A Team, Soccer, and Good News!!

Wednesday night a team from Maryland arrived in Zambrano. They were friends of Ed and Val whom they had first met at the ministry they used to work for. The team consisted of two men, four teenage boys, and one woman. That night we got introduced and went over the schedule for the week . Thursday and Friday the boys took off school so we could work alongside the team. On Thursday we laid cement at the property for a storage room and put up one of the walls. In the afternoon I played soccer with the men of the community and I only fell down once, getting a nice little scrape on my leg. I showered and ate quick then headed back to the property with Val to help out with her English class at night. On Friday I headed into the city with Val. One of the team members got hit in the face during soccer so we took him to an eye doctor to make sure everything was ok with his eye. I stayed with him at the office while Val left to visit with Patty for a few hours. He was done with the doctor in an hour so we walked to a mall close by and got some drinks and sat and talked. The man's name is Tom and he is an incredible man of God with a lot of wisdom. We sat and talked for a while about life and he got me thinking about a lot. We eventually went to lunch at Chilis when Val got there then headed back out to Zambrano to join the team. The team finished the rest of the walls for the storage room while we were in the city and when we got back we all went to the waterfall to show the team. We hiked down and swam a bit. I climbed one of the rock walls about 100 ft up which was my favorite part of the day. I felt so small in the midst of God's amazing and beautiful creation. Friday night some of the teenage Honduran boys from Ed and Vals old ministry came out to spend the night and work with the team the next day. The night times at our house were pretty fun. We played a game called mafia which was exciting and fun. I played guitar and sang worship songs for the team and then we had reflections on the day. Saturday began with us heading up the mountain to the house of a poor family to lay a cement floor for them. When we got there we also decided to dig a latrine for them. I worked on the latrine which we intended to be a 3x3 hole 6 feet down. The first few feet were easy enough and then we hit some more solid rocky stuff and we got slowed down. The hole ended up being 4 ft deep so we will have to return to finish it someday. I ended up with some blisters on my hands but it was worth it to help out a family in need. We also blessed them with food, clothing, and toys for the kids. Eventually we had to leave to get in time for the church service at the property. I did my normal routine of helping with the little kids class and playing with the kids. After the service ended we had a Honduras vs. USA game with the young guys and the good ole USA won 7 to 1. We had devotions and debriefing at the house that night and said goodbye to the teenage boys that came from the old ministry. On Sunday the Schuberts took the team into the airport in the city, went to see Patty, and then went to church. I stayed out in Zambrano to play soccer. Our team lost 2-0 against a pretty good team. I stayed and watched the next two games and hung out with people from the community. After that I came home to clean, do laundry, and relax. On Monday we started school back up and the day went well. After school I headed to Christian's house to have dinner with their family. It was a good time of playing with the kids and talking to Yanci. I also got to see Maskol who hasn't been at the property on Saturdays for a while. We had some Chop Suey which they bought from a man in town and then we watched Cars in Spanish on tv. As I was leaving Yanci gave me a teddy bear and Alejandro gave me a pencil holder made out of pop sickle sticks, glue, and a toilet paper roll. It was nice to be able to spend a night with my Honduran family and play with the boys. Today the boys had school while Ed and Val went into the city to run errands. Today was also the day that the committee was meeting to decide if the Schuberts would get Patty and the committee voted and we are going to have a 3 yr old girl in the house soon. It is so exciting to know she will be coming although we are not sure when. Other than that great news not too much exciting happened today. I played soccer in the afternoon with the guys and I scored a goal with my left foot. I know it doesn't sound impressive but I was proud. I just want to thank everyone for their prayers for Patty and hope that you all continue to pray for her as she makes a transition from her foster home to our home. Thank you all as well for all the support throughout this year. I appreciate every prayer and dollar that has been given on my behalf. Adios and God bless.

Patty!!

