Woooweee! Who knew I could write this much...

Tonight’s meal ticket was spaghetti with aji (bell peppers) and tostones (our favorite fried banana treat).
I really am dumbfounded as to where and how to start catching you up on life here! So, in my favorite style, let’s start with today and work backwards.

MONDAY, April 5 –
Today, I was fully exhausted, which was not how I envisioned work starting upon return from spring break. Spanish lessons after school were fun, where we focused on “ser” and “estar” some more, along with vocab and alphabet review. (“k” – kuh sound) Nelly really is a fantastic teacher who puts up with my constant desire to learn vocab words and interrupt our lesson by finding them in the diccionario.

I talked to Mom, Wes, and Dad about their upcoming TRIP TO SEE ME!! They’re arriving tomorrow night, and I can’t wait! It’s the first time my dad has traveled internationally since my parents’ honeymoon cruise in ’87. May I remind you that they are now divorced; that was a completely different era! Hooray for Dad’s bravery (which is being tried).

For the first time, I felt the presence of building relationships in English class, rather than feeling like that random girl who helps out in class from time to time.

It really was great to be back at school today, to see friendly faces and share smiles and spring break stories. Afterschool on our way home, we felt like big shots. Not really, but boy do we love running into Dominicanos we know about town! That way, the groups of men who normally cat call in that area may stop, if even for a minute, while they see us talk to a local. (GASP! A local!!) For a split second, we are not the Americanas with arms, legs, and pale skin but rather people who are connected to the community. Take that.

LAST NIGHT, April 4/5 –

This is a significant entry because…DUDE. I could not sleep last night. I was not sure if it was from sheer physical exhaustion, giddiness and my planning ways toward my parents’ upcoming visit, receiving a dear friend’s recent text message, or who knows what. I could not sleep, for the life of me. Kymberlee and I attempted to drift off around 9ish, while we were lying in bed reading. Hours went by, and we shared a giggle fest at 11:30 PM for a good while, because as you must know, everything at that time is funny. Especially life in the Dominican Republic.

We took to pills. Benadryl, that is. I was ingenious and took two, following the box’s “1 or 2” order for adults over twelve. My logic was, well, I’ve lost hours already, I’m beat, and there’s only a handful of hours left to grab; I better get to sleepin’! Unfortunately, the pills had every effect but the ones I originally intended. A dual drug-induced sleepiness and steroid-like heart pumping occurred, where my heart was not allowing me to be still. My exhausted, drugged self wouldn’t allow for an awake state either. I tried reading my Bible, I tried pacing the floor. I shuffled down the hall. I even cried. Who knows what time I went to bed, because I don’t. I still don’t believe it really happened after all that mess. Benadryl, I now abhor you and will avoid you at all costs.

[RAT!!] I let out a blood-curdling scream while madly kicking off the covers and jumping onto Kymberlee at about 1:30 AM. A hot-blooded, large animal suddenly lurched itself onto my foot, causing this mid-slumber scene to startle Kymberlee out of her Benadryl coma. “WHAT,” she loudly whispers. I scared her half to death, which had to have been more than I scared myself. I told her there was a large animal in our bed, to which she threw back the covers and asked, “WHERE?” She was being the brave one, and I couldn’t believe it wasn’t moving, racing about the sheets. “THERE,” I said, pointing to the mound under the comforter. She grabbed the comforter and – yank – there was nothing there. Much to my dismay, the mysterious creature turned out to have been Kymberlee’s heel. All that excitement for nothing…but a good story.

EASTER, April 4 –
What a day! Praise, joy, and the resurrection. Jesus – the life, the way, the truth was celebrated in full with dancing and singing at church, La Vid (the vine). Youth With A Mission (YWAM) had their first kids camp in town, and at the end of the service, the kids performed for us! The 10-13 year olds gave us quite a show with a thug-like dance to the song “En La Calle.” Pretty dank, if you ask me. All of the acts were absolutely precious and worth every penny (joke).

