The Countdown Continues

     Hello all! I just wanted to start by thanking all of you for your continued support, you guys are all amazing and I am so blessed to be a part of your lives.
     So, the most exciting news, which I somehow forgot to put in my last blog, was that we have plane tickets! YAY! It makes it feel so much more official and real knowing that we have the tickets bought and waiting for us.  The second update is that our team is now down to 9 people instead of 10.  This is a sad and a joyful thing, sad because we are losing our team member Jessica, joyful because the reason she can't come is because they just found out she is pregnant with their second child.  So exited for them, but also sad because I know how badly she wanted to be on this trip. 
     Our last few meetings we have started talking a little more in depth about what we will be doing while we are down there.  One of the most exciting this is that we will be getting to spend a full day in a village doing a sports camp kinda day with the kids there.  We will also get to do something similar for the kids at LOL, putting on a Fun Day, followed by a Fall Festival.  We spend the last meeting bouncing around a lot of ideas of games, crafts, and just general activities that we could do with the kiddos.  If you have any ideas of things feel free to let me know! We are still looking for more things, specifically something like a Home Depot kid's project, but other ideas are welcome too!
     We spend the last half of the meeting continuing to get to know each other more.  I finally am starting to feel like I know all of them, and am getting more and more comfortable with them.  I realized that after our meetings I always go home in such a good mood and full of joy. I can't wait to see what God has in store for all of us! I also can't wait to see how He is going to use and grow each of us during this trip, and even just our time together before the trip.  I think He definitely has something special planned for our team :)
     So now for the financial update, I have been incredibly blessed, and was way over my last monthy goal, and so now all I need by next month is $305.  After that, I only need $800 more and I will be fully funded! Crazy right?!? It's all happened so fast.  I know I am supposed to go on this trip, and the slow but steady inflow that God has provided has just proven that fact in my mind even more.  If you'd like to help let me know, there are online options or physical options, all of which can be tax deductible. 
     I still think this trip is going to change me, in what ways? That I don't know, but God keeps bringing up things that point to a revelation coming. I just pray that for every revelation I have, there is also someone in Belize that God will use us to impact as well.  I long to leave, four months still seems to far away.  But all in His timing, right?

Thank you for coming alongside me and supporting me in what ever way you can! I appreciate it, and I appreciate YOU! Much love and be blessed!
Dawn

The Team and Updates

Hey guys!

Hope you are all doing well! Just thought I'd give you guys a quick update on everything going on with my upcoming Belize trip. We have had two team meetings so far, and each one just makes me even more excited and expectant.  Instead of having 12 team members like we originally thought, our leaders, Bruce and Taylor, closed the trip with 8 of us being accepted, so with our leaders we will have a team of 10.  Bruce says that each time he has taken a team there has been some sort of theme that has united them, and this trip he is calling the Young Adult Team, with him being our oldest member, Taylor being the youngest, and the rest of us interspersed between them.  I am thrilled to say that of the 10 of us, I am related to three of them haha, both my brother and my sister-in-law were accepted as part of the team, as well as my awesome cousin Heather.  From there we will be joined by Rachel: our resident EMT and a co-leader, another sibling pair: Dan and Susanne Cooper, and our last team member Jessica, who is a chef and a mother.  Our first team meeting was a kind of meet and greet and a chance for us to get to interact a little bit with each other.  Bruce and Taylor believe that each of us is supposed to be on this trip and this team, and is crucial to the trip, and after meeting them I couldn’t agree more.  Each month I look forward to our meeting, and I can’t wait to keep getting to know them all more!!!

            Personally, I am starting to think this trip is going to be bigger than I imagined.  I can already tell that God is shaping me and changing me for this trip, and that big things are going to be happening between now and then, and of course during the trip.  To be honest… I find this rather terrifying.  I know I’m going to be pushed to my limit, challenged, and molded, none of which can be easy.  I think some of my spiritual gifts will be brought to the forefront, and that I will have to lean on God to find a new strength.  I have been told that I will be a warrior and a fighter for God. Which sounds awesome, but when we fight for God we deal with powers we can’t imagine, and that’s what I find so intimidating.  So prayers for strength, courage, discipline, and peace would be greatly appreciated. 

            As far as finances go, I’m doing good for April and am right where I need to be, but I do need about $500 more by the middle of May, if you feel like you’d like to support me please let me know and I can give you the information to do so. 

I am so thankful for all of you, and the support and love you have showed me! Thank you for taking the time to read this, and I’ll do my best to keep you posted J God bless!

