Saturday, August 21, 2010

im not dead

hey yall. its august 21 ... i know.. i havent written in what, like a month or so. woopsy. Believe it or not, there is alot going on. alot of random happenings during the day. alot of canceld internet cafe trips... hair cuts, going to the beach, playing Halo, reading, and hanging out with the kids gets in the way of me leaving. If anyone wants to bring me a computer down here that would always be appreciated. while youre at it could you bring me a few pair of shorts too.
  But serioulsy, everything is good. health wise im fine. I could use a few more veggies in my diet but who couldnt. There are always things i want to share with yall. Even during the day sometimes i think about what im going to write. There has been alot thats happened so far, but ill just share with yall a few things recently.
. yesterday an outting to go running with one of the kids turned into me taking 15 of the smaller boys and girls and a few bigger kids to the beach for about 3 hours. It was so much fun, and on our way back we stopped and got about 35 mangos from someones tree. a few of the kids and i had passed by the previous week and the lady invited us on the roof and even provided us with her huge stick-basket thing to get the mangos down. yesterday was alot of fun... and when we got back to Casa Hogar we had a huge evening of peeling, cutting, and eating mangos with salsa. it was delicious but apparently causes bad diarrhea... i guess we ll find out.
 The kids all start school on monday.. so they are all enjoying the relaxation of these last days. with the rain and all.. relaxing means literally just sitting. theres alot of sitting going on right now. im loving it too... sitting and playing halo. sitting and talking.. sitting and making bracelts, watching tv, reading, hanging out.. My kitchen has been used pretty much regularly as the entertainment room for the girls. they always make fun of me because i dont have any food other than milk and cococrispies from the previous group. i eat what the kids eat and when the kids eat so i dont buy food. but that has been fun having them in the kitchen. Relationships are growing, especially with a few of them.. but its still so difficult because none of them are constant. i guess im not constantly content either.. or constantly nice... But it has been a struggle with the girls especially to continue to be there for them every second and to be a witness. The Lord is teaching me to be faithfully forgiving and kind even when they are not.. He is teaching me to be strong, to be wise and compassionate.. to see situations through their eyes... to not be so sensative. he has given me courage and endurance. Its very comforting to know that He is for me and not against me. He is fighting for me.
  school starts on monday... so what does that mean for me. I have no idea really.. What i think that im going to do is in the mornings i will either go to Nuevo Horizonte-the christian school- to help out with the missionary english teachers, and or i will be going to Sobre el puente-the street kids ministry- in the morning and coming back to casa Hogar in the afternoons. when the kids get back they have a mountain of homework that needs to be done, then chores, eating, hanging out, and they go to bed earlier. we have enjoyed some great late nights... but now the partying is over and bed time is going to be 8 i think, and no more sleep overs till the weekend. But i will be pretty busy with the school, sobre el puente, and helping with homework. Honestly this is a very rough plan of what might happen. ill let yall know what im actually doing when the time comes.
  As much as i miss school work-not- im very happy to be here at casa hogar. as much as i miss my family and friends, church and town, i feel that God is really going to bless the rest of my time here. im not counting down my days, but im trying to enjoy each one and live it for the glory of God. I do a pretty bad job at glorifying Him in every situation... and it s insanely tough loving at all times. But God is so good and restores my strength every day.
 Pray for these kids. Pray that God changes their hearts and lives. Pray that I can be a witness to the boys and girls, the younger and older ones.

4 comments:

Samone said...

wow I can't believe we are starting school already. Tell the Kids I say hi. I am writing letters but I dont know when i will send them. Man going to the beach and mango hunting sounds so fun! Im jealous. God is using you so much and you dont even know it. Love you and Im praying for you. I know he will use you in more ways than one. with relationships and just serving. I am mailing you a few things too =] be excited.
te quiero mucho.

Elizabeth Jean said...

I miss you :-( I'm so proud of all you are doing down there and so excited for the opportunity you have to serve God and be stretched like crazy, but I do miss you like crazy girl!!! A lot a lot a lot.
~Elizabeth

Unknown said...

Beka,
I miss you so much. It really sounds like you are having a great time ( albeit hard) and a wonderful time of ministry. Just remember to take care of yourself too. Love , Your Mama

Stacey Baehr said...

Beka,
I love you and I really miss you! I really enjoy reading your blogs, and I think and pray for you often. You are such an inspiring person and I can tell you are doing a great job down there! I can't beleive its already been 4 months! I know you love it where you are and it will be bittersweet when you have to leave, for you at least. And reading this post, I have seriously considered sending you my laptop just so that we can communicate more often.
Any who.... to say the least, I am really proud of you and proud to be your friend. I love you and can't wait for you to come back! Be safe, and try to get some rest!!
-FACE