Last Wednesday Ed, Val, Tammy and Sarah went into the city to see the girl that the adoption agency had picked out for them. The little girl is beautiful and they call her Patty from her middle name Patricia. Her mother abandoned her at birth at the hospital and she has been living with the same foster family since she was 4 days old. On Thursday Ed,Val, and Tammy went back into the city. They dropped Tammy off at the airport and ran errands. Val needed to get back in the afternoon to teach her Spanish class at 2 but traffic was bad and she was running late. This meant of course that AJ and I had to carry all her stuff up to the property without the truck and we had to teach part of the class until she got there. We expected her to be 15-30 minutes late but she ended up being one hour late. In my broken Spanish I reviewed some things they had already learned and it wasn't too bad becuase I knew many of the people from the church services on Saturday. It proves that you have to be flexible as a missionary and be ready to teach an English class on 15 minutes notice. After the class I stayed at the property to play soccer with the men and scored one goal. I ran home quick after wards showered then inhaled my dinner becuase I had to go back up to the property to help Val with her other English class. There was a much smaller turnout that we expected so I helped a little and played with a little boy who came with his mother. Friday was a normal school day in and a cleaning day becuase Val threw a party for a young missionary that was supposed to leave the country but isn't going to after all. Saturday many of the Schubert's friends from their former ministry came to celebrate even though the person who was going to leave was just changing ministries. It also turned into a celebration for the good news received from INFA earlier in the week. In the middle of the party I left to go to the property for the church service and help out with the kids class. The service went well and I met a couple of new North Americans that are here helping out at the ministry for a while. After the classes I was playing with the kids and eventually got tired so I sat down. Christopher (a 3 yr old) had a fever so I was holding him. His mom tried to give him some medicine while he was on my lap and he vomited brown grossness all over my arm and leg. I rinsed off a little bit and then headed home with my shorts stained brown on one side. When I got home the electricity was out so I couldn't shower. I wiped myself down with wet wipes and rejoined the party. When the power came back on I showered and then had one of the ladies at the party fix the uneven haircut that Val gave me months ago. This lady was a professional so I felt more comfortable when she had the scissors near my head. Sunday instead of watching the soccer games I participated in one. Apparently one of the teams got upset and left the league so Luis needed people to fill in. I played for part of the first half and part of the 2nd half then left becuase we had plans to visit Patty in the city. I got an assist and when I left we were winning 2 to 0. Apparently my team won so that was good/surprising news. We went into the city and had lunch with Patty and one of the daughters from the foster family. At first Patty was terrified because it was the first time she was seeing AJ, Wes, and I. Eventually she warmed up to everyone and she was adorable. Her laugh is great and her smile makes you melt. It was a great experience to see her and play with her for a few hours. After that we all went to church in the city and I was so pooped from a long day and being a little sick that I was falling asleep sitting up during the message. I felt a little bad about it but I really couldn't help it. We made it home and I crashed pretty quickly. On Monday Val and Ed went to the city again to have a meeting with their lawyer and the adoption agency while I stayed at home with the boys to do their schooling. They received the good news that a committee will vote next Tuesday on whether they will get Patty and they could have her as soon as Wednesday(her 3rd birthday is the next day). It looks like the adoption agency is pushing hard for her to be her before she turns 3. The rest of the day Monday I tried to relax to kick the virus that I picked up this last week. Yesterday I got the boys started with school and then Ed, Val, and I went to visit Jimmy Hughes, another North American missionary in town who has been her 13 or 14 years and has a big ministry. It was a good time of fellowship and he gave me and Ed a tour of his property while his wife, Val, and Kjell(another missionary in town) talked about the possibility of building a school. Jimmy asked Ed's advice on farming and showed him some land and there is a possibility in partnering with his ministry for both the school and the farming. After we got back I finished the boys school day and then relaxed again. I think it paid off because I feel much better today than I have the past couple of days. Today Ed and Val are in the city again picking up a small team and doing work at the day care in the city. Tomorrow the boys and I will take a day off of school to work with the team at the property in Zambrano and do some cement work. Please keep praying that the Schuberts get their Honduran daughter soon and that the committee will vote in their favor next Tuesday. Well I gotta go make some lunch. Adios, God Bless, and thank you for your support.

