Americanos! San Miguel!

Hello Woodside, friends, and family! The last few days have been very productive. We began building the walls, leveling the dirt floor inside the water facility, and even had some time to go to the beach. Yesterday we went to a beach about 45 minutes away. Yesterday morning we held a vacation bible school led by Karen. We had over 100 children show up to see the Americanos put on a play about the Israelites and the Red Sea. The children really enjoyed the songs, drama, and crafts. After the vacation bible school, the group headed out to the beach. We spent the whole afternoon at the beach and even got to see some local fishermen pull in their catch. Today, we had another productive day at the worksite in San Miguel. We were able to add about 8 rows of cinderblock to the building and the children got to play basketball with the local Dominican kids. Every night we have large group meetings, led by Abby, which include worship and music led by Jane and Matt. We have one more day of construction tomorrow which we are all sad to have to leave behind., but I think our bodies could use some rest. We've been able to get so much work done at the site that our "maestro" has said that we have exceeded their expectations on how much we would complete. Large group is calling so I must head upstairs but everyone sends their love from the Dominican Republic and we will see you all on the 4th of July!

The Group Is Here!

Hello Again!
Today I just wanted to stop by and drop a line with an update. The Woodside Presby/Titusville Presby groups have arrived in the Dominican Republic! I'm sorry I haven't been able to post anything in awhile, but this have been pretty crazy down here. The last few days before the groups arrived consisted of pill counting and labeling parties in prep. for the 12 medical clinics we will be having this summer! Praise the Lord! When the group got here our days got even more hectic, but we are all so happy everyone arrived safely and in good spirits! The first two days of construction in San Miguel have been very productive! So far we have demolished an entire shell of a house, dug trenches for where the water lines will be laid, tied and cut rebar (excuse my spelling), and unloaded 4 truck loads of cinder block! Our group this year consists of some of THE hardest workers I have ever seen! Everyone really motivates one another to keep on trucking through the day no matter how many rocks we run into! Saturday we will have another long day of construction which is looking like it will consist of lots of cement mixing, block laying, sweat, dirt, and dust. Everyone keeps saying in large group how thankful we all are for the overwhelming support we have all received from our family, friends, and church family! We couldn't have done all of this without the support, especially the prayers! Thank you all! I will try and update more often. Again, I apologize for the long delay! If you have any prayer concerns or joys or anything at all..(shout outs to loved ones in the D.R.) just let me know! Drop a comment or you can always email me at: tua28465@temple.edu and we will keep you in our prayers! We miss everyone and wish you could all be here to experience this with us! Start planning and praying for next summer! Talk to you soon!
Dios te bendiga,
Leah

101 Paper Cuts

Well Hello Everyone! Wow, has it been awhile! I knew I hadn't posted in a few days, but I didn't realize it has been this long. I apologize for the delay! After I had posted on Friday we ended up having a pretty lazy day if I can remember correctly. Lili, who is one of my housemates was a tad bit sick on Friday morning so we postponed leaving for Barahona until Saturday morning. So, being that all our plans had changed, Kristin, Ruth and I went to the salon for a hour and got our hair washed and blowdried and our nails done! They wanted to get all done up for the show they were going to for the evening with Danny and Greg. I felt so pampered! It was quite an experience, very different from the salons at home! The entire kit and kaboodle only cost about $20-25 depending on if you brought your own shampoo and conditioner or not!

After we returned home from the salon Kristin, Ruth, Greg, and Danny went off to see a play and Lili, Isidro, and I decided to take the time to go out for an awesome dinner because Lili was healed!! Isidro took us to this wonderful place right on the ocean called Adrina Tropical. We got a table that over looked the ocean! It was a perfect night for an outside dinner as well. The heat of the day at broken and the Lord granted us a beautiful breeze! There was a man who made cigars to the left of us, which was quite impressive to watch while we waiting for our dinner. The whole night was so much fun! Maybe I am easily amazed, but I felt like I was on cloud nine. I have never eaten in a place so beautiful before! My favorite part had to be the fresh fruit juices we ordered and getting to spend time with Lili and Isidro! I am very grateful for them. I am so thankful for the talks we have together and for a wondeful sister in Christ who I can truly confide in. Not to mention, I have never met anyone before, and in such a short amount of time has so many inside jokes. We can simply look at one another and laugh for hours.

And that would end my Friday night!

Saturday morning we awoke around 7ish to pack for a town called Barahona which is about 3 hours from where I am staying in the capital. Lili, Isidro, Danny, and I went to do medical needs assesments in the Batey's. A batey is a small community of sugar cane workers and their families. The land is owned by the people who own the fields. The conditions in the batey's are some of the worst I have seen. Our first stop was to Batey 7, this was a small batey off the main strip of the sugar cane and set back into one of the fields. As we drove in there was a large clearing where 4 latrines were set to one side. These seemed to be the public bathrooms for the Batey. Concrete, metal siding, damaged, leaking, no good, but some of the best ones I have seen.

We walked through the Batey and spoke with the families that lived there. We asked simple questions about there health, water, food, and knowledge of parasites. We wanted to see how often they were getting sick, how many times a day they were eating (which when we asked if they ate three meals a day we would get a laughing response. Most families commented that they were lucky to eat one or two meals a day. They eat when the food is around and if they have money.) and also if they knew how to prevent sickness. It was surpising for me to hear that some people believed that parasites just lived in your body and you got sick when they decided to "act up." The people were so friendly, whenever we came to speak they would all get up and offer a chair, bench, anything they had. And the children were beautiful. By the end of our walk through the community we had about 10-15 children latched on to us. Begging for our attention. They were so proud to show us how creative they have been with their toys. One boy made a top out of a soda bottle cap and a toothpick and another made a kite out of a bit of plastic bag, some sticks, and string. I had one small boy latch on to my finger and not let go for 45 minutes, but I didn't want to let go either. He is in the picture below in the gray shirt looking away from the camera of course! The house you see them standing in front of us a pretty nice and sturdy house compaired to many of the others we saw there.

