Tuesday the team went to Alona Beach Resort. This was my final day with the team, and also the first day of rest for me. We woke up early, had Bible study and headed off to the Resort. We arrived there while it was still overcast. It was still warm and the pool was very inviting. We ate lunch and that is when the sun decided to shine through. After lunch we all went out to the ocean where 4 of our team members decided to be baptized. It was such a touching moment as Joshua baptized them, including his daughter. I then was blessed to receive my $5, one-hour massage, lying in the beach, in the shade of several palm trees. It was heaven! I then attempted to lay out to get rid of my farmer tan, but it was SO hot in the direct sun. I could only last 10 minutes laying there, and have to jump in the pool to cool off... I know, life was hard! I got some good sun, a tan though, not a burn. Since it was the last free day for the team, they wanted to go shopping for gifts for people at home. I tagged along, as they were my ride home later that evening. We went for our last dinner at Pizza Hut in the city. They know Joshua now by name. I think it was our 4th time eating there in the 3 weeks I've been there. They dropped me off at BDA later that evening.
Since being back at BDA, I guess it was really only been 3 nights that I slept there this week, it hasn't been too busy. The Filipino cultures is extremely laid back. And for me, coming in volunteering, there aren't too many expectations. I arrived back at my house, around 9, to hundreds of ants dead and alive. I went to town sweeping them up and spraying my Raid on every windowsill and doorway. I then found a ton of ants coming out a tiny hole in the wall. I sprayed continuously wanting the Raid to soak in. I came back a while later, after unpacking, to see hundreds of ants struggling for their lives in the pool of Raid on the floor... including bigger ants and bugs. I let them be as I was sopping wet with sweat as I tried to clean everything up. I took a cold shower. There isn't any warm or hot water in the shower or the sinks. It's taken some getting used to but I'm actually thankful for it now. This night, I took a shower just to cool off a bit. I was SO hot. So I just stood there, waiting for my body to cool down.
The next morning I woke up casually as I didn't really have an agenda at the school. Only, I had no water. I HAD to take a shower. I hadn't washed my hair the night before, and our electricity was out for quite a while that night, which meant no fan for a while. I was sweaty again. Actually, I don't think there's not a time when I'm not sweating... except for now, sitting in the AC of the Sunrise House. Having no water has happened a few times before, usually lasting only a few minutes. So I turned on my kitchen sink water and sat down to do my quiet time. Four hours later, I was still waiting for the water to come on. I guess the Lord needed some good quality time with me, as I had a nice long quiet time! At 12:30 the water finally came on and I jumped in the shower. Later on that afternoon I met with the administrator. I shared with her some concerns and positive things I've seen on campus. I gave some suggestions as to what I could do in my remaining 3 weeks here. Her and Dennis, IDEA founder, had met on Monday and decided that they want me to give the teachers a seminar on a Saturday while I'm here, yikes! We discussed possible topics and have a very broad idea of what the 8 hours is going to look like. I guess by broad I mean, I know that I'm going to do a PowerPoint discussing three topics: DHH Teaching Style, Visual Aids, and Vocabulary. Other than that, that's why I'm back here at the Sunrise House. I need to have accessible internet using my computer in order to do more research as all my books are home. I'll be here Saturday and Sunday and leave Monday morning. I'll be able to do all my research at least and then start putting my PowerPoint together as my seminar will be next Saturday, the 19th. Pray that it will all be put together smoothly!
Wednesday night is Bible study night at BDA. The team came for their last night to see the students. They performed two of their dramas again, as a lot of the students were not able to come to our weekend retreat to see them. The same person who wouldn't allow our friend to come see us at the elementary school (see previous blog), wrote on the permission slip that Joshua's team was a "born-again Christian" group. While that is true, the "born-again" vocabulary is very shunned here in Bohol. Many parents told their student that they couldn't come because of that. So, we brought the dramas to them! They were SO powerful! The team gave 110% while performing these dramas, I was brought to tears and I've seen them many times! We had the Bible study with about 80 students (the school has 86), while I voice interpreted for our team and a few French college students who are here for a while. They will be building a canteen for the campus. It was a great night, though hard to say good-bye to the team. They were to be leaving Friday morning. They were a great team, and we've had some great discussions. I've had some wonderful opportunities to share freedom and spiritual warfare with them. Hopefully I'll be able to remain in contact with those I've really connected with, as I wasn't around a bunch during their down time. There are more conversations that I'd like to have once I get back. They are hungry for more of Jesus!
Thursday and Friday were pretty low key. I observed and hung out in classes both days, but with a relaxed schedule. This means that I was able to come and go as a pleased. A nap was taken both days, mid-day! Pretty rough huh? BUT, for those who don't know, I haven't had a drop of coffee since I've been here! They have excellent coffee but I decided I wasn't going to drink it here, knowing I would get sleep. Obviously now I am, taking a nap in the middle of the day!
Today I observed four dramas by the senior students, and helped the teacher critique them. That was fun, seeing what they came up with. Next week I have many times scheduled for observing different teachers. One teacher specifically has been asking me a ton of questions. He recently graduated, in May, and has now just started his second month of teaching. He is Deaf himself and has great communication with the students. I've observed him a few times before and have discussed some things with him. He feels frustrated a lot but is very humble, asking for my advice. I'll be teaching a few math lessons for him next week and will then observe him teach the same lesson I taught. Other than that, I'll probably be working on my PowerPoint getting ready for the seminar next week.
