I woke up last night to what sounded like a hurricane...thankfully it was only massive downpour on the tin roof right outside our window. It is definitely the monsoon season here! It continues to be humid and hot...so I feel right at home:)

My co teacher and I ended up not teaching Sunday School but instead were asked to share our testimony or whatever God laid on our hearts during the service. The building is a church on Sundays and is the home of a number of orphans during the week. We walked in to a number of children and adults singing at the top of their lungs in total abandonment to the God they love. As I looked over the people I was overwhelmed by a little girl standing right in front....she was beautiful with short cut dark hair, thin, and in a blue dress. She had her eyes closed and she was singing with all her might with the rest of the people. Her smile was contagious and I honestly admit that I had tears watching her worship Jesus...surrounded by others singing with the same enthusiasm,  praying in earnest at the same time, and filled with passion to share the gospel.

We are prepared and ready...and nervous about our first day teaching tomorrow!:)

Summer travels:

After what seemed like days we finally arrived in the capital city. We were both ready to never step on another plane for the rest of our lives. But we had been so blessed in getting to all our flights and they were all on time! My suitcase is still missing...but will hopefully turn up tomorrow!
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Humidity and gray clouds greeted us along with the smiling bright faces of 10 of the students who we are teaching. They were all women who had come and made sure to shake each of our hands. They have won my heart :)

I've already shared the bathroom with two lizards that decided to hang out with us in the afternoon, seen mango and coconut and banana trees, and eaten a delicious dinner of sweet and sour chicken.

They wasted no time in asking if I could teach the younger children in Sunday School tomorrow morning, so I am busy planning for that and trying to stay awake as much as possible...that's an impossible task, so I'll be headed to bed soon. It's 8:20 here and 9: 50 in America...the time change will take some getting used to! I mean 10 and 1/2 hours? So confusing:)!

 A New Start

Since my blog of three years is erased or has been discontinued, I'm starting a new one...with the same name!

The last couple of weeks have been a whirlwind. I finished teaching on a Friday and by Monday I was flying out for a 2 and half week adventure! First stop was visiting friends in Tunisia to help encourage them and relive moments of Jordan. However, during my first hours in the country I discovered not only do they not speak the same Arabic I was familiar with...they don't eat the same amazing Middle Eastern food or have pita bread!! What kind of place was this?!!

However, I realized there were many things that I enjoyed about this place!

1) The architecture was beautiful! The bright blues and whites that contrasted with the stone streets and buildings.


2) The vast differences in landscape: from deserts to hills to farm lands. We stopped in a small village where the people had to carry their water (using donkeys or carrying it on their heads) because there wasn't a water source in the village.

We rented a car and drove all over the country...passing through small villages during market day (wall to wall people and cows running across the street!) and big cities-staying in an underground hotel where families used to live and eventually making our way to the Mediterranean and enjoying the blue water.

 Overall, it was a wonderful time of encouraging my friends who were there and spending time with local people drinking tea and having discussions of politics and history.