Dawn

New Adventures

Hey everyone!
I know it's been a while since I've posted, but I thought I'd update you all on my next big adventure.

A few of you know that I tried to spend a few weeks down in Belize this past summer.  I was trying to do some volunteer work with a ministry my church works with down there.  The ministry is called Laugh Out Loud Ministries, or LOL Ministries, which is an orphanage.  It's run by Jervis and Melissa Fisher. I had been in contact with Melissa when trying to go down there and was really looking forward to meeting her and Jervis and helping with their orphanage. Their orphanage is a little different from what you would consider a normal orphanage.  The children there may not necessarily be orphans, and instead may be abandoned or come from a situation where they are not able to live at home.  This really drew me to them, but as I tried to settle my plans for going down nothing was working out, or coming together. I was disappointed but didn't see any solution and called off the trip.

Now I understand that God had something else in mind. I recently heard about a trip that JFC, my church, was planning down to Belize.  I almost immediately felt drawn to going, and was feeling like I was supposed to go.  I went to the information meeting a few Sunday's ago and was blown away.  The more I listened to the leaders Bruce and Taylor the more I believed I was supposed to go.  After the meeting I talked to Bruce for a few minutes, and after setting up the required interview he spontaneously asked me what I thought I would bring to the trip. This lead to an in-depth discussion about why I want to go to Belize, my missions history, and several other things, it was kinda a pre-interview interview haha.  From there he highly encouraged me to get my application in as soon as possible saying I sounded like a perfect fit for the trip. 

I spent the beginning of last week scrambling to finish my application and get it turned it, but hadn't even finished it by Thursday.  I got a text from Bruce about midday on Thursday, asking how the application was going.  He also had texted me to let me know that he and Taylor had been praying, and that even though I didn't have my application in they believed I was supposed to be on the trip and so they were giving me a spot.  (What I failed to mention earlier is that they are only allowing 12 people to go on this trip) I feel so incredibly blessed to be given this opportunity, and to have a spot on the trip. After getting Bruce's text I teared up and just got incredibly overwhelmed.  I really believe I am supposed to go on this trip, and to have that confirmed by the leaders of the trip, and to be given a spot on the team is almost more than I can ask for.  I just feel so incredibly blessed!

The trip is going to be October 23rd through November 1st. We will be working with LOL during the days and then doing various ministry services in the nearby villages during the evenings, at least that is the plan right now, this may change depending on what the needs are when we get down there.  The only bad thing about this is... I will be missing school, 10 days of school. 

So my first prayer request would be that God would start working on my teacher's hearts now and thaty they would be understanding and not penalize me for the trip.  I would also like to ask for prayers for my bother and sister-in-law who are also applying to go, and that they would get accepted and also be able to join me in this adventure.  My last prayer request would be for funds of course.  As with any missions trip I will be getting most of my funding from supporters.  Please pray that I would trust and have faith that I will get the funding I need for this trip. 

Thank you all for reading, and joining with me on this new crazy adventure! I can't wait to see what God is going to do with all of it! God bless you all!

Dawn

Creative Nonfiction about Kayangel

Hey guys! I know its been a while since I posted, but for one of my writing assignments for my Art and Craft of Writing class I did a creative nonfiction piece on my week in Kayangel, and thought I'd like to share it with you guys! Sorry about the weird and random formatting, but here it is, as well as a picture that shows the islands well.

 

 

 

 

10 December 2014

Less Means More

After being back in America for ten months I find it interesting to reflect on my time in Kayangel.  My mind often drifts back to that week without any deliberate thought.  I miss the simple life I found there.  America is full of racing cars, busy cities, blaring music, TV shows, and smartphones.  I do have to admit that I have gone back to spending a good amount of my time in front of TV’s, my laptop, and especially on my phone. But I find that I do not care for these things as much as I once did.  They can no longer excite me more than as a distraction to pass time. I have left my phone at home on accident several times since my trip to Palau, something that would have never happened before my trip. I have also found that I do not like texting as much, or even phone calls.  I would so much rather spend time with people face to face.  When we step away from our technology we find out that it is very possible to live without it.  Remembering my week in Kayangel reminds me of this.  I miss Nolan, Bob, and Kan-Lee. I wish that there was some way I could find out how they are doing. 

The sun and heat in Palau always seemed overbearing, but I would love to get back to that, even if it was to work in a soggy ruined school house.  The work always seemed so fulfilling. We were doing something that mattered and we could feel it. I keep telling people that I don’t really have the desire to go back to Palau, but if someone asked me if I wanted to go back to Kayangel I couldn’t help but say yes.  I fell in love with those four little islands, and their incredible people.

