didn't feel well and I think I was alone for about 5 hours.... I needed some human companionship- and reassurance. Tired, I fell back asleep. Around 9:30 my daughters came in with more Gatorade and filled my water bottle with more water. This was some sort of heat exhaustion, I was suffering from. I had every hope that when I woke up in the morning I would feel much better. Have I ever slept so much in my life? I don't think so. But, again, I went to bed and didn't wake up until the alarm sounded the next day!

My comfort foods from Jen-

 

Our room-



Bathroom-

 

The hotel "kitchen" - the family that owns it also lives there- they let me make coffee in the morning :)



Hotel Hallway to the rooms and balcony-

Wednesday, June 12th Day 5

Per usual we wake up and get ready to arrive at the church by 8am for breakfast.
I am not looking forward to this day as much because I realize that it is our last day working with St. Richard's Church from Jackson, Mississippi.

The whole trip- outside of the day we arrived- people have been saying that you cannot tell us apart. We really teamed up right from the beginning. They are a GREAT group. They have more girls represented, just like us, their teens were about the same ages as ours, they also brought three leaders. The difference was- they were Catholic and we were Protestant. But, that never got in the way. We talked openly about our differences and they were gracious as our students asked questions about their theology.



For me, I was raised in a crazy environment. My dad was Jehovah's Witness. My mom took me to all kinds of churches on her weekends so I could see what else was out there other than JW's as my dad took me to the Kingdom Hall on the weekends I was with him. Then, when I was about 11, my mom married a man who was Catholic. Back then, I despised religion. Everyone thought they were "right" and others were "wrong". I thought it was a bunch of garbage because from what I read- Jesus wanted us to live in peace and be unified.... I called it hypocrisy and stopped going. But, that is another story! Let's just say, though, that my opinion never changed. Unity was where it was and is and I was glad we were at a Baptist church working with a Catholic church and we came from a Christian church! ;)

So, today, we had some training time with Praying Pelican on sharing our testimonies. One of our leaders, Andy, shared his with our whole group first. We had some similarities in our stories....I knew I liked this kid! He had a little bit of a rough road and now look at him-he was working with youth and reaching out to others. A tattoo on his foot said Romans 10:15. He was living that life. :) After he shared, we broke into groups of 3-4 and shared our stories. It bonded us even more! I had 2 young ladies from St. Richards in my group and 1 of their leaders. Hannah had been a Christian always and yet she had never grown stale- she is very passionate about her faith and sharing it- not common for a lot of the whole-life Christian kids I know. Ramsay- she was a compassionate soul and some of that has stemmed from having a sibling with some kind of disability. It was a privilege to hear them both.I was proud of them, and I barely knew them! Amelia- their leader. She was one that I really felt closer to at the end of our sharing time. I wished we had done this activity earlier in the week!

Next up- The nursing home! I adore elderly people. This would be one activity I had been looking forward to all week. I used to visit and take care of my grandmothers quite a bit. They have been gone for a while now and I miss having them around. The were wise, funny and SO loving.









We begin by talking with the residents of the home. I talked with about 8 of them and each one shared that they were so happy to be living in this home. I was happy for them and a bit perplexed... in the US, you seldom hear about people being happy living in a nursing home!!





We sand hymns with them. Mostly we sang- but some of them joined us and others just sat back and  enjoyed the music.... Thank goodness for Conner- he lead our group well! Our church doesn't sing hymns often. We are more contemporary.







Next, we danced for them using some of the songs we were dancing to at VBS. To my surprise, they really enjoyed this! A couple of them joined us in dancing! This made my heart happy!









Finally, they played some of their music and low and behold- more joined in! A lady grabbed a hold of me and started dancing with me! I was in heaven!

They were holding our hands, kissing our cheeks, the out-pour of love was overwhelming to my heart! It was soon time to go and as we got on the bus I placed my sunglasses on my face so my tears wouldn't be so noticeable. My heart was deeply touched that we had gone there to be a blessing to them and yet they had blessed us SO MUCH!

We came back to lunch and VBS. We seemed to grow more each day! Amazing since it was exam week at the schools! I was feeling a little off today. I had been taking my vitamins. But, got dizzy a couple times. I was forcing myself to drink the water which I was actually very sick of by now. It was always warm and had additives I could taste. (The clean, crisp cold water of Colorado had spoiled me, I decided) I also continued to try to make myself eat. Although I liked the Plantains and Coconut Rice we had each lunch, I was tiring of having them each day. I guess variety is also something I am spoiled by!  It's always the little things that matter, isn't it? The humidity and heat wasn't bothering me as much anymore. The sweat sort of felt good. I am crazy like that, I love to work out, sweat and feel the burn.... lol.


This evening after dinner, we left the church as they had a Men's Bible Study. We went down town again and this time, we were allowed to do some shopping and purchase our own snack! PIZZA!!!!!!

 

(I am thinking back and I don't know how it happened....but somehow, we left on a bus away from the St. Richard kids.... maybe only our group went downtown. I was with the other female leader from my team and the female leader from PPM, so it is hard for me to say. But, I remember lots of hugs and gathering all of their first and last names so our group could find them on Facebook, etc.  We made them a big picture with little sentiments and signatures....It was hard to imagine going to the church the next morning and them not being there with us. We were blessed that this group ended up being placed with us kind of last minute!)

