June 26, 2010 - Lice?

So, last night while I was interpreting for Zach while he was teaching... I itched right under my hairline on the back of my neck. There was a bug there and I was able to get it under my fingernail in order to look at it. I'm not sure exactly what it was, but I'm pretty sure it was a lice bug. I didn't freak out because I was up in front of the campers interpreting but it did distract me and gross me out for the remainder of the night. I checked my head that night and didn't see anything so I prayed and prayed that it was that one bug and my head would be clear of any more and any eggs. Lice is something that is very common here. It's more the norm to have lice than to not. I was in a science classroom 2 years ago and they were talking about the microscope. After they took a test on the different parts of the microscope, the teacher wanted to show them what it was like to look through it. She asked the class of about 20 kids who had lice. Every single hand raised! I was just telling Lindie a few days ago that I'm surprised we don't get lice more often here as we are always hugging the kids goodbye and to taking pictures while hugging them. Lindie checked my head more thoroughly today and she found no lice and no eggs. Pray it will stay that way!

This morning I had the opportunity to teach BDA about salvation, in sign language. I absolutely love it! The students were totally engaged, answering questions, nodding and even tearing up. A few hands raised when I asked if anyone wanted to accept Christ. It's always so overwhelming when you see a student raise his or her hand to accept Christ, knowing they are making a heartfelt commitment to the Lord. Here is a picture of me teaching, signing and mouthing "God."

After the teaching we had organized court games. We played relay races in teams and then had a parachute competition. The weather was so great, but it was extremely hot out there in the direct sun. We headed into the shade and made friendship bracelets and tie dyed t-shirts. After all the tie dying was done, we had a water balloon toss and then water balloon fight. It felt so good to get wet! After lunch we enjoyed the Filipino siesta, which meant we could rest a while. We ventured out to the pool for our pool time. I typically don't swim during this time as our pool isn't too big and with 40 or so Filipinos and 15 Americans... it's a little crowded and chaotic. I hung out with some other girls talking and painting our toenails.

After getting cleaned up and eating dinner, we held our yearly talent show. The Deaf students love to dance and are really good at it. They don't care what the music is as long as it has good bass so they can feel the beat. Some students had funny skits. The Americans then performed the 3 dramas that we typically perform at the elementary schools. Between each drama I reviewed and discussed each one in length, so that they would fully understand the concept of each drama. It was an intense time as all of our dramas have very strong messages. The kids responded very well, and seemed to understand more fully what the dramas were about. At the end, I again asked if anyone felt like the sinners in the dramas and wanted to have the freedom they had after they accepted Jesus Christ's help to save them from the sin. All of the students raised their hands. I asked again if students wanted to accept Christ, to follow him, and a few students raised their hands. I love to be able to pray with them! What a great day with my friends! Thank you Jesus!

June 25, 2010 - Lizard Visit

At 2am I was woken by a loud scratching noise coming from the corner ceiling in my room. My first thought was a rat. I've seen one rat here, in the years I've been coming and it was the size of a large raccoon. I was scared, thinking he would scratch through the ceiling and "come after me". I ran to the closet and got a wooden hanger as my "weapon" of choice if it were to come in. I kept the lights on and my eyes peeled to where the sound was coming from until it stopped a half hour later. I tried to sleep again but I wasn't too successful after my visitor. I talked to Joshua the next morning and he thinks it's a lizard because they know there is one that lives up in the ceiling. He's not ruling out a rat though, as they have caught a rat in the ceiling before. I'm going to hang on to the lizard theory as that gives me a little more peace.

After our morning worship and Bible study we headed off for a 2 hour drive to Jagna Elementary School. This is our 3rd Deaf school. We had a great time with them. It's amazing year after year of coming to the Philippines, seeing the same kids, how much they grow in communication and maturity after living with other Deaf. It's fun to see how much this organization has had an impact on these students. I talked with woman today in the 4th grade. She is 34, one year older than I am. It's sad that it took her parents until she was 29 to put her in school, but it's great that she now has a language, education and friends. I remember meeting her in Preschool. She was 29 and couldn't tell me her name. She had just started Preschool a few weeks prior and was just getting used to learning that she can have the ability to communicate. Now she is able to have a decent yet kid-like conversation.

We left Jagna and drove back home to get ready for our campers coming for the weekend. However, we arrived home earlier than planned so we had about 30 minutes to jump in the pool... the first time we've had pool time all week. It felt so refreshing after being so sweaty!

We met as a group to organize the weekend and then the campers arrived. This weekend is looked forward to all year, by me of course, but also the students at Bohol Deaf Academy (BDA). The administration of IDEA has recognized us as having such a large impact on it's students' spiritual growth and this weekend has now become a "required" retreat for all students at BDA. Yea!!! We had a total of 51 students and several teachers come along. We ate dinner and then had a teaching by Zach, a team member. I interpreted his teaching. It was SO great to see all the students again. We went off to bed, excited for the activities of this weekend. I went back to my room to prepare my teaching for the next morning, anticipating!