~

The boat reached the top of the wave and then started the decent down the steep side. We held on tightly, feeling the spray of the water and feeling our hearts pounding in our ears along with the roar of the ocean and waves.  The sky was foreboding, gloomy and dark.  The turbulent water churned around our little open sided boat, thrusting it up and down over and over again.  The islands we were headed towards were nowhere in sight.  At the top of the waves all we could see was endless dark water and countless waves to come, and at the bottom of the valleys were only walls of water.  We held on for what felt like our dear lives.  The shiny steel railings were cold and slippery, but in my fear I managed to keep a solid grip on them while praying for safety and the islands to come into sight.  Adrenaline coursed through me, not just from the fear, but from the wonder of this crazy experience.  The waves were taller than the boat and the ride felt like a roller-coaster.  My eyes burned from the salt water spraying them.   But even through the salt spray and my own salty tears, I couldn’t help but keep my eyes open and watching.  The power of the waves was strong, and the heights and plunging depths were thrilling.  The crazy blue swirls with their foamy white caps were hypnotic, and demanded that I keep my gaze upon them.  I don’t remember where the roaring sound was coming from, but I remember that conversation was impossible. Instead, we simply looked at each other, sharing our fear and awe only through our eyes. 

We had waited almost two months to be able to visit the islands of Kayangel.  Our entire trip had been a precursor to that week.  Every week we thought we were going, and then plans changed and we wouldn’t be allowed to.  But now it was finally our chance to go.  All we knew about the week was that we were going to be helping with hurricane relief.  The typhoon had hit the islands in November, but no one was able to tell us how bad the devastation actually was, the reports were varied and vague.   

The waves slowly calmed down as we entered the giant lagoon sheltered from the windward waves by the crescent shaped arc of four islands. They pulled the boat up to the pier of the largest island and we hopped off. We unloaded our bags from the boat and then peeled them out of their waterproof covers, which were garbage bags, while shaking off the drips of lingering salt water.  The clouds had thinned out and I only remember sun and light wind.  At first glance, I did not think there was much destruction.  Quite a few palms had kept their leafy tops waving up to the sky.  But the closer I looked, the more damage I saw.  There were toppled trees all over.  The few palms that were in the air were just that, a few.  The fallen trees were so thick that we could only take a few steps before encountering an obstacle of fallen, rotten, broken trees and plants.  The fallen trees surrounded a cleared community area.  The long solid concrete pier connected to a road that went by a pavilion of sorts.  There was a building of some kind, I think they used it for storage, but attached were tarps to create a sheltered seating area. An area between the tarps had an actual roof, and the tables were larger than the others and closer to the ground. We used them more as seats than as tables. 

We bounded over to the place where we were going to be staying, hauling our meager amount of luggage with us. The community center was on the other side of the road and a ways back from the beach.  The building was a faded light blue, and up on stilts to keep it away from the damp ground.  They had giant tree stumps in front of all six doors, one on each end and two on each of the longer sides. As we climbed up, we were surprised by the inside of the building.  The other community centers we had stayed in had been barren, nothing but empty tile floors.  This one was different. In the center was a bookshelf built into the middle of the floor and going long ways through the entire building.  The bookshelves were loaded, from top to bottom, filled with words to read. We unlaced our bags and strung out our mosquito nets, tying the four stringed corners to the books on the shelf and to the slatted windows.

We hurried back outside to see off the boat that had brought us to the island, and then spent the rest of the afternoon and evening unpacking and getting acquainted with the community area.  Over by the full building there were two toilets that were still somewhat operational, a men’s and a woman’s each just one stall, with no doors.  They explained the toilets to us, there were buckets filled with rain water outside of the bathrooms, and you would take a bucket into the bathroom with you and pour the water in after you were done as a way to flush it.  That was the closest thing to running water left on the island.  They also helped us find the water catchment tank next to our building and the outhouse, and what was supposed to be the shower. 

We worked hard the next day starting our hurricane relief on the elementary school of Kayangel.  We walked to the building first thing in the morning. It was a short brisk walk through a cleared path of rubbish that had us sweating even so early in the day.  Most of the Palauans who were working with us were there when we arrived, and they had already begun.  The building had almost no windows left intact and no roof.  That first day we spent dragging what was left of the roof supports outside, saving what we could of the wood, and burning what couldn’t be saved.  The wood was wet, soaked through, dark, and heavy.  We would drag the beams over the warped slippery, slimy, and dank tiles out to the short stubby grass outside the white washed walls.  There we pinned the boards to the ground, sitting on them, standing on them, anything to hold them down and pull the rebellious nails out of the harsh wood. 