My morning devotion and the message were linked; God so often blesses me in this way here. I really only need to say one thing:

“The evidence of knowing God is obeying God.” –Eric Alexander

…but I won’t. I’ll say more. A favorite line from my devotion went as follows, “God is looking for those who have the flexibility to pick up and go when He says to pick up and go, and to sit down and stay when He says to sit down and stay. “ Numbers 9:15-23 is a perfect illustration of this. Believe it or not, we are called, not to live our own lives, but to live HIS. Those of us (me, me!) who want to save our own lives must lose them, and if we lose our lives we will be saved!

During church, I was overjoyed hearing this because God has truly been transforming me, because I have let Him. (And hear this – I am far from perfect and know that to be so true.) However, in coming here to Jarabacoa, I gave up a piece of my plan, whatever that was. He has been teaching me to give up more and more of myself to gain more and more of Him.

The pastor, Keren, challenged us – Maddie [fill in your name here], if you really to walk with me, you have to stop walking with your old self. Living here, I have started shedding my old self and have never felt so vulnerable, yet so free. My ultimate fear was addressed. What if I start putting on my old self when I get home, back in the US? You know what, that’s what Satan wants me to think will happen. I blatantly refuse to accept living life as the old Maddie. The new one, who is growing in wisdom – the only wisdom that matters – is who I want to be. I really just ask you to peer into yourself and ask if you like what you see. It’s not easy. We almost never want to do it. Read Romans 11:29, and be comforted. His calling on our lives is permanent! He will never leave us, even if we do forget our new, better-in-Christ selves for awhile. Our imperfections never mar His flawlessness. (P.S. God made us in His image, and He thinks we’re each beautiful, as He made us unique!)

Easter dinner couldn’t have been more fun. It was one of those sit-back-and-take-it-all-in moments for me. There was a feast of food and thirteen friends around one big table. As we Americanos were far from America, I felt at home celebrating Jesus and His resurrection. Tim and Laura Stanley, a couple that works at Jarabacoa Christian School, were the hosts. Oh, how could I forget their dog Holly and cat, Mune (named after a Dominican hot chocolate cube). We brought the little we could contribute, which we decided would be carrot cake. We walked from church, sweating in our jeans, to La Tinaja Café and bought the best bundt carrot cake in town.

SATURDAY, April 3-

I slept in. And loved every minute. Jess and I walked into town to meet Julie Anne. We were heading to register for the 10K! What a Dominican experience that was. There was a “21 Maraton in Las Montanas” banner on a side street in town, and we heard registration was near some government building. I pointed us in the direction of the Ayuntamiento (City Hall). As we strolled in that direction, some boys with their numbers already on let us know we were heading the right way.

Rounding the corner at City Hall, we saw the registration table. We had arrived at 12ish to sign up for the 3 PM race. There was of course hardly no one else signing up, and very little direction was given from those “orchestrating” things. We signed up in the “Feminines Superior,” our delegated age bracket. We were given a floppy, magnetic-like red number. “09” I was the ninth girl to sign up in this category, and the race started in 2.5 hours. Filling out the registration form was tricky in our Spanglish. The girl asked me for my “phone number,” and I thought she was asking for my “full nombre.” From there, they gave us two white circles stamped and signed (very official) – one for medical, and one for food. What that meant, we had no idea.

We passed the table and asked around for what to do next. There was a long line waiting outside of a wooden door inside City Hall, that was supposedly where we entered for the Medical Exam. Wait, what? Is this required to race? I’m not going in there by myself. What are they doing? We waited in line for literally forty minutes, while the Dominican Red Cross took their lunch break. Oh, the food ticket? That was for lunch served before the race, logically. It was a Styrofoam box filled with rice, beans, and chicken – la bandera. Before a run? I think not. So, we continued to wait and wait in this medical line, not knowing what we were being examined for on the other side. Dominicanos waited in their non-line-like fashion and tried to cut us at every bat of an eyelash. Finally, we got into the little office set up for our “medical exams,” where I swear my blood pressure was not even measured correctly.

