One Heart: Exciting adventures!

We had a very busy weekend full of action! Sunday we woke up and went running together and if you like hills Jamaica is the place for you! It was a lot of work but felt very refreshing after we were done! It was also nice to be out in the community and say good morning to our neighbors! We came back and the children who board here at the school came running out to play with us! We started a game of volleyball with the kids and also a group that is here for stroke camp. They come and work alongside Brooke, Larry, and Beth (who are physical therapists that live here in Jamaica)and they provide free clinics for people who have had strokes. The kids are so funny and competitive! We enjoy their enthusiasm and really enjoy playing with them. They are so helpful and teach us so much sign language! We are very thankful for all their help in teaching us and all the teachers helps as well. I really feel God is opening our minds to learn sign language and we pray that we can continually learn! After awhile of playing we started to get hungry and decided to go eat breakfast. Something we have been eating almost every morning for breakfast is sliced avocado that we put on toast with salt and pepper. Let me tell you, it is AMAZING! I love avocados which here they call pears and are very common here. We went to our first church service at Ridge Mennonite! The service started at 11:00/11:30 ish and ended at 1:00 if I remember correctly. Ridge meets in the chapel that the Children meet in each morning. It's a very small church and much different then our church at home! We started by singing hymns all accapella, and then adding in clapping later on. It was beautiful and the people sang with lots of energy and excitement! I am usually not a big hymn person but I am learning to appreciate them more and more. They also used a tambourine and that was really neat to be singing and clapping with. The sermon was about not being idle and I felt thankful for the reminder that we are here to serve God with our life in all things we do. How are we working for the Kingdom if we are idle? After church we quick ate lunch and left for Kingston. This was a long, bumpy, 3 hour drive. After arriving in Kingston and working through some unpredictable troubles we ended up at Pastor Douglass's house who is the pastor at Good Tidings Mennonite Church in Kingston. We had a great time fellowshipping with the family and by the end of the night I was ready for bed! We also got to try some traditional Jamaican wedding cake because his daughter just got married and it was strong of Rum! I took one bight and could not eat anymore! Our cakes here are light and fluffy and this cake was very beautiful but also very dense. Gloria had told us that she had a small piece at the wedding and it was so strong she couldn't wake up the next day! After we left their home we checked into a hotel. We began the next morning early and had to take our van to the "Fitness" place to make sure it passed. Here they call an inspection and fitness test. After being their for a little while we left to travel deeper into Kingston to go to the immigration center. Kingston is a busy, busy place! Their is a lot of traffic and a lot of people! It was an experience! As we got to the immigration center I was praying that it would go smoothly and quickly. I am starting to learn that life can be very unpredictable here so I really have to trust God with ALL things! We went in and got a number ticket and waited for a little bit. When we got called in we had to fill out some paper work to extend our visas. Everything went great but we have to return to Kingston at the end of this week to pick up our visas! Ah! We didn't really understand why they didn't just stamp them right there and then because everything was done but you have to be ready for the unpredictability. From their we traveled to Sister Val's home who is a wonderful, friend of Galen and Gloria's. She had a beautiful home and was so kind! We enjoyed meeting her and hope to build a strong relationship with her! Her home was the last stop and we began our journey home! Caleb got to drive almost the whole way home and he did awesome! He is so confident driving here even despite all the craziness on the road! He did great! Tuesday Caleb did some work with Galen around the school while I observed in the classes. I get to observe this whole week and then begin teaching next week! I am a little nervous but I am ready for the challenge! Pray that I will keep soaking in sign language so I can teach! We also had some time to "facetime" our families and it was so great to talk to them and be able to see them! I am so thankful that we are able to see them even though we are far away! It was very refreshing! Last night we had another traditional Jamaican dinner and here they serve the WHOLE fish, eyes and everything! I don't think I ever have eaten a whole fish like that. They told us that the head of the fish is a delicacy, but I just couldn't get my self to eat it and neither could caleb! Today I will do more observing and learning in the classrooms and Caleb is learning how to butcher his first pig today with Brenton and Omar! So far it looks like its going well! He told me its like butchering a deer! Thank you all so much for your prayers! We are very blessed to have so many supportive friends, family and church family praying for us! :)

Our friend Omar helping to butcher the pig! Caleb did a great job helping and he took the pictures. I was no where near that pig!

Caleb getting into it!

This was common when we were in Kingston to see people walking up to cars at stop lights selling bananas, news papers, steering wheel covers, flowers and many other things!