The Palauan’s worked faster than my little team. They rushed about like buzzing bees, bustling back and forth.  They worked quickly and efficiently, hauling wood, pulling nails, laughing, chatting, and working constantly.  They are beautiful people. I remember Nolan with his bright red shirt whistling and singing as he practically danced around the rubbish.  He had his black afro hair held back with a black elastic into a thick ponytail.  His smile was quick coming and his cheer made the day pass quickly.  Bob and Kan-Lee were also dressed in bright colors, green and blue.  Bob had a shy smile, he would pass us quietly, with a swift glance, a slight smile, and then be on his way past you to continue what he was working on. He used his camo fisherman’s hat to duck his eyes behind.   Kan-Lee was even shyer, he would glance up with a smile flickering in his eyes, and barely touching his lips before slipping past. His hair was shorter than Nolan’s and was held back with a headband.  Nolan and Kan-Lee looked very similar. They had the same caramel chocolate toned brown skin with distinct islander features of round faces, flat foreheads, and flashing dark eyes.  Bob had slightly darker skin, and a more oval face, his eyes were darker, like a shadowed cave.  The rest of the Palauans were a mix of the three in looks as well as personality.  Most were friendly but didn’t speak that good of English so they used what English they had, along with gestures and smiles to communicate.  They were all men and all, except Nolan, Bob, and Kan-Lee, were over 30 years old.  In total, we had about ten or twelve people working on the school. 

After that first day of working with the wood, we began to work with the other half of the building.  The first half was the cafeteria side with a small classroom. The side we worked on the rest of the week was a bigger side, which looked like it used to be one large room classroom.  When we first started to work on that side, it looked like it hadn’t been touched since the typhoon had hit it.  Bookshelves had fallen at crazy angles, desks were overturned, and rotted books lay everywhere.  You almost couldn’t walk across the floor.  The books were disgusting.  They were water logged, soaked all the way through, with pages bonded together, and they weighed three times more than they should have. They smelled even worse than they looked, rotting pages still dripping with rancid water. But they smelled even worse when we began to burn them.  The smoke drifting off the piles billowed thick and black.  We felt like Nazi’s for burning so many books, but there was no other option.  The books were ruined, and we had no way to dry them out, and even if we could they still wouldn’t really be usable. The school contained a variety of books. We found textbooks, fiction children’s books, and we each found at least one book that we had loved as a child.  But to pick up a book and have it be so slimy and slippery that you have to grasp it tightly and feel the moisture oozing out of it was horrific. So we tossed book after book upon the flickering fighting flames, as they crackled and popped, consuming the multitude of sopping pages.  I’m pretty sure I shed a few tears for all of the knowledge we were burning. 

The sun was hot on those days, and combined with the heat floating off of the multiple giant bonfires, we were sweating more than we ever thought we could. Our sweat would catch the dirt and grime we worked with and we were left with our entire bodies feeling gritty, dusty, and sticky.  When we finished the work on the school for the day we would walk or ride in the bed of their tiny white work pick-up back to the community area.  At the community area we would then proceed to rinse off the layer of grime that coated us.

Once we reached the end of the road, the fun began.  We would glance at each other out of the corner of our eyes, slyly watching. And then we would take off, running down the stretched pier, racing to beat the others to the end, kicking off our flip-flops in our haste. Once we reached the end, clothes and all, we would jump, flip, dive, or soar, anything to get ourselves into the refreshing crystal waters of the ocean.  The water was incredibly clear.  From the pier on a sunny day you could easily see the bottom, even if it was a good 25 feet away at high tide.  It was warm too, the temperature barely cooler than the air around us, but that didn’t make it any less refreshing. While in the water we would scrub down our arms, legs, and heads, trying to get as much dirt off as we could.  After our scrub, we would swim back towards the pier, our shorts and t-shirts swirling and constricting around our paddling limbs.  The concrete steps carved into the side of the pier were slippery and wet from splashing waves, and we would carefully climb our way back up them.  At the top we would find ourselves on the pier again with the concrete burning the bottoms of our feet with heat soaked up from the scalding sun.  To soothe our feet, we would hustle back to the edge, only to launch ourselves back into the water again.  We played this game over and over again, multiple times a day, it was our favorite pass time.  The best was when we could convince Nolan, Kan-Lee, and Bob to join us.  The eight of us would take turns jumping off, doing whatever crazy stunts we could think of.  Our Palauan friends were fearless, they would try anything, and most the time execute whatever they chose to do well.  They belong to the race of natural athletes and had the advantage of growing up next to the ocean and playing in it their entire lives. In the air they were as graceful as soaring birds, and during their dives and flips they looked as smooth as dolphins.  They made our game way more fun, and those are my favorite memories from that week. 