I felt like we were in an SNL skit, trying to shut people out of the room so people wouldn’t cut and the work would actually begin. As a Red Cross worker left the room, leaving the door open after her, a lady poked her head in. She craned her neck around the door, offering a bucket of baked peanut goods with outstretched arms. Really? Really? She was trying to sell us peanuts, while we were having our official medical exam performed before a race.

The race started thirty minutes late, with no instructions and without separated age brackets. BANG. The gun shot off, and we all (children, men, women, and all) headed out on the “course.” I have never wanted to laugh more in my life, if I wasn’t hurting and dying from heat. There were Dominicans cheering us on from corner to corner, but the race was barely marked off. Motos and cars would sneak in and drive alongside us, as we were trying our best to even stay on the [unpaved] roads.

It got better when we reached people with water. One fourth of the way through the race, our cheerleaders became water boys. We were trying to avoid dogs and rocks in the road, while little boys ran after us dousing us with water bottles. If we were lucky, we got soaked head to toe with a huge splash of a full-size bucket of water. That was honestly my saving grace. Had I not been soaking wet, I would have walked the race, limping home in the heat.

On a serious note, there were people from all over the country. We met some serious runners from Santo Domingo, and I didn’t want to run near them simply due to their fancy gear. Julie Anne got third place overall and won pesos, Jess got seventh, and I – well, I finished. There was a whole crew from Doulos. Krista, the Director, and Chad, her husband and the Project Manager, along with their daughters. Sara, Amanda, Jess, and I. Greibys, the IT star. Of course, we had our own Doulos cheerleaders too! Eric, Mark, and Joey were cheering us on in the spots where we needed it most. Rounding one turn, they awaited us with a Gatorade. Mark was filming our run, and I can’t wait to see that footage, I think.

I met my first SC friend, too! Sandy from Sumter now goes down in the books. She works up at Escuela Caribe at the foot of the mountain.

SPIRIT-FILLED, Saturday, April 3 –

Worship at the Pace’s topped off the day. We started walking over ten minutes after we were supposed to be there, in our Dominican custom. Then, we encountered a gentleman who was going a bit crazy down the road in the darkness, yelling out who knows what and running about on the street. We decided to go the other way, so our ten minutes turned into thirty minutes late. Or right on time.

Patrick plays the guitar. Erin plays the flute. Jonathan plays the violin. That, my friends, is what we call one talented group to set the worship mood.

I felt so pure sitting before God that night. It’s hard to explain, but I hope you’ll understand. I felt clean, broken, and humbled all at once, coming before Him with all that I had to worship. Cecilia, Maria’s daughter had blow-dried my hair, my legs felt broken with my knees throbbing from the earlier run, and we simply came to be with the One.

FRIDAY, April 2 –

A day in Santiago. WOOHOO!

We took Amanda’s dad to the airport, in the rental car (pchyeah). Even that was eventful. Amanda, Jess, and I got out to go to the bathroom and so left Kymberlee at post in the car. When Jess and I returned, Kymberlee was not in sight, and then I saw the car doing the drive-by in the parking lot across the way. The cop had made her move, so we hopped in and looped around again.

Okay, so driving at an airport doesn’t sound that difficult, right? Wrong. Try driving here where no one’s paying attention, there are little to no signs, and babies and children can be seen left and right. This is all occurring while people are pulling in and out of the curb section, and cars are driving by to the left.

So, in a panic, Kymberlee let me drive. Ha-ha! I was so excited to drive twenty yards – until Amanda spotted us and got back in the driver’s seat. Maybe next time.

As I am writing this, I am reminded of how hilarious life here can be. When we found the inner city of Santiago, we stopped at a nice supermarket (not before turning around first) to buy candy for the movies. We found the mall (Plaza Internacional) where we parked the car but did not get out. Is it open? I don’t know. Go check. Look, people just came out! Well, it’s Semana Santa. What do you think? A “gentleman” came up to the car and let us know he would gladly check the mall’s open status in exchange for pesos. We decided to check for ourselves. The mall was open, but we’re not sure why; nothing inside was. So, we headed to see what else we could do. After asking the Pizza Hut workers where the bigger movie theater was, we drove off.

