Travelblog III

Day 3

We got an early start, ate some breakfast, and prepared to bring food to the gym again. The kids in particular seemed glad to have us return, and proceeded to climb over us. Match and Max were gaining popularity, but Matt was nowhere to be found.

We went back, ate lunch, and prepared for that afternoon and evening. We would share a devotional at the children's home that evening, and a Bible lesson the next morning at a school nearby. We pooled our resources, assigned parts, and prepared lessons. The Bible study and feeding proceeded in the afternoon,and it along with the evening devotional went smoothly. Romans 16:19 served as a popular one, as everywhere we went children were singing it.

After the evening devotional at the children's home we each chose a child to read a story to. The young man who chose me also negotiated three stories. He did most of the reading and agreed to let me explain. After reading the Christmas story, he refused to close it until I read the "Note to Parents" on the last page. After that, he was satisfied and we were able to move on.

The stories were finished, so we went back to our current place of residence and practiced being spies and Cananites, respectively. The part of fruit would graciously be played by actual fruit.

Days 4 and 5
The skit, songs and lesson went well. Myself and another teacher got to be giants, which entailed students from the local school riding on our shoulders. From the reactions, they must have looked scary. Helmets fell, but no kids, and that's always a plus.

That afternoon we brought more than just food. We had learned the lack of Bibles in tagalog, so we arranged to purchase one per family. I can't recall ever seeing Bibles received so well. It being the last day, everyone wanted us to sign in addition to our message in the front. We also had tracts with the Gospel in tagalog in the Bibles to use as bookmarks. We hugged on kids, sang, let them wrestle us and heard our names (or something close) chanted one last time. We left, promising to pray for them.

The devotional that evening went well. Two of our students shared, and story time gave way to movie night. As the movie played, we went to a mall to buy some snacks some of us forgot existed. After that, we went home and rested.

Saturday we ate breakfast, then went to visit the children's home one last time. We played ball games, and I got claimed by two young ladies who tried to teach me marbles. It didn't take, so we took turns between the swings and the monkey bars. At one point Beka and I each had a child and proceeded to race them. Fortunately,I had the sneaky one who learned she could go faster if she let go of the bars. After that, we said our goodbyes, finished packing, and returned to the airport.

Travelblog II

Day 2

Having arrived around 1:00 that morning, we were allowed to oversleep a bit. We had breakfast, then carried two large containers of food to take to a gym housing roughly 168 families. Their houses in a squatter village were still unlivable due to flooding from the three typhoons that hit a while back. We drove in two vehicles, arrived, and following the directions of the ministry worker we came with, set to work.

The line moved in an orderly fashion. Later on in the week it would take more effort to keep order, but it did get warmer each day and I'm sure that counts as a good reason. The children ate first, then introductions were made and tall visitors were climbed on by kids. Fun was had by all.

I encountered a first on this trip--kids having trouble saying "Matt." On our first visit, a couple of failed attempts deemed me as the unpopular one as I trudged to the corner alone while youths chanted easier names. Later in the week I surrendered to a name change. I was "Match" or "Max," depending on the speaker. Both guys were a lot of fun, but Matt is a bit of a downer, I'm afraid.

We went back to the ministry building, ate lunch, and planned a Bible study for later in the afternoon. A few hours later, we returned to the gym, split into two groups, and had two lessons for the young children and adults, respectively. The younger group had translation, as it was needed, but those of us with the adults settled on an ESL-friendly gospel message. Our Bible teacher gave the message, and the listeners were intent. After the message, we served the second meal of the day, then played and visited some more. We made it back at a reasonable hour, and made it a point to get plenty of rest. We had a full day ahead of us.

Yet another Travelblog

In case some are unaware, my wife and I joined a group of teachers and students going to the Phillipines over Thanksgiving break. Those who know me know my love of travel is almost equal to my love of yammering about it, so here goes. Day 1.

We arrived at the bus station on time. We also arrived at the airport on time. We got to the necessary desk, and...there was a problem. Two of our students were under fifteen and had the necessary paperwork. Unfortunately in the world of travel, today's necessary is tomorrow's unacceptable. If the parents weren't with us, they couldn't go.

We pleaded, paced nervously a little, then gathered as a group and prayed. This was it. we were going, or sending these three students home. We hoped for the former.

Shortly after the prayer, we got a call from one of our staff members. There was a possible way. It took a while, so those who were able crossed over and waited as we gobbled down overpriced sandwiches. At that point, we had about a half hour to go before boarding.

The flight was delayed by a few minutes and the remainder of the group joined us in time. The flight was four hours long and uneventful.

We heard a whistle while we waited outside the airport in Manila. One of the three dropped and said "I'm fifteen!" Thankfully, the whistling was unrelated.

By 2:00 in the a.m., we were in the Philippines, trying our best to sleep.

Happy Whatever

I have those days when I realize I've lived here too long. The other day, a co worker came in wearing a flower for, as he put it, "Remembrance Day." Of course, he added, that's what they call it in Canada. In the US it's called Veteran's Day.

I offered my trademark blank stare.

Was it today? someone asked. No, he replied. November eleventh.

"Oh!" My eyes lit with recognition. "Peppero Day!"

Because you can't compete with edible pencils.

Think Fast (or just break it)

So, usually I don't eat breakfast, except for on the weekends. This Sunday, we overslept a bit and the fast lasted another day. Big mistake. I began to notice as we headed to church.

After church we usually enjoy doughnuts that are graciously provided. They were foremost on my mind as we stood to sing and I noticed a varity of doughnuts singing around me. I'm sure it didn't help that I was drinking coffee to trick my stomach.

I gotta go eat something.

Gifts and Curses

I just watched Drag Me to Hell, and I was surprised to learn a valuable lesson. Never deny a loan to a creepy gypsy woman. You'll regret it. And don't play "button,button, who's got the button" either. Just so you know.

Fun with Cable News