After our pier adventures we would head back to the community building to shower, or maybe I should say, to rinse the salt water off.  The shower was simply a stall.  Three sides were paneled with what looked to be tin roof material, up to about shoulder height with a wooden floor.  From shoulder height, to the slightly sloped tin roof, was a wide-squared metal mesh. This could be very awkward, since you could see out of the stall while you were rinsing off.  The fourth side of the stall was open.  We used a random board to cover the bottom half of the opening, which was enough for the guys, and then my girl teammate and I would drape our towels across what was left of the opening, sticking the ends of the towel through the mesh to get it to hang where we needed it to.  A bucket sat on the floor which we would fill with a hose connected to the rain catchment tank. In the other corner was a single plastic yellow chair.  That was the only dry place in the shower and even there I found it difficult to keep my clean clothes dry while trying to get myself clean.  There was a smaller cup in the bucket on the floor and using that we tried to wash off the best we could, which never really seemed to work very well.   We had soap, but it didn’t seem to help us feel any cleaner, and my hair never did feel right because we didn’t have any shampoo. Between our dirty work situation, our bucket showers, and salt water washes we always felt a little bit nasty.  I was amazed at how easy it was to forget how gross we felt when we were occupied with other things.  We spent the week this way, living in rugged simple conditions, but finding ourselves enjoying it.

On the last day we were there the sun beat down hot, blinding, and as strong as ever. From the beach was a light breeze wafting up to us and cooling our sweaty bodies. The palm trees swayed around us, but none of that mattered that day. Watch for the ball, hit the ball, pass the ball. Focus. The faces around me danced with smiles and flashed with laughter. Dark faces with white smiles, tanned skin with bright eyes. We still felt gross, but we ignored it completely. It was our last night on the island and we were going to celebrate the work we had done and the friendships we had built.  Starting with this volleyball game. They had set up the net next to the community pavilion, blocking the road that connected to the long concrete pier. There were no more boats coming in for the day and access to the pier was no longer needed.  Our teams trickled in, Palauans versus everyone else… no, my team verses everyone else… no, mix it up and let’s begin. My team of five, with three Palauans, and two other foreigners began to play in the heat of the afternoon.

As we played I remember looking around, at the broken trees, at the scarred land and the rubbish.  I couldn’t even imagine how beautiful it must have been before the fury of the typhoon. The ocean still provided a sweet smell, floating around the island, perfuming every part of this broken place.  The sun was hot, beating down, making sweat drip off our faces, but its warmth was comforting, assurance of clear skies and a reminder of a productive week. The few standing palms contrasted beautifully with the bright blue sky. The aquamarine water lit up the white sand, reflecting the heat and the light of the sun back to us.  The island was stunning, even in its destruction.

In the morning we would roll our sleeping bags into cocoons, fold up our mosquito nets into notebook sizes and then be ready to leave bright and early.  The island and its people, especially Nolan, Bob, and Kan-Lee, had left their mark on us.  Never had I been to a place that revolved so strongly around simplicity. Our shared meals with the community, the ping-pong games, boat trips, and swimming with Nolan, Bob, and Kan-Lee, the time sitting by the crackling fire looking at the sparkles in the night sky, all seemed to mean so much more than anything else we did.  We had been ripped away from our phones, the internet, TV, even electricity, and forgot to notice their absence. With the simplicity we found joy in our work and in our friends. I can only remember seeing Nolan without a smile once, and Bob and Kan-Lee, even in their shyness, always had smiles lurking in their eyes.  The strength, beauty, and continuous hope of these islanders who had lost everything amazed me. 