I got excited to see a Tony Roma’s sign outside of the plaza down the street. Tony Roma’s!

Thursday, APRIL FOOLS DAY -

Twenty-seven waterfalls. Need I say more? After leaving the beach, we headed out on an our driving adventure to find Los Charcos. Hours later, we did it!

...gotta run, but will finish later!!

"I wanna be in the light, as you are in the light..."

Quick update on the weekend, and then on to my current thoughts...

Okay, Friday & Saturday...we (my roommies and I) babysat for Sara, a friend and Doulos fellow-staffer. We soaked in every moment of being in their American house, whether it was snacking on American food, watching movies, talking on the phone, or using the internet. (Aaahh, the lap of luxury.)

Saturday, we went on a walk with the kids (Micah-1.5 and Risa-3), and I grilled us some amazing sausage-brats for lunch on the you-guessed-it-GRILL! Hooray! I think I'm more like a guy in my cooking preferences -- I absolutely looove grilling!

Then, we went to our friends', Erin and Patrick Pace's house, for a potluck where there was lots of yummy food and lots of sweet community of friends present. The potluck was in honor of Pachi and Ricki who used to work at Doulos. Pachi lives in TX now, and Ricki lives here in Jarabacoa for the time being. They have a little girl named Priscilla.

My heart sings with joy when I am in a house full of warmth, also packed with love and friendship -- and homemade goodness (food) -- oh, list almost complete but forgot the music!

Afterward, we headed to our friends' house (the girls' house) to watch "Bella," which I have seen before. I recommend it.

On the way home, Kymberlee, Laura (works for YoungLife), and I were walking slowly full of exhaustion. We got some hisses and "Rubia!" hollered after me. Then we heard "Teacher!" We continued to walk on, ignoring them. The truck pulls up slowly beside us, and the driver and passenger both break into laughter. It was two of our high school boys. Now they know, that's not the way to get our attention--pranksters.

Sunday -- a day of rest!! FINALLY! I slept in and enjoyed every minute of snoozing. I read, had sweet time with the Lord, practiced my Spanish. Then, I went over to Kyla's house and hung out with her and her lil' man, Judah. We went on a walk to Bon, the ice cream place by the park. Strawberry cheesecake ice cream in a cone on a hot, hot day was heavenly. Two ten-year olds came up to us with pamphlets, sharing the gospel and Christ. WOW. Brave. Can you imagine doing that to foreigners at that age? I can't. God is good.

Jess's sister is here at YL camp, Pico Escondido. She spent time up there with the group and then joined us for dinner -- homemade empanadas and fruit juice. Yumm.

WHAT a great weekend. I can't remember if I talked about Clemson being here at the YL camp, but they were. It was SO much fun to visit them last week and be with friends - or even strangers to me, when we all shared the following places -- South Carolina, Clemson, and America in common! What comfort. Plus, we had killer s'mores.

THOUGHTS...
So, last week I struggled with negativity, sadness, loneliness and complaining. Blech. Here's some verses that I've come across to help me combat all of this nastiness.

• Philippians 2:5 -- Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.
• Philippians 2:3 -- Do nothing our of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.
• Philippians 2:14 -- Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault...[GET THIS!] in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life...
• 1 Thessalonians 5:16 -- Be joyful always; pray continually...

Hope these fill you with joy and challenge for your days. LOVE y paz!

Cultural Brief

Okay, per request of a special friend (hey, Jenny!), I am adding in some quick cultural notes:

-Every other Friday at school, we have club meetings. My favorite to watch is dance. There's a lot of newest rap-dancin' moves thrown in and combined with salsa-esque hip sway. Dancing comes naturally to lots of these kids. I can't imagine my friends in high school dancing so freely -- and particularly, so well -- during dance club.

-This afternoon, I went to the Villas down the street for a business run, to give some money and collect a receipt. We first greeted each other with kisses on the cheek, asked how the other was doing, and then she proceeded to ask me to please sit. Before even getting to why I came, we shot the breeze and talked about random bits of our lives. This is typical.