June 24, 2010 - Mango Overdose

Again I started my day with my quiet time with the Lord. It's SO easy to get up early here as I absolutely love my quiet time surroundings!!! After getting ready for my day, prior to Bible study, I go into the kitchen to eat my breakfast, which is always a mango... an entire mango. They are so juicy and sweet here. I have to actually eat the mango standing over the sink!

This morning we headed off about an hour and a half away to Sagbayan Elementary school, another school for the Deaf. Joshua's mother-in-law is with us for the first time. She has been sponsoring a girl from this school for a few years now and was able to meet her! It was so exciting to be able to interpret for her that her sponsor was here. They absolutely love their sponsors! I'll often be asked by students if I know so-and-so. Most of the time I don't know them as there are so many sponsors. The student will then describe their family (from letters they have received) and tell me they live in Montana. I don't think they realize how big the US is! During our time here, we had to take a short break so the students could eat their lunch. The teachers actually provided us a lunch! They have us ube and ginger rice and mangoes... I had TWO more! Is there such a thing as a mango overdose? We had a great time at this school!

We then left, heading back to the barrio. We stopped at Calunasan Norte, a school in our barrio, about a 15 minute drive from our house. This school is normally pretty chaotic as the kids aren't very well disciplined and don't follow directions. However, this year there wasn't nearly as many students so it was so much more manageable. We had a great time! On our way home, Lindie, Joshua's wife, said there was a surprise on the side of the road. Well... the barrio fiesta was going to be starting soon, so they were skinning and gutting a pig for the roast coming up. It was pretty interesting, but I'll spare you the gory details. ;-)

Arriving back at the house, I started making dinner with Lindie: noodles with butter, Parmesan cheese, garlic toast and mixed fruit. Lindie and I didn't tell any of the team members that as we poured the noodles into the water, we then proceeded to pick out all the bugs that floated to the top of the water. Yah, ew! The bugs were dead and small, but still were bugs. Also, as we finished making the noodles, we noticed little black specs in some of the noodles... bugs again! However, what does a little protein hurt? I'm sure we've eaten worse things here without even knowing it. So... I proceeded to add a little pepper to our noodles to "mask" the little buggies that were in our meal. Hee hee!!! As we prayed for our meal, our electricity went out. And when our electricity goes out, it is PITCH dark. The moon was covered with clouds, so outside and inside the house was blackness. We ate our meal by a single flashlight, which made Lindie and I giggle more as now the little bugs in the noodles would for sure not be seen! Oh the joys of being here!

June 23, 2010 - Iris!

I awoke around 2:30am again wide awake. I forced myself to sleep a little more, as I knew this may be the last day I wake on my own accord, feeling I had enough sleep. I ventured out of the house around 4:30am to see a glimpse of the sun coming up from behind the hills in the distance. I just sat there listening to the morning sounds of the jungle... monkeys, insects, and geckos. Oh, how I've missed those geckos! Did you know they actually make a sound as if they are saying, "gecko"? It brings a smile to my face every time. I sat overlooking the Loay jungle and Loboc River watching the sun come up and having my time with the Lord. This is what I imagine Heaven would look like, so it's so easy to know the Lord is there with me, as I feel His presence around me. After getting ready for my day, our normal schedule includes worship time and a Bible study led by one of our team members. This is also a time to dive into the Word, discuss happenings, pray, and bless other team members. By 8 we were on our way to Loon. This is by far my favorite school, besides the Deaf high school. We drive the 2 hours and are greeted by the kids running across the school field, ready to play. I make introductions for the team, thanking them for welcoming us and I introduce myself. I spell out my name as most of the kids are fingerspelling my name with me and with their other hand signing, "I know"... it warms my heart and blesses me SO much that they would remember my name after a full year!

Our typical time at a school consists of:

Field Games: dodge ball, tug-of-war, and parachute play

Crafts: gluing tiles on a wooden cross, beaded necklace, tie-dye t-shirts, and origami

Dramas: The Champion, Redeemer, Everything, and a team member sharing their testimony and praying

My job at the all the schools is a leader with Joshua. We have 9 students with us that mostly run the show. A more important job I have at the Deaf schools is the interpreter. Every game, craft and drama, I am interpret. I love it!

As we leave the schools, we make each student a balloon animal and give them a gift. This school is also extra special as my first sponsor child is here, Iris. She is 14 years old now and in the 4th grade. She is doing very well and is definitely a leader with her classmates. I was talking with her and a friend and her friend asked me about my family. Before I could answer her, Iris had her hands up and explained to her friend each person in my family's names and occupations. I was amazed as I've only told her once, and it was a year ago!!! It was fun to interact with her and talk more in depth with her.

After leaving Loon, we headed back into the city. We stopped at Bohol Quality, which is a shopping center in downtown Tagbilarin, the capital of Bohol. We shopped around a bit and then took trikes to the Garden Cafe. This cafe is run by IDEA (International Deaf Education Association) and is mostly served by the Deaf who have graduated from Bohol Deaf Academy. They train the Deaf to serve, cook, and bake so they can go out into the world, maybe back where the family is, and have a good job. There are 3 Garden Cafes on Bohol and they are all run by the Deaf.