It was not a week of rest for us, but it almost seemed that way when my team got back to our host home the next week. We felt rejuvenated by the people we had come to help, who helped us more.  They had nothing left, their houses were waterlogged and torn apart, their fields were ruined by the salt water, their beautiful island destroyed, and yet they were the ones who taught us what it meant to be content.  They worked hard, played hard, loved fiercely, but lived meagerly. During our work on the school I was amazed at the skill and intensity the Palauans worked with. Nolan was the ring leader, of his own friends, of my team, and even the other Palauans seemed to take their cues from him.  Nolan, Bob and Kan-lee seemed to be the best general representation of the Palauan population.  They were adventurous and daring, smart and bold, caring and withdrawn.  Not only were they the first to get to work, but they were the first to make work fun, the first to call it a day, and the first to jump off of the pier.  They cared deeply for everyone around them, which showed in the ways they managed to help the rest of the people on the island.  They loved life and loved to share it. They were the reason our week was so wonderful.  They made the grimy work at the school worth it. They made the lack of running water worth it. They even made the lack of real showers worth it. It was they who really brought out the beauty in the scarred island. 

The volleyball game seemed to be the climax of everything from that week of work and all we had learned from Nolan, Bob and Kan-Lee. We all played like our lives depended on it. Volley after volley, fighting back and forth, over and over, getting more intense by the minute.  Then the ball would fall, or someone would miss, and we would all laugh, pick it up and keep going. The game was like their lives, even in simplicity they made it fun, laughed at their failures, fought through the pain, and kept pushing on. The people of the devastated island of Kayangel, Palau taught me so much about simplicity and love in one week, that I will remember it for the rest of my life.

 

 

Home Sweet Home

     Hey guys! How y'all doin? Just wanted to give you guys one last little update before I officially consider this adventure over. 
     I am home! I made it! I had to travel for 36 hours to get home but I made it back safely, just a little worn out.  I have been home for two weeks now (I got in on February 23) and am working on adjusting and getting back to some semblance of normalcy.  It has been a bit rough being home, to be honest.  I really did miss you all, and that's the good thing about being home, is all of you! But the rest is hard.  I really am not enjoying the cooler/cold weather.  I also have been striving to find my own routine for quiet times, and I've realized I have to make time for personal worship times as well.  YWAM does such a great job of giving you routines and setting aside time for these things to be done, but leaving that structure has been challenging. 
     The other thing I really miss is my team and my classmates.  I never realized how attached you can get to people after just five months, but man am I attached to them! I've been finding time to text or message several of them every once in a while, but its never going to be like living with them was. I miss them so very much.
     I am also dealing (naturally) with a bit of culture shock... after living out of suitcases for the past five months, I'm amazed at all of the useless junk I have.  I'm beginning to (slowly...) start going through my room to get rid of all these pointless, unnecessary things.  I'm also becoming amazed at how big the world/mainland is haha.  After living on islands and then flying from California to Colorado I was able to see the land stretch around me, and it was a bit overwhelming, and then my mind reminded me that that was only a fraction of the whole world.... amazing isn't it? :)
     I would love to hang out with any of you, so if you want to get together just let me know :) I am hoping to be able to do a small event to see you guys and to allow you all to see me and some of my pictures, if that works out I will let y'all know! Love you all! and until next time.

Week 9 (Last week in Palau)