Don't Go Chasing Waterfalls, Just Climb Them and Jump Off

Another week down and it was as busy as ever which means I have a lot to catch everyone up on. Wednesday of last week I did my normal routine with the boys schooling and in the afternoon I went to Christian's house for dinner and fellowship time with their family. Yanci just bought some Chinese food becuase she was sick and didn't want to cook. Before we ate I played power rangers in the front yard with Christian, his brothers, and his cousin. After we ate we went to a field nearby and played soccer and a little bit of baseball. Yanci had me watch the kids as she went to the doctor and then gave me some mangoes before I left. When it was time for me to leave it was dark and Yanci was worried that I was walking in the dark alone but I assured her that I would be ok and I was. On Thursday Val and I went to the city pretty early. We ran our usual errands and stopped by the daycare. I got to sit with the kids while they ate and listening to them pray before their meal may have been the most adorable thing I have ever heard. We left the day care to pick up my mom from the airport and we got there just in time. We were happy that her travels went well and everything arrived on time. We grabbed a quick lunch at burger king and then went back to the day care to show my mom one of the ministries that we work with. We got there as one of the teachers was trying to put the kids to sleep so we didn't stay too long. We headed out of the city in the afternoon becuase Val had to be back in Zambrano to teach her Spanish Bible study at 4. I brought my mom to the property in Zambrano and showed her around. I played soccer with the guys of the community while she watched and took pictures. Friday I did the boys schooling and talked with my mom during the day. In the afternoon Val, my mom, and I headed out into the community to visit some people we knew. We visited one family that could not afford to send their 12 yr old to school becuase of all the costs and another family who is also struggling financially. The mothers of these families are close to Val and appreciated the time to visit and talk. I think the poverty hit my mom pretty hard as she soaked in her surroundings. During our visits we encountered a young boy with a big gash in his hand and Val looked at it and decided that she would come back with appropriate medication to clean and wrap the wound. After our visits we went home, dropped my mom off, got supplies, and headed back out. She cleaned the little boys wound, wrapped it, and left instructions with the mother on how to care for it. We started to draw a crowd of young ones in the community becuase many of them know Val and I and they probably didn't have anything else to do. In typical Val fashion she offered to buy the little boy some sweets at a local pulperia(kinda like a honduran 7-11) and after the crowd followed us she decided to buy them all a little something. We headed back home, ate, played sequence, then went to bed. Saturday morning Val left early to go on a medical brigade and I spent the morning with my mom talking with her about some issues from the past as well as my beliefs. Before we knew it, it was time to head up to the property for the church service. My mom, Ed, Wes, AJ, and I headed up with Estephanie and 7 bags full of medications that my mom had bought and brought for the ministry. The service was a little strange becuase it was led by one of Luis's friends from Tegucigalpa who snag and jumped around and was pretty intense. It was still good to see all the people from the community and play with the kids. Sunday we decided to go to the waterfall that only Val had seen and it was amazing. First we came to a waterfall that is almost 300 feet tall and we took pictures looking over it. Then we hiked down a trail to the bottom of a smaller waterfall which was beneath the giant one. I felt the need to explore and get to the base of the large waterfall so I stripped down to my underwear and began scaling a wall horizontally around a large pool of water to get to the base of the small waterfall. I made it over and then climbed up the water fall to get to the base of the big one. at that point I wanted to swim across the pool at the base of the large one to get as close to the waterfall as possible. I was a little afraid but I decided I wouldn't have many opportunities to do it so I jumped in. After I swam back and forth I headed back to the top of the small waterfall. I decided it would be easier to jump off then to climb back down so I found a good rock, said a quick prayer, and jumped. Eventually Wes climbed the wall and jumped of the waterfall once he saw it was safe. i climbed back up and jumped it two more times which was exhilarating. My favorite part of it all was seeing the giant waterfall from the top becuase it makes you feel so small and truly appreciate how big and how amazing our God is. After we got back we showered and then headed to the city for the English church service. The pastor talked about letting our beliefs determine the way we live rather than letting the way we live determine our beliefs. I was glad to have my mom there too becuase I'm not sure what she believes exactly and I think it was good for her to be there. On Monday Val and I headed back to the city because my mom had to fly out. Val dropped us at the airport and then ran the errands. I helped my mom do some souvenir shopping, get checked in, and pay her departure tax. After this we sat in the airport playing cards until she had to go. Eventually I met back up with Val and went to the day care for a while. The kids were playing with water which resulted in me getting a little wet but I enjoyed being with them. On the way back out to Zambrano we picked up Tammy and Sarah. Tammy is a good friend of the Schuberts visiting from the States who used to work on the ranch with them and Sarah still works at the ranch. They came out and we stayed up late Monday just hanging out and we canceled the boys school the next day for another waterfall trip. On Tuesday morning right before we left the Schuberts received a call from INFA and they found out that they have a little girl picked out for them to adopt. We were all so excited and the day couldn't have started any better. We went back to the waterfall and did the same routine. I got some really cool pictures looking down the waterfall. After we hiked down to the bottom I climbed to the pool of the giant waterfall again and decided to climb some of those rocks. This time Wes. AJ, Ed, Val, and Sarah made it up to the base of the big one. While they were climbing up I climbed a rock wall to a high point and just sat in the sun worshiping my God in the middle of all His beautiful creation. I of course then decided to jump off of the rocks I had been climbing which was exhilarating and frightening but awesome. After we got back home I went to the property and played soccer with the guys. I didn't score any but I got some assists and had a lot of fun. Today Ed and Val are in the city with Tammy meeting the little girl that they will hopefully adopt and I am home with the boys doing school. The adoption agency said if everything goes well that the Schubert's will have their daughter in as little as two weeks. It was great to see God answer the prayers of so many in this situation and we are faithful that He will continue to be faithful. Please continue to pray for the Schubert's that everything will go well over these next couple of weeks, especially the legal stuff that seems to take forever in this country. God bless.