For our assessment we went to Batey 5, 6, 7, Mena Arriba, and Mena Bajo. Batey 5 was without a doubt, the worst. Most people didn't have bathrooms, some had latrines outside there homes or ones nearby they shared with the community. Some families said they simply used the nearby wooded area. Many families shared with us that because of the recent hurricane their food supply has been ruined. They no longer has platanos or yuca to eat and their diet consists mostly of rice and beans. The children are all malnurished. They have these big stomachs, but when you pick them up they weigh nothing. Most families say that they only buy water when they can afford it. A jug of water (the big blue plastic ones we would get for our water) costs them any where from 25-30 pesos. Under a dollar, but they still can not afford them. We learned that buying water only after the children have been sick is a common practice in the bateys. Saturday was difficult for me because of the things I saw. I have much to learn from this experience. The people in these communities have nothing, but they work with what they have and they make it happen. I pray that I don't forget what I have seen and I pray that we find a way we can help. I believe in what the Foundation is doing. It was comforting to hear Greg speak about the solutions they desire being permanent solutions. We don't just want to go in with a quick fix that won't last and where the community won't benefit. A lot of time and thought goes into what happens and I respect that. I would like to share with you something I wrote in my journal. During services on Sunday I tend to write down things I hear and I want to focus on or read when I need an adjustment in my 'tude (as Carrie says it).

"If I can ask of you one thing this week...Hear the Lord. Just as Abraham heard the Lord. Let us not harden our hearts."

Saturday night we spent the evening in the most beautiful house. There was beautiful tiles throughout the house and 3 pretty fierce pitbulls that protected the property. It makes me laugh that such a scary dog could be named "Shakira".

Sunday morning we all woke up around 830 and left for Batey Algodon. (Which means cotton in Spanish.) We met Pastor Jacki (spelling is most definitely wrong. Wendy-if you read this let me know and I will fix it!) for service in his church and then we spent a little under an hour in his house talking. I had the privilege to work with Pastor Jacki at the end of July in a small town called Anse Pitre in Haiti. He is by far the most jolly man I have ever met. He is so wise and I always enjoy the time I have with him to talk. He is from Haiti and speak both Spanish and Creole which gives his Spanish a very distinct accent. After our time together the four of us jumped in the FFP sea foam green truck and headed back to the capital. Below is Danny and I sharing the back seat on the way home. He is such a funny guy.

Monday was a work day. I woke up pretty late, around 10 that day. I must have been tired from the weekend. When I woke Greg and prepared a To Do List for Danny and I. I was pretty thankful for this, because I often feel that I'm not helping enough and it was great to be able to see what I could do to chip in and be able to do it without bothering Kristin, Ruth, or Greg for the next thing needed to be complete. I wish I could find the entire list of because it made me laugh. I love Greg's sense of humor..most of the time. I would like to share with you two of our tasks. Task Number 0: (Yes, I meant zero.) Make office computer faster, it has been running slowly. and my personal favorite: Task Number 5: Go to La Sirena (the local grocery/toy/clothing/everything you need in one building store) and buy three cans of ant spray. Then declare war daily on the population of ants living around the house. While Danny assumed the position of the Geek Squad, I began doing inventory on the medicines and med. labels we had upstairs. As much as I would love to admit that I enjoyed counting well over 40,000 pieces of paper and exceeding well over the amount of paper cuts I have allowed myself to receive in one year, I just can't. I took two days to finish counting all the labels and I am so grateful to be done! Kristin asked yesterday if I hated her for making me count those...and I can truthfully say "No way!" She must be crazy! She gave me a wonderful job! I could sit infront of the fan and Joy kept me company while I counted! It was awesome! Monday we went out in the early evening for a quick shopping trip. Kristin and Ruth took us to the Christian book store and I am so so so happy to announce that I just bought, for my first time, my own Bible! I have had Bibles before that were gifts, but this was my first purchase! I'm so proud of it. It is a Spanish-English Bible. It works very well down here according to Kristin because the Spanish is in a version that is very popular in the Dominican Republic and the English version is in NIV, which is what is pretty popular at home. So now I have the best of both worlds! I even got a pink cover for it. Yes, of course it is pink. We returned home and made a wonderful dinner, Cheeseburgers! Then went off to bed.

Finally, Tuesday! Tuesday was another day of counting papers and that would be it! Yes, I counted paper for the majority of my day. I would love to say I went on a crazy adventure, but I counted paper. It was a good day of rest which we will all need because starting today (Wednesday) Danny and I start preparation for the pill counting/labeling parties we are going to have Thursday and Friday in preparation for the 12 medical clinics we are going to have. Volunteers from a variety of churches are coming to count out the medicines and label them so we can be all set for when the groups come down. I'm starting to see how things here can get a little hectic. Kristin, Greg, and Ruth are now assuming their positions as the most busy people in the house as the countdown has began for the non stop rush of Americanos through the country! Keep them in there prayers. They are going to need it! I don't think anyone can be jealous of what they are about to face for yet another summer. They really have got it down.

I hope everything at home is going well. I miss everyone! Give each other hugs for me!

"Lord, show me poverty whom you loved so dearly.

Merciful Jesus