2-17-14
     Hey ya'll!!! Well, I'm back in Kona now, traveled all day yesterday (40 hour day haha) and so... outreach is over, but our last (debrief) week was great. 
     Monday we had our last free day.  We spent it mostly at the café and watching movies, but we took time to have dinner with Malo and Lisa and a few others from Koror Evangelical Church and Emmaus High School. 
     Tuesday we had a bit of a relaxing day.  Brandon and Alicia were both out trying to get some possible flight complications figured out, and Max had Malo over to work on some music, so Max sent Colton and I out on a faith journey of sorts... where we found Keizer (I learned the correct spelling of his name... oops). So we spent a good amount of time with him.  That evening we had our last dinner out with Fuana.
     Wednesday I exhausted myself.  We spent the morning finishing the concrete for Fuana.  The afternoon we spent cleaning her house before we left.  In the evening we had Keizer over and hung out with him for a bit, but when it was over I was pretty darn tired. 
     Thursday was our official debrief day.  We spent the morning pondering and praying over some reflective questions Max had given us about outreach.  After lunch we went with Fuana to a waterfall (minus Brandon) and spent some time swimming and climbing the various falls.  After that we checked into our hotel that we were spending the night at, and then Alicia, Colton, and I were off to get massages.  After we came back we all met up for dinner and discussed the answers to Max's questions together.  After dinner we used our day passes to the Palau Pacific Resort to go use their pool, and even better, their jacuzzi which was amazing.  After that we all enjoyed hot showers, comfy beds and pillows, and air conditioned rooms that felt amazing! In the morning we all just kinda hung out at the hotel, laying on the beds, using the hotel pool and hot showers again. 
     Friday, after leaving the hotel haha, we hung out a Fuana's for a bit before helping to set up for a concert that the other team was putting on that Max was helping sing at.  We had an amazing night!Almost all the youth that we had worked with attended and it was a great way to say good bye to them.  But the best part of the night was finding Nolan there.  We had tried to see him the week before, but he hadn't made it Friday and instead got to be in Koror for a week, Wednesday to Wednesday.  He showed up to the concert looking for us, hearing that we were putting it on.  We spent as much time as possible with him that night and convinced him to come to the rock islands with us on Saturday. 
     So, as I just said Saturday we went to the rock islands, and they were amazing!!! We started off going to Jellyfish Lake, then saw the giant clams at Clam Cove, and then stopped at the Shark Sanctuary, but we didn't see any.  After that we had a wonderful Palauan lunch before heading back out going to Milky Way (it has sulfuric mud in it, which is supposedly really good for the skin, and looked really funny too hehe), stopped at The Cemetairy (great snorkeling spot) and then headed back to Koror.  That evening Keizer made it over late and we talked to him and hung out with him for a bit.  That was the last day we saw Nolan and Keizer.
     Sunday we went to church together at KEC one last time.  Fuana made us lunch, and then we finished backing before going to a bit of a bbq near Emmaus, where we were able to say goodbye to the other team and Malo before getting on the plane.  Fuana, Wilson and Ester, Prima and Hedrick, (all a part of the Palauan YWAMers) took all of us to the airport where we said goodbye to them.  Then we were off.  We flew to Taipei, Taiwan and then to Honolulu and then Kona.  It was something like a 40 hour day... we left Koror at 7:30 pm Sunday and landed in Kona at 4 pm Sunday.  Weird, right? But yea. So now we are back in Kona. 
     Yesterday, today, and tomorrow are our debrief days, before graduation tomorrow night.  Its nice to be back in Hawaii, I DO love these islands so very much, but my heart aches and longs to go home. I am trying not to think about how much I want to be home, and I'm trying to enjoy this last week in my favorite state, and enjoy my last bit of time with my DTS and Outreach team.  So maybe that's what you guys can pray for me... just that I would be able to keep my head and heart here, and in the moment.  Also pray for healing.  I got some inspected spots on my limbs, and now have an antibiotic, but I would love it if I could heal quickly and not have any issues from the antibiotic either... So ya. 
     Thank you guys all so much! Your prayers and support have carried me my whole trip! God bless you for that!!!!! Love you all and see you SOON! :D

Outreach Week 8

2-10-14

​Heyyo! I can’t believe we just finished up week 8… and that we only have one more week here. So mind blowing! Only two weeks until I’m back among all of you!!! I really can’t believe how quickly it all went by, even this past week went really fast.

​Monday (Feb 3rd) was another free day.  We spent the time at the café, I had a nice long cry about missing home (don’t tell Max ;) … I think I just needed to get it out of my system because I’ve felt fine and done much better after I had my cry), and then just hung out with my team for the rest of the day.  We took it super easy to try to recuperate and rest some from Kayangel and the youth conference.  We also determined at the end of the day, a bit of a plan for the week.  It is a common thing on outreach to have days where a student leads, and when Jim was here he encouraged Max to do that with us, so we prayed and each were told a day that we were supposed to lead.  Alicia- Tuesday, Brandon- Wednesday, Colton- Thursday, and me on Friday.  

​So Alicia lead on Tuesday, and she felt it was just to be used as a day for each of us to do whatever preparation we needed for our own day.  It was a relaxed day. I have to be honest, I don’t think I left the house once, and spent quite a lot of time in mine and Alicia’s room listening to music and just taking as much alone/personal time as I could get away with.

​Wednesday, Brandon led.  We started the day by going to Emmaus (the boys high school we’ve been working with) to do their chapel, where Max, Alicia, and I lead worship, and Colton gave an amazing sermon.  That night we attended the Palauan Baptist Church, which we all thoroughly enjoyed and got a lot out of.

​Thursday (Colton’s day to lead) we again spent most of the time at the house. We spent the morning waiting for someone, who we found out a few hours later wasn’t able to make it.  That night we went to the prison ministry where Max helped with the worship some, and Alicia and Brandon spoke.  We were able to converse and pray for some of the inmates, which was really cool.  