We then headed on to Bohol Deaf Academy where all the Deaf high schools go to school and board. I was so excited to see the students again! We socialized with them for a while and then had a Bible study, led by their Deaf pastor, Mart. He is a great guy and really knows how to teach these kids about the Bible. I voice interpreted for the group, which was a little intimidating since we had only been to one Deaf school here and I wasn't quite used to signing the Filipino sign changes. FSL is about 90% similar to ASL. Luckily it was a basic teaching. We had time at the end to again socialize with the students, which is our favorite time. We were excited that they would be coming up to our house for the weekend camp, so it wasn't too hard to say goodbye. We arrive home after 10pm... I knew I would sleep until my alarm went off the next morning!

June 22, 2010 - 44 Hours

After almost 44 hours of travel, we have arrived!!! We began our journey, needing to be at the airport by 5:30am, on my 4th day of summer vacation. Not sleeping much the night before though, proved to help the hours go by during our flights, as I was able to catch a few naps along the way. We had a 6 hour flight to Honolulu, a 2 hour layover, and an 11 hour light to Manila. I still don't understand why it takes 11 hours from Honolulu, in the middle of the Pacific, when it takes 9 hours from Seattle. If anyone can answer that, I'd love to know. I'm guessing maybe a bigger plane that flies faster? Anyways, we landed in Manila completely exhausted. It was such a long day... about 24 hours after leaving Seattle... and we still weren't done. We grabbed a quick bite at the KFC next door and were all in bed by 8pm, ready for our 5am wake-up knock. Every single room woke up super early. I was up at 2am wide awake, trying not to wake my roommate. She soon was awake and we got ready for our day of more travel. We were showered and doing our quiet times by 4am. The team took advantage of our free breakfast of plain bread, friend bananas, fried eggs and garlic rice and then headed off early to the airport. It was the first time ever, we were ready to go a lot earlier than planned and it was so great to arrive at the domestic airport without having to rush and run to catch our flight like we normally do. After arriving in Bohol, a 2 hour flight, we loaded up our bags into our friend, Along's, truck. Our team then, loaded our carry-ons and ourselves into the bus. We drove straight to ICM (Island City Mall) where we had a long list of things to buy, consisting of craft supplies, games, toys, field activities, drama equipment, and prizes. When we were done and had completely exhausted the workers there, we brought everything outside in search of our bus... which was nowhere to be found. Joshua, our leader, circled the mall in a trike (a motorcycle with a cab attached) and still no bus. Our passports and all our carry-ons (including Joshua's and my computers) were on that bus. No panic... the driver was our normal driver's brother... we didn't know him, but we trust our normal driver, Leo, so we thought we could trust this guy. Assuming he'd show up later, we hired a jeepnee to store all 12 boxes and later drive them to our house. We ate lunch at Greenwich, a Filipino fast food pizza chain and then headed downstairs to tackle our massive food list. On our way down the escalator, several girl team members in front of me started screaming and Joshua's 13 year old son was jumping up and down screaming. The escalator had grabbed Caleb's flip flop and took his foot with it. His toe was banged up and bleeding, but mostly Caleb was in shock over what happened. I ran to the pharmacy to buy hydrogen peroxide and gauze but they ended up taking Caleb to the hospital. He is alright and has been a trooper ever since. After our food shopping spree of 7 carts, we still couldn't find our bus. Panic hadn't started in yet, but it was in the back of our minds... passports, money, computers... all gone! One of our team members, however, started walking down the street and saw our bus in the distance. Phew!!! Only this time it was Leo driving! I guess his brother drove to their shop and they traded drivers and didn't let us know he'd be leaving. All is well now, as as we loaded everything in to the jeepnee and the bus. We took off for home, the Sunrise House! We drove through the city and the main perimeter road prior to turning onto the barrio road. We drove along the single lane road that is about 30% paved and 70% clay and rock = lots of deep pot holes and bumps for us! It's fun to wave at the people in their one bedroom, bamboo built houses looking out of their open air windows. these are the types of "huts" you see in pictures. However, as we turn up the steep, windy driveway that leads to the Sunrise House, the atmosphere changes. The Sunrise House is absolutely majestic and takes my breath away ever year. It is a modern house, built on top of a hill, overlooking the Loay jungle and Loboc River. I smile though, when I hear the oohs and aahs from the team members in which it's their first time here. It's absolutely paradise! We arrived home around 4pm, well enough to see the house and the surrounding in broad daylight. We unloaded and got settled as our exhaustion hit us yet again. 44 hours of travel... I was ready for a deep sleep. The team went off to practice their dramas as I hunkered down to unload the groceries and make dinner for 18 people. Something easy for the Philippines.... tuna boats and grilled cheese sandwiches with a side of bananas. I think the last time I ate tuna was in the Philippines last year. We don't get a lot of protein here, so getting a good shot of it with tuna is helpful. We were all in bed by 8pm again tonight, laying down with the room spinning around us, excited for the happenings of tomorrow!