Getting Out in the Community

This last week was another amazing week here in Honduras. Last week I got out in the community a lot and I really enjoyed it. The boys had school during the day so I used my free afternoons to spend time with people. On Tuesday AJ and I went to the property and I played soccer with the men of the community. On Wednesday the whole family went out to climb a mountain that Val had climbed before. On the way there we stopped and visited Christian's family and Maskol( the 15 yr old girl living on her own). Yanci (Christian's mom) and all of her sons except Christian came with us on our little hike. It was a refreshing hike and the view at the top of the mountain was awesome. I was reminded of how amazing our God is as the Creator and appreciated this characteristic of God that I often forget about. On Thursday Val, AJ, and I went to the property. Val taught her bible study in Spanish, AJ played with some of the kids of the women in the bible study, and I played soccer again with the guys. I was on fire. I ended up with three goals and a bunch of assists. I have gotten really good at shooting at the goal with my head. One of my goals was off my head and I had probably about 15 shots on goal with just my head. And my family said my big head would never come in handy. Friday was more of a lazy day in the afternoon for me. Saturday we had the service at the property so I did my normal routine, I helped with the class of young kids and then played with kids until everyone went home. Yanci invited me over to dinner to their house and I will be going tomorrow to eat and fellowship with them. Saturday night we hosted a surprise anniversary party for another missionary couple in a nearby town. They celebrated their 45th anniversary and I was reminded that God intends marriage to be forever and it was encouraging to see a couple that followed God's will in their marriage and how they honored the vows they made before Him many years ago. Sunday AJ and I went up to the property to watch some soccer games and hung out there all day. AJ and I have been spending a lot of time together and we are really bonding. Val doesn't like all the ways I am rubbing off on him but she says it's good for the most part. Val eventually picked us up and we went to church in the city. The service was good and the message was pretty powerful. The pastor spoke about how we become dull in our Christianity and things to prevent becoming that way. On Sunday night I stayed up late catching up with friends online which made for a good napping time on Monday afternoon after I finished the boys schooling. Today I accompanied Val to the city to pretend to be a body guard. We ran a bunch of errands and stopped at the day care and a preschool near the day care. I got to play with the kids for a little bit at both places which made my day. There is a young boy at the day care who is new and he told the teachers recently that he was abused by his aunt and his mom. His face has marks all over it because his aunt threw a rock at his head and his mom clawed his cheeks. His name is Moises and he can use all the prayer he can get. val is going to report it to the authorities but no one knows if anything will actually be done about it. It is a very sad and heartbreaking situation. On Thursday my mom is coming down and I am excited for her to see what I do and the ministries I am involved with. Thank you all for your support, especially all the prayers. God has been working powerfully in me and through me here in Honduras and I am faithful that He will continue to do so for the next 4 months. Adios and God bless.