Pray for continued peace here! I'm fortunate to have a lot of spare time on my hands. I've been spending a lot of time in the Word, listening to pod casts, reading books and watching MacGeyver. Yes, MacGeyver for those of you who remember watching that in the 80s! One of the teachers has the first season so I'm watching that while I eat. It's so funny, the 80s. I will continue to have email at BDA. I can check it and respond on an almost daily basis. But I won't be able to post pictures from my computer as I have to use their computer. Thank you for those of you who have emailed and/or commented on my blogs! Thank you for your continued prayers as well!
Since being back at BDA, I guess it was really only been 3 nights that I slept there this week, it hasn't been too busy. The Filipino cultures is extremely laid back. And for me, coming in volunteering, there aren't too many expectations. I arrived back at my house, around 9, to hundreds of ants dead and alive. I went to town sweeping them up and spraying my Raid on every windowsill and doorway. I then found a ton of ants coming out a tiny hole in the wall. I sprayed continuously wanting the Raid to soak in. I came back a while later, after unpacking, to see hundreds of ants struggling for their lives in the pool of Raid on the floor... including bigger ants and bugs. I let them be as I was sopping wet with sweat as I tried to clean everything up. I took a cold shower. There isn't any warm or hot water in the shower or the sinks. It's taken some getting used to but I'm actually thankful for it now. This night, I took a shower just to cool off a bit. I was SO hot. So I just stood there, waiting for my body to cool down.
The next morning I woke up casually as I didn't really have an agenda at the school. Only, I had no water. I HAD to take a shower. I hadn't washed my hair the night before, and our electricity was out for quite a while that night, which meant no fan for a while. I was sweaty again. Actually, I don't think there's not a time when I'm not sweating... except for now, sitting in the AC of the Sunrise House. Having no water has happened a few times before, usually lasting only a few minutes. So I turned on my kitchen sink water and sat down to do my quiet time. Four hours later, I was still waiting for the water to come on. I guess the Lord needed some good quality time with me, as I had a nice long quiet time! At 12:30 the water finally came on and I jumped in the shower. Later on that afternoon I met with the administrator. I shared with her some concerns and positive things I've seen on campus. I gave some suggestions as to what I could do in my remaining 3 weeks here. Her and Dennis, IDEA founder, had met on Monday and decided that they want me to give the teachers a seminar on a Saturday while I'm here, yikes! We discussed possible topics and have a very broad idea of what the 8 hours is going to look like. I guess by broad I mean, I know that I'm going to do a PowerPoint discussing three topics: DHH Teaching Style, Visual Aids, and Vocabulary. Other than that, that's why I'm back here at the Sunrise House. I need to have accessible internet using my computer in order to do more research as all my books are home. I'll be here Saturday and Sunday and leave Monday morning. I'll be able to do all my research at least and then start putting my PowerPoint together as my seminar will be next Saturday, the 19th. Pray that it will all be put together smoothly!
Wednesday night is Bible study night at BDA. The team came for their last night to see the students. They performed two of their dramas again, as a lot of the students were not able to come to our weekend retreat to see them. The same person who wouldn't allow our friend to come see us at the elementary school (see previous blog), wrote on the permission slip that Joshua's team was a "born-again Christian" group. While that is true, the "born-again" vocabulary is very shunned here in Bohol. Many parents told their student that they couldn't come because of that. So, we brought the dramas to them! They were SO powerful! The team gave 110% while performing these dramas, I was brought to tears and I've seen them many times! We had the Bible study with about 80 students (the school has 86), while I voice interpreted for our team and a few French college students who are here for a while. They will be building a canteen for the campus. It was a great night, though hard to say good-bye to the team. They were to be leaving Friday morning. They were a great team, and we've had some great discussions. I've had some wonderful opportunities to share freedom and spiritual warfare with them. Hopefully I'll be able to remain in contact with those I've really connected with, as I wasn't around a bunch during their down time. There are more conversations that I'd like to have once I get back. They are hungry for more of Jesus!
Thursday and Friday were pretty low key. I observed and hung out in classes both days, but with a relaxed schedule. This means that I was able to come and go as a pleased. A nap was taken both days, mid-day! Pretty rough huh? BUT, for those who don't know, I haven't had a drop of coffee since I've been here! They have excellent coffee but I decided I wasn't going to drink it here, knowing I would get sleep. Obviously now I am, taking a nap in the middle of the day!
Today I observed four dramas by the senior students, and helped the teacher critique them. That was fun, seeing what they came up with. Next week I have many times scheduled for observing different teachers. One teacher specifically has been asking me a ton of questions. He recently graduated, in May, and has now just started his second month of teaching. He is Deaf himself and has great communication with the students. I've observed him a few times before and have discussed some things with him. He feels frustrated a lot but is very humble, asking for my advice. I'll be teaching a few math lessons for him next week and will then observe him teach the same lesson I taught. Other than that, I'll probably be working on my PowerPoint getting ready for the seminar next week.
Pray for continued peace here! I'm fortunate to have a lot of spare time on my hands. I've been spending a lot of time in the Word, listening to pod casts, reading books and watching MacGeyver. Yes, MacGeyver for those of you who remember watching that in the 80s! One of the teachers has the first season so I'm watching that while I eat. It's so funny, the 80s. I will continue to have email at BDA. I can check it and respond on an almost daily basis. But I won't be able to post pictures from my computer as I have to use their computer. Thank you for those of you who have emailed and/or commented on my blogs! Thank you for your continued prayers as well!
1 comment:
so wonderful!! :) :) i'm glad that you're getting the rest you need. :) and the tan.. so not fair! ;)
Jessica D.
Post a Comment