-For lunch today, I ordered a wrap; however, the lunch plate served was like the national dish, La Bandera. There was white rice, saucy chicken, and slaw salad. The plate is always served with juice -- usually tamarind(o) or limon. As previously mentioned, it is impressive for Doulos students to form a line around the lunch serving windows in a very American style. Lines are nonexistent here in the DR. We like to observe this heavily, so us teachers rarely cut.

-Cafe is a daily part of life here for many, like many Americans' routines. However, here it is brewed fresh from beans harvested from Doulos' coffee farm, Spirit Mountain.

-I had a specialty with lunch...the few and far-between Dr. Pepper. It can be found basically at one place in town, on the outskirts near YL camp.

-I am about to walk home from school and will most certainly get "hissed" at multiple times, about every few steps by guys driving by on motos, or those who are standing or sitting across the street, or you name it. Culturally, the DR is very machismo. I am thankful to be in a Christian work environment, allowing freedom from this idea during the day. It is normal for men to behave in this way, and often times I am thankful I don't speak fluent Spanish. Just call me "Rubia."

-At morning flag, the song we sing (or I hum) is very dramatic and orchestral with an operatic-like male voice singing the pledge.

-I need to stop by the bank on the way home, where I will exchange my money beside a bar that is always open. Next door, there will be another bar most likely with men sitting there who have been relaxing in this way for quite some time today. Merengue-type music or reggaeton will also most likely play in the background.

-On the corner beyond that, there is always a woman selling a homemade cinnamon, sweet corn drink that I have not (yet) bought.

-I will walk by, and cross intersections, of mad chaos where children have just gotten out of school in their blue-collared shirt and khaki bottomed uniform, where motos and cars alike are driving every which way all without street signs and traffic lights.

Tonight, I could not be more thankful to babysit for a fellow staff member and friend, Miss Sara, where my roommates and I will have the opportunity to use the Vonage phone, watch television, and use the internet. (Yes.)

Quick Updates

A few more "animal" stories for ya...

-Often times I have fly-type bugs in my food at home, and I simply take them out and keep eating.

-Last night, I came into my room to put on my pj's, while a cockroach crawled out of my suitcase. I decided to let that one be, mainly because my roommate was already asleep. (You lucky bug, you.)

-My favorite this week...I came into my room after being gone for a week, and I walked over to my drawers to put something away. I glanced first at the dead cockroach, lying upside down on my clothes and was miffed enough. Then, out of the corner of my eye I saw something else hidden behind my clothes. There was a mouse peering up at me, and out of sheer shock I let out a blood-curdling scream and jumped around, running across the hall into Jess's room. It was hilarious. Purely hilarious. Later, it scurried out of my room and into the night out the back door. Darn mouse. (I'll get you next time!)

If you could only imagine...

AH!

Suddenly, Jess cries from across the hall, "There's a hUge spider in my room!" I run over to see it first before getting something to kill it with. Well, this thing was GIGANTIC -- literally the size of my palm. Pre-historic like.

I ran to get my tennis shoe and then decided my hiking boot would be better. I was in that swing and hold position, grappling with fear before following through. I was praying out loud and encouraging myself while giggling with nervousness.

I swung and -SMACK!-missed. The spider fled down below the shelf. Maria got home amidst the shrieking shrills from the three of us. Kymberlee could no longer watch and went back across the hall.

Little abuelita Maria (comes up to my shoulders) comes in and tells us not to be afraid, while describing its bite to us. We've got two wooden rods we're using to try and trap and squish the spider.

Clothes start falling off the shelves, or we're pulling them off as the spider continues to escape in its cubby area. Screams get louder each time as she misses yet again. Little Maria comes in slowly to the corner where the spider is "hiding" and then -BAM!- tries again. Finally, she tries a tactic where she uses the broom end of the stick.

This is my favorite part. Maria says, "en el nombre de Jesus!" and then going in slowly with a sudden movement closer to the spider, she gets him! He falls to the top shelf, and once more she squishes him to his ultimate death.