Mangoes con Chile y Arroz con Leche

Last Thursday and Friday were both school days for the boys because we are trying to finish their school before I leave for the States on June 24th. In the afternoon on Thursday I went up to the property to join the work team, did a little sanding for the bookcases they were making for the class rooms, and then played soccer with the men from the community. Friday night we all went out to eat at a nice restaurant in the city because it was the teams last night in Honduras. During the school day I accidentally dropped AJ on his head and we believe he had a mild concussion. He threw up a few times during the afternoon but was alright after that. Now he just has a little lump on his head. The dinner was delicious and I ended up eating what other people didn't because they weren't going to take home the left overs. It reminded me of when I was in Belize and for dinner I wouldn't order anything and just eat everyone's left overs. Saturday I ate breakfast with the team because I had to walk Nancy up to the property to join the team for breakfast. After breakfast I went home and rested for a few hours because I was fighting off a cold. I returned to the property after lunchtime to say goodbye to the team. It was sad to see so many familiar faces but it was a huge blessing to have them here. They left but I decided to stay in town so I could be at the property for the church service rather than going to the airport with them. The team made assembled 7 bookcases and bathroom dividers from wood for the local ministry. I left the ministry to pick up our little 4 year old neighbor named Estephanie who comes with us now on Saturdays. We went up to the property and I had to keep explaining to her that Val was in the city dropping off the team at the airport. The service on Saturday was good. Yanci brought me mangoes in chile with out the salt because I tried them the week before and said they had too much salt. Little gestures like that make me so joyful because I know I am connecting with the people. I shared my mangoes with people and helped collect offering. When the kids were released I went to help with the little kids class. After wards I played with my normal crew of little ones. Eventually I walked Estephanie home and then had to walk a young girl named Fiama to her cousin's house where her mom was. Fiama is the girl whose 15th birthday we went to the week before and her family is very close to us so I enjoyed the walk. When we got to her cousin's house she invited me in and I sat and talked with her family for a while. They gave me arroz con leche which is a delicious desert and some candy. I appreciate the hospitality of the Honduran people so much, they treat you so well even though they have so little. I was glad to bond with more of their family and to have extra time out in the community. Sunday I decided to go up to the property because Luis started a soccer league for the men of the community. The games were exciting and I got to spend even more time with people from the community which was very enjoyable. My favorite part was in the afternoon when a few girls came up named Angie and Genesis. They are always at the property and i just bonded with them recently. Angie had a huge attitude with me at first but now she is a sweetheart. They came and sat with me and cheered against the teams I was cheering for just to be difficult. After the games I played some soccer with the girls and then eventually a soccer game with the guys started up. Last night I went to bed early to kick the rest of this cold. Today the boys had school, we skipped the workout this morning cause everyone was pooped and now Wes is doing homework, Val is cleaning, Ed and AJ are at the property working and I'm online catching you all up on my life. I'm sure this next week wont be quite as exciting with the team gone but I'll tell you about it anyways. Adios and God Bless.

Time to Get Dirty and Sweaty

The last week or so has been pretty hectic. The boys had school regularly last week and the work team from one of my home churches in Dixon arrived Friday night. After a day of travel they were wiped out so we did quick devotions and went over the schedule for the upcoming week. Saturday we all went up to the ministry for the church service. I helped Dan Royer with the young boys and the two other classes had a puppet show performed by Nancy and Hannah (more team members). Pastor Mavis preached and Luis(the founder of the ministry) translated. the entire service went well and it was cool that the work team got to see the ministry in action before they began the physical work. On Sunday we all went to the Valley of Angels. The team did some shopping for souvenirs. I left early with Val to go to the day care ministry in the city to set up for a valentines day party. The party went well, many of the children came to celebrate. We had a dance performed by the kids of the sunday school class in the community. We also had crafts and a pinata in the shape of a heart filled with candy that the kids loved to hit with a stick. I enjoyed spending time with the kids and I have been translating for the team members. I am understanding a lot more and can see improvements in my Spanish which makes me happy and encourages me to keep on learning. On Monday the physical work at the local ministry began and the boys and I helped out with the team. The first thing we did was move all the wood that they are using for bathroom stalls and cabinets. Carrying some of the plywood sheets reminded me of the summer I worked dry walling. After we moved all the wood I went to check on the sewing classes for the ladies of the community to see how they were going. I recognized a lot of the women from the ministry and ended up playing with a few kids that were there with their mothers. I also had to make a few trips throughout the day because Nancy got sick and moved into my room for the rest of the week so I returned to check on her and make sure she was taking medication to heal her. After lunch we continued work, but there wasn't much room or work to do because the team was using the equipment and the wood so I went back to the sewing class again and hung out with more kids. We drew pictures with crayons and construction paper and played games. Monday night there was a special meeting at the ministry for men of the community. Pastor Mavis preached on what it meant to be a christian man and Dan Royer translated. Afterward Pepe Royer led an awesome prayer time with the men and it was very powerful. On Tuesday I wasn't sure whether or not I was going to get to go into the city to work at the day care ministry because if Nancy wasn't feeling well I was going to stay home with her. Fortunately she was feeling up to it and I was able to go. We dug up/leveled of the ground to lay cement, put up screens on the patio windows so kids could not throw toys out into the street, painted the inside of the day care, and then mixed/laid the cement slab. The work was physically hard but very rewarding. The kids now have a much safer day care to go to every day. After we were done working we loaded the truck and van and I sat down on a ledge with some kids from the community that live near the day care. A few kids turned into about 10 or 15 who were all related and lived in the same building with each other. I knew one of them from the day care and saw many of them around. I sat and talked with them, learned their names, and got introduced to the whole family. I thought I would only be there for a few minutes but then one of the ladies in the community offered to feed us because she saw our work. We also helped a family of the community move a bunch of brick to a roof to add on to their house. It was great bonding with many people of the community but my favorite part was being with the children and just sitting with them climbing all over me just taking and laughing. One of the team members even asked me if I ever get sick of kids climbing all over me and hanging on me and I immediately said no. I love the joy that kids are to me and how even after a day of hard physical labor they give me so much energy when they are around. After we ate the dinner which the lady from the community prepared for us we headed back to Zambrano covered in sweat, dirt, paint, and cement but all happy with how the day went. Today the boys are starting school back up so I am at home with them while the team is working at the local ministry. I am going to head up there to work when the boys are done with school which should be shorty after lunch. Please keep lifting the work team up in prayer as this week continues and for God to bless the work they are doing here in Zambrano. Adios and God bless.

