Day 4 - Wednesday
Our morning began in a similar fashion as our Tuesday. We had a large group of girls come to the casa for a Bible story. This morning was Betsy’s turn to lead a session. Her choice was the Godly character of Esther. Betsy did a stand up job reviewing the story of Esther. In Esther we learn she was a courageous woman. We also see how God used her in a way that was unique and special. Betsy mirrors the story of Esther with an inspiring connection in her own life. Betsy felt very apprehensive for making the commitment to go to the Dominican Republic. Not just once, but twice! Her own mother had issues with Betsy going because of her disability. I wish you all could see how Betsy flourishes in the community. She is such an inspiration on how God can use you no matter what your life looks like. God worked through Esther, he is working through Betsy, and we pray that he’s going to work through the girls who heard the story today.
How Many American’s does it take to make a Beaded Cross?
Evidently, the answer is more that you think!
In the second part of our day we went into Algodon just to play with our kids. We were given some beads and chords to make some beaded crosses for all the children. The good news is they each wanted their own little piece of Jesus to hang around their neck. Unfortunately, in their excitement, things went a little sideways… The kids swarmed the beads like locusts to an open field in the plagues of Egypt that Moses warned Pharaoh about. We didn’t have a Moses to help warn us that this might be the outcome. Oops! We even had to physically break up a fight between two girls. It may seem ridiculous to read this story and think how silly it may be to get worked up about some lame beads. But to a group of kids who have little, or nothing, to play with? They mean everything. We saw proof of this when we asked some children what they like to play with, or what is there favorite toy. In a survey of 10 different children none could answer it. Yep, you read that right. If you have kids, think about the midnight Lego you step on in the middle of the night. Or, how many times you’ve been asked to help brush a Barbie’s hair. One step further, how many times a day do you ask your kids to put away their toys? None of those situations would be relevant in the household of an Algodon family.
Bringing Home the Bacon
We took some bubbles for them to chase, but the funny thing about bubbles is (like beads) they don’t last forever either. Thank goodness Jim and Phyllis are quick on their feet! In an effort to think of something to play that didn’t require any materials, we played a version of “Steal the Bacon”. You play the game by separating into two teams. You give each kid a number, and when the number is called you run as fast as you can to grab the object. Because we didn’t have much to work with, one little guy took the shirt off his back and volunteered it as the “bacon”. We thus called our new game “Steal the T-shirt”. The kids loved it! Competition is vital to these kiddos. Whether it’s a baseball game, or bringing home the bacon they’re going to strive for the win.
Thinking About College Abroad?
We headed back to the casa for the evening, and as if we didn’t have enough exertion from playing with our kids, a group of us had a desire to go on a run. We asked our director and translators if it was possible they could accompany us to go for a run. They agreed, so we filled the bus with a mixture of people who wanted to run/walk and another group who was going into town. We passed the time on our 10 minute drive with the sounds of John Mellencamp’s “Hurt So Good”. We passed by the college that is located in Barahona. The college was an absolute breathtaking facility! We didn’t tour the inside, but from the exterior is resembles some sort of Parisian Architecture. Along the way we learned that it costs 20 American dollars, for tuition per semester. Is your plane ticket booked yet?
Runner’s World & Bucket Lists
Nearby the college was a public park with a track and field. When we pulled up there were tons of people running and walking around the track. When we say track…we mean track! It was filled in with astro turf, it had bleachers that surrounded one side, and a field in the middle for sporting games. It was a little gem in our Barahona. A few of our team members and interns walked the track and others of us ran it. We certainly aren’t bored here, but if you’re a runner you just understand the need to run. After the last of us pooped out, unplugged the headphones, and paused our running music playlist we heard some loud music that caught our attention. A few feet away was the largest Zumba session we had ever seen! A couple hundred people were dancing along to music in the middle of the park. A few members of our group joined in. You can see some pictures of Deron being quite silly with them. We all felt so blessed to be able to take a time out for some quality exercise. How many people can say they have logged a run, and/or joined in a mass Zumba session internationally? We can cross that off the bucket list.
Immediate Prayer Needs:
Netters and Lis will give their lesson on Naomi and Ruth tomorrow morning for the same group of girls as the previous days. Pray that nerves will subside and that God would speak wisdom through us and communicate exactly what God wants our girls to hear.
Pray for female leaders in the batey’s. We learned today that there are two wonderful female leaders in the batey of Los Robles. However, the desire is to have female leaders for the girls in each batey to have as an accountability partner, or just someone to talk to.
Pray for our sponsored children that we haven’t met yet. We’ve tracked a few down, but have a couple more to find. Becky found Alexander, and Deron and Annette found Ana Isa! Thank you for praying!
Franklin (our previous translator) and his wife are pregnant are ready to give birth any day. They are scheduled for a C-Section Thursday.
