Living Water!

Can we say "RAIN" boys and girls? Fortunately for us, water fits our chosen theme of "The Woman at the Well", as we are in the middle of a tropical wave that dumped rain down on us the past two days with more thunderstorms forecast for tomorrow! If we didn't know better, we'd think the theme was to be "Noah and The Ark" as our security guy joked this morning that one of the cars we were riding in was a "fish car" because of all the water it had to get through! So, Thank God for the "Living Water!"
Our day started with a fabulous breakfast prepared by the wonderful ladies at our hotel. It took a while to get to the school, but we finally had a chance to meet the students and staff we have heard so much about. Rev. Barrerra presented our lesson and had the story of "Jesucristo's" encounter with "la mujer samaritana" read aloud to the youth in English and Spanish.
I was amazed at the challenges associated with getting 38 children, ages 3 to 6, to complete a nametag project in under 2 hours! (Praise God I did not decide to be an elementary school teacher!) I think some others in the group might echo that statement! LOL It was a blast, to say the least. The older kids (7 and up) were a bit more efficient at the crafting process...we think we'll defer the "serious" crafting to them! All of the kids decorated quilt squares which we are having a local woman assemble into a quilt-tapestry that will be presented as a gift to the school on Friday. We can't wait to see how beautiful it is when she is finished and we are excited to know that someone from the community is receiving an opportunity to work in such dire economic conditions.
We had the opportunity to share in a wonderful meal with the students and staff...all of which was prepared in the open-air kitchen behind the school. Let me tell you...those ladies know how to make magic happen! The work that they do each day is just this side of the "loaves and fishes" story.
Our afternoon included some outdoor activities under the tents that served as protection from the rain. Much laughter and great pics to follow! The maintenance team had a plumber in to do some serious toilet repair work while they prepped for the week's projects and developed their game plan. Paint was purchased and will be applied to walls tomorrow...even if we move the students out under the tents a room at the time.
A tired bunch of adults made it back to the hotel, went for dinner and are likely snoring by now! Tomorrow is another big day with the kids...about 80 in total, plus the unofficial kids that have "aged out" but still hang around for the experience. We know that there is much more work to be done, learning to be achieved, and fun to be had tomorrow. I sure hope we are ready! Pics of last night and today's events can be found here. More to come as we go along!


On a more personal note...I once again have confirmation that we (read I) are spoiled, whiny, ungrateful, wasteful people in the US. The differences in wants and needs are very apparent when viewed from this angle. There is so much that we take for granted that simply is not accessible in other places in the world.
Last night, we found out that the very limited money that the school has received from a private organization is no longer available because that organization is no longer in existence. There is no money in the budget for July...which is 7 days away. Did you know that $22,500 will make school possible for these kids next year. If you do the math, that's 125 students at $180 for the year! That really sounds like one of those "save the children" commercials, but I assure you it's not hype! I was sitting next to the head man last night when he talked about the situation and the tear that I watched run down the edge of eye was real.
Seems like a good time to adjust priorities a bit...redirect some of what I waste to better causes...at home and abroad. (Yeah, there will probably even fewer Christmas presents this year than last...we have more important work to do!)
Check back in to see what God's got planned...bigger and better things to come, for sure!