Falling in a Creek

This last week had its up and downs but it was still a good week. Tuesday I didn't end up going into the city with Val because Ed had to go to prepare things for the work team coming down on this next Friday. Instead I stayed home with the boys and did the normal school routine. In the afternoon I taught AJ about defensive linemen and showed him some drills. Wednesday was another normal school day for the boys and in the afternoon Val and I decided to visit some of the people from the ministry. We visited Maskol, a 15 year old living by herself because of very sad circumstances. Her mother is in the States with her only brother and her father is living in another town with his other family. Her aunts live in town and are supposed to be helping her out but they have turned their back on her. She told this to her mother and her mother blamed her and now hasn't talked to her in 2 months. Now she must support herself but its hard to get work before you turn 18. Val is thinking and praying about ways to minister to her. Luckily she lives next door to Christian's family and they are close and help her out when they can. So we visited both Maskol and Christian and his family and I really enjoyed that time. It was nice to get out in the community and visit. Thursday the boys had school and in the afternoon I went up to the property. This week a dental brigade was at the property offering free dental care so I got to see Christian and his family again. I helped out a little bit with Val's English class then played soccer with the older guys. I didn't score any goals but I had two or three assists. AJ went up to the property with me to hang out and watch soccer. He also helps with the English class. I am happy that he wanted to come outside of the house because him and Wes are usually content with sitting inside the gates for weeks at a time. I would lose my mind if I did that. Friday we didn't have school. We instead went up into the mountains for a dental/medical brigade. The three hour drive each way was hard on the back because the roads were horrible. We got there and Val helped with the medical part of it but there wasn't much for me, Ed, and the boys to do so we decided to go on a hike. We went up and down a lot of trails and eventually found a creek. We followed the creek downstream and pretended like we were on man vs. wild trying to find civilization. It made for some hilarious moments and we crossed the creek multiple times and got a little wet. One time I jumped to land on a rock and completely slipped falling into the creek on my butt soaking my leg. The hike back was pretty hard because it was mostly uphill. Me and AJ were soaked and had to sit for a few hours in the cold soaking wet. Over all the day wasn't really enjoyable other than our hike but Val got to minister to the mountain people and I know it meant a lot to her that we came along even if there wasn't much for us to do to help out. Saturday was a more enjoyable day because we all went up to the property for the Spanish church service at the property and we got to see all the community members who attend. We also brought along one of our neighbors, the 4 year old named Estephanie who gave us bananas when we were working on the road a long time ago. I hung out with Christian and the little guys for a long time and then played a little soccer with the teenagers. Saturday night we sat around and watched Remember the Titans which is one of my favorite movies. Sunday we had a school day to make up for the day we missed on Friday and then went into the city at night for church in English. The service was good and I really enjoy the pastor, he has such a strong faith and it is apparent in how he leads the church. Last night after we got home I played the guitar for a while and then took a book out to my room to read for a while before bed. While I was reading I heard a loud shotgun blast and just kinda blocked it out even though it was close. About 5-10 minutes later I heard it again and went back into the house to ask Val what was going on. We think it was the guard of the tomato fields that are all around our property. The tomatoes are starting to ripen so there is a guard with a shotgun every night. Were not sure what he was shooting at but we are hoping that everything is ok and no one got hurt but we wont know until we talk to the man farming all the fields. After a while I got to sleep and slept in today because the Schuberts had to go into the city to renew their residency. This morning I just checked e-mail and decided to post since I have a day off. That catches everyone up on whats going on here. I'm pumped for the work team to come on Friday because it will be a nice change of pace to work with them. Please pray for the team, Maskol, and for continued protection over our household. Adios.