PHEW. (Unfortunately, there's one twice that size still lurking somewhere.)

Maria reminded me of the Power and Might of God. Afterward, she told me I don't fear anything. What if we could all trust in Him that much?

God's big on windsurfing.

The other night I was reading my devotion, and God spoke to me through a fantastic parallel. I think He must be big on windsurfing, from what came into my head. My roommate, Jess, and I learned to windsurf this weekend -- hopefully a new hobby when I get home!

Even though you might not have tried windsurfing, hopefully this speaks to you about God's will and following His path, regardless...

Proverbs 3:1-12 ~ Further Benefits of Wisdom

¹ My son, do not forget my teaching,
but keep my commands in your heart,

² for they will prolong your life many years
and bring you prosperity.

³ Let love and faithfulness never leave you;
bind them around your neck,
write them on the tablet of your heart.

⁴ Then you will win favor and a good name
in the sight of God and man.

⁵ Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;

⁶ in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight.

⁷ Do not be wise in your own eyes;
fear the LORD and shun evil.

⁸ This will bring health to your body
and nourishment to your bones.

⁹ Honor the LORD with your wealth,
with the firstfruits of all your crops;

¹⁰ then your barns will be filled to overflowing,
and your vats will brim over with new wine.

¹¹ My son, do not despise the LORD's discipline
and do not resent his rebuke,

¹² because the LORD disciplines those he loves,
as a father the son he delights in.

We are starved for direction, but we do not have to fear. The Wind (Holy Spirit) is our direction. There are multiple options ahead and things that could happen: upwind, downwind, crosswind; falling off and starting over, going back to shore, staying close to swimmers or other windsurfers, going farther out on our own.

Which way to go? Should we change directions? As a beginner, we don't know everything about making the best directional decision. The Wind changes, and in turn our paths change.

We try to make the best choices and hope for the best, we want the Wind to take us, we innately desire staying on the path.

We want to know all the answers, the right way to point our arms and feet. We want to be fully balanced, but sometimes -- always -- we have to align ourselves with the ways of the Wind if we ever want to go at all, or truly learn how to surf.

To get direction from the Wind, we must understand it.

Just as learning something new feels transforming and freeing, a life with God at your center is fundamentally altering. He changes our character (our posture on the board) to be in line with Him, our outlook (knowing He is in control no matter what lies ahead), and our priorities.

We can do nothing at all, especially windsurf, if we do not let the Wind guide us, bowing to its presence. Sometimes, just as with the sail's boom, we have to truly let go of control to let Him guide us. When we "jump ship" and lose our balance, we feel lost.

In truth, aside from the metaphor, we are then directed by the person God has made us into -- a new creation governed by the indwelling Jesus. When we are up and sailing, then every true victory is His. We are fully reliant on Him, praising Him and celebrating His goodness -- His direction.

As Proverbs 3 says, we must first trust in the Lord with all our heart and lean not on our own understanding. (We refuse to lean on our own understanding -- the hardest part as a human. We acknowledge His sufficiency -- and our inefficiency in everything.) Then if we acknowledge Him in all of our ways, in everything we do, He will make our paths straight.

We are not using God, but acknowledging Him in everything, and then we can clearly hear and feel Him directing our paths through that intimate relationship.

Goodbyes can be hard.

Mosaic's work team left this morning, and a huge piece of me left with them. However, a huge piece of them stayed behind [with me]. Seventeen people came aging from twenty-two and upward, with four girls and thirteen guys. Here 's some thoughts from the week...

-At one point, we were praying after us girls led devotion. Ted, the pastor, was giving thanks for us sharing our hearts as women in the group. I realized when he said that I had completely forgotten we were so outnumbered by guys. That's huge in my book because I have felt uncomfortable around guys most of my life!! I know many people find that hard to believe because I've got lots of guy friends, but most of them are more of acquaintances than anything else. This week, I felt loved on and encouraged by guys of all ages, both single and married. I had godly examples in each of them, as they challenged each other and embraced each other as the unique individuals they are. I think I also felt comfortable around them because God is bringing me so much freedom in Him with each passing day here, more so than I've ever come to know before.