Friday (my day to lead) we got Fuana a new front door and were trying to watch and help as it was getting worked on to fit perfectly.  We also spend some time hanging out with another Palauan YWAMer (who is a good friend of Max’s and also teaches music at Emmaus), named Malo. (Whom we had waited for Thursday) He spent several hours over, chatting, hanging, and jamming.  After that I gave everyone some personal time, mostly because I needed to pray and talk to God about the day.  I was feeling very unsure, unqualified, and unhappy about the whole leading thing.  Earlier in the week when I had been thinking about my day I had thought about how the best leader should be the best servant, so I had wanted to try to find some way that I could bless my team and just serve them as much as possible. But when my day actually rolled around I couldn’t think of a way to actually make that happen, or what I could do.  As I was finishing up praying and trying to listen to God’s voice, He sent Alicia to me.  She told me she’d been avoiding talking to me about some stuff, and that God told her she needed to do it now.  She confronted me a bit about my attitude the past few days/week.  She pointed out how there are almost two sides of me… the normal side of me, where I am happy, joyful, sweet and just who I am, and who I am created to be.  The other side is a negative, grumpy me.  I have some infected bug bites (on my arm mostly, but there are a few on my legs as well), and she pointed out that even thought they are painful, gross, and just no fun in general (she knew from experience because she had the same problem) she told me that I can’t let it get to me and bring me down the way I was letting it.  She challenged me to try to be less negative, and to focus as much as possible on the positive.  She also challenged me to be more bold, and to stop looking and asking for confirmation or ideas from other people, but to make sure I’m really going to God.  The things she said were exactly what I needed to hear, in so many ways! And they also helped me to reconnect with God enough that I knew what to do with the day.  When we all gathered back together (Brandon was gone doing his own thing though) I told my team, that as their leader for the day I was taking them out to lunch for burgers (a novelty in and of itself haha).  After lunch we walked the town a bit just praying as we walked and trying to find ways to bless the people we had had multiple encounters with.  We met back together at the café and then hung out for a bit.  We spent the evening hanging out with the guys at Emmaus, playing guitar, comparing and learning songs, just trying to invest in them as much as we can as our time with them ticks down.  

Saturday we all enjoyed being able to do some physical labor.  We took the day to lay some concrete for Fuana’s back porch.  We spend most the day doing this, from mixing the cement, to dumping it and smoothing it.  I got to be the “smoother” and actually really enjoyed it and was just starting to really get the hang of it when we stopped for the day haha.  But it was not only a nice change to do something physical (even with all the soreness we got from it haha), but Fuana was so grateful and it was so nice to be able to bless her in such a way.  By evening we were all tired so we took it easy and hung out.

Sunday was the best day of all! We got up a bit earlier than most Sundays to go back to the prison to teach again today.  Max and I taught (first sermon I’ve ever given haha) and it was just so good! After prison we attended our favorite church, Koror Evangelical Church, and were just blessed and amazed by the wonderful service.  After that we took almost a team nap haha, but some quiet time to rest before heading to Emmaus mid-afternoon.  When we got to Emmaus we spent some time playing sports and just general hanging out with them.  The other team was there and I got the opportunity to soak up some worship time with Caleb.  I realized that a lot of the things Alicia had lovingly pointed out to me stemmed from a lack of worship time. By leaving on Sunday for Kayangel I had missed the worship at church that week and it had ruined my week.  So on Sunday I found myself soaking up every ounce of worship I could get, at the prison, at church, and even more sitting with just Caleb, a guitar, me and God. It was wonderful. After that we all got to eat dinner with them before Max played some worship songs and then spoke a little. He told the seniors he wanted to give them a night they would never forget, and I think he succeeded! He challenged them to be the world changers they were set apart to be, and after that he asked that we all gather around them and pray for them, which they all were blessed (and made a little uncomfortable) by.  Caleb and the three leaders from the other team also took the time to bless the guys and to impart what they could to them (especially the seniors). After that we had even more worship time (to my delight) and then hung out a bit before heading our separate ways.  It was getting late when we got back, but for some reason we decided to watch a movie and proceeded to do so haha. It was a fantastic day, a memorable day, and probably one of the best days of outreach so far.  

This next week is our debrief week of sorts.  We will be taking it kind of easy.  We plan to go to Pelelu for a few days (the only island we haven’t been to yet, its by Angauar). We are taking a day to go to the Rock Islands, and then just not much on the other days.

​Well… that’s all folks.  I’m counting down the days until I get to see you all! It will be here so very soon.  Take care of yourselves J Love you all! ​