After our big meeting time together, we went back to our hotel and it was my turn to lead our study with our team of 16. The reading was Matthew 3:1-17. I had someone read it out loud to the group as not everyone had done it in the morning. I liked this study, although the questions just seemed to review what you read and that bored me some. So, I made some of my own questions.

1. What do we have in common with John?
 Some answers:We left comforts of home. Left relationships- understanding our mission for the week we aren't looking back. Leaving internet, TV, ice....

2. Why is what we are doing here on this mission important?
Some answers: Church from different places working together. Poor area- painting, cleaning, making life better. Body of Christ coming together. Telling about Jesus' love at VBS and sharing life with natives.

3. Why do you think God included this Scripture in His word? (This one is from the book)
Some answers: Shows us to tell people about Jesus. Prepare people to know God. My biggest take- John saying that the work he was doing was nothing compared to the one after him- Jesus. We do what we can to plant water a seed- but ultimately it is GOD who makes things really happen! What we do is nothing compared to what He does and is doing!!

We prepared for the next day- planning session.

I was feeling pretty queezey. It would not be a good night of rest for this girl!

Day 4 - Tuesday

This day was the day I felt it all come together. I felt like my prayers and patience in waiting for God's plan to unfold developed on this day.
We woke up in time again to leave for the church and breakfast at 7:45am. After Breakfast today, we have a little down time to go and see the Mayan Ruins! This is pretty cool, I think. I feel like we traveled North, South, East and West in Belize and I appreciated this as it gave me time to see more of the entire country than just one little aspect. Since we arrived, I had made it my goal to take everything I could in. Billboards, homes, businesses, streets, people- I wanted to try to grasp as much as I could about the place, it's culture and it's people. I had already realized that poverty was everywhere, HIV and AIDS were a big deal, relationships were important (rarely did I see a person all alone- usually they had groups  doing things together.) The ladies and children are a bit shy as far as I can tell, but they are also super friendly and willing to make friends. Men are men- Some of them say comments to women when you walk by. They are more outgoing and sure of themselves it seems.... not too much different than back home- except that they may be a little more forward in their approach! ;)




So, we board our charter bus and head out for a field trip! FEELING EXCITED!!









 









    

  

  

  

  

  

I love the view from the top of peaks! Mountain peaks- but even this one from on top of the Temple. It gives me some sort of comfort in knowing that as an imperfect human being, I have no ability to regularly see the big picture. I see whatever is in front, behind, beside or above me- sometimes, it isn't much as what is near me looks bigger than me..... But, God, He can see the whole picture ALWAYS! I can take comfort in this when I am unsure or afraid or feeling overwhelmed. God sees all and has a plan for it all..... I just need to follow His lead.

 

Following His lead. That is what happened up there that day. It began to rain as we stood up on this monument. How glorious! I love the rain- but especially when I am hot! Refreshing! However, this made some people a little scared. Instantly, my mom mode kicked in and my safety training from various activities though life. It makes me humbled and grateful that as life unfolds you can see how things from your past can be used to help others in the present. Calmly directing people as they climb back down. "Stay low. It's slippery. Go slow. Try to use both feet and both hands. You can do it. Good job." Sometimes, it just helps to hear affirmation. A reminder of what you already know. Everyone made it down safely. It was beautiful.

As we get ready to head out, the other leaders ask for a picture of the three of us together! :) This makes me smile on the inside and the outside. :) Comradery is a beautiful thing!



And, as we are heading back out- a CUTE MONKEY!!!!! I LOVE MONKEYS!!!! This is my first time seeing one in the wild! :) Happy Day!

 

This is truly a beautiful place.....

  



A little time to relax before VBS after lunch and we go back to the hotel. Today, a group of almost all of the girls on the trip came to our room (Our room was a bit different now- Kayla, the other leader and my oldest daughter, Shyanna, went to another room and Haley joined our room.) We had a little time to talk. One of my very favorite things to do is listen to teens. They have a lot of insights that I think many adults just over-look or take for granted. These ladies are intelligent, they have some life-concerns and some ideas about life. It is always helpful to open up to people you can trust and share your thoughts, struggles, fears, joys, likes and dislikes. We are built for relationship with other people and with God. I am feeling extremely blessed to have growing relationships with these young ladies and to see them growing in relationships with each other and God on this trip! Yes, God is showing me why I am there.... and I am loving it!

WOW! Back to the church and VBS is GROWING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)

 today we have over 100 kids!! Amazing!

We meet as a team again after everything is over. St Richards and Rocky and PPM.
Then we have our own little team meeting. Tonight, Ben has asked Kayla to lead the meeting time and we are able to go have a little ice cream snack in the city and sit outside to do it! Pretty cool!



I wondered what the local thought about us praising God right there in the middle of everything..... Some people stopped to look at us and observe a bit- but not many.

Today was a good day. A turning point where you could really see relationships growing. This was an answer to one of my prayers. THANKFUL!! <3 p="">