-I've got seventeen new, amazing friends who love the Lord in different ways and who are extremely different from each other.

-I don't know the last time I've laughed so hard or been so entertained; Mosaic, you need to start a stand-up comedy night. You'll raise all of Doulos' support for the entire school in thirty minutes.

-I felt empowered by God's gifts, grace, and strength through our service projects throughout the week; I don't remember the last time I worked so hard in the form of manual labor. (PHEW! I am sore in every way.)

-I did things I have never done before. We built a bridge to cross the creek at the Doulos coffee farm (Spirit Mountain), and we cleared and created a trail for mountain bikers to use. What hard, rewarding work that gave me hope and excitement for the future, with the knowledge that so many people are going to enjoy God's handiwork performed through us!

-I saw the most beautiful blanket of stars I think I've ever seen in my life one night when we were camping on the mountain...God stirred me in the night, and I opened my tent to a breathtaking view!

-I was FREEZING for the first time since I've been here; literally, I could not put on enough clothes. It was cloudy, rainy, and downright cold.

-We gardened and cleaned up the landscape outside of school and on the road. In America, we wouldn't have been on the median and in the street when cars and motos were whizzing by. Dominicanos were filming and taking pictures, enjoying the sight of us working so hard maybe??

-I was amused with myself and the growth God's pulled me to when we were building the bridge. After we had the posts in place (for the most part), it was time for the decking. I was walking across placing the wood slats down as we went, with gaps in between the boards. I used to be so afraid of heights, and I couldn't believe I was walking across an unfinished bridge confidently to add the decking! Hooray for positive change.

-Yoshi, my new friend, called me "outdoorsy." I used to want to have that word describe me, and now it truly does. That makes me smile.

-I held a beautiful, black and yellow snake on the mountain, and it was so fun to see God's creation so evidently in the palm of my hand!

-We spent the last night sharing encouragement with one another, learning in the Word, and praising Him through beautiful music filling the space at Las Villas. ("Oh, what a night...")

-I learned LOTS and LOTS about coffee. You should only buy organic. I usually don't say "should" as a highly suggested [mandate] to friends, but you should only buy organic. Did you know that everything else you're drinking is grown artificially with chemicals and pesticides out the wazoo?? Since the beginning, coffee has been a shade-grown plant. Next time, read your labels and make the best purchase decision! How was your coffee grown, or the better question is what do you really want to put into your body??

-A huge realization for me this week was wow, I'm growing up. At various points, I felt so mature but also like a grown woman. I had desires to hold infants that were around me, and not only hold them but truly love them. As I write this, I realize further that I am not simply maturing as a woman on this earth, but as a woman in Christ. He is maturing me just as He says we will become in James 1:4. I've had lots of things to persevere through in my life, but if this is where those struggles are bringing me -- bring it on!

-I learned some sign language from Olivia, another new friend who is amazing at sign, and I re-learned how to spell my name in ASL for the bazillionth time. While she helped me with that, I actually taught her some Spanish and how to ask our Haitian friend, Papito, questions. Man, sometimes we really do know more than we think we do!

-My eyes were further opened to everything Doulos Discovery School is doing here in the DR. At the coffee farm, there are sustainability efforts evident and nature is there for everyone to enjoy. There are mountain bike trails and walking trails, and creeks. The view is breathtaking, but the coffee plantation in that setting really does so much for the community both here in Jarabacoa and there in Manabao. A water source was extended to the community members that live below the farm, so they now have water inside their homes. A dream and vision of Chad and Krista is to one day build a pre-K/elementary age school in the valley to help children learn to read before going to public school. Maybe one day when that school is open, those children can receive scholarships to Doulos. Profit from the coffee farm is put right back into Doulos. The majority of the workers are Haitian who are paid well and truly have a relationship with Chad at the farm. Eagle scouts created outdoor facilities on the top of the mountain (kitchen and water source) as their final project, and now it's there for all to enjoy.

...TO BE CONTINUED...off to the beach (Cabarete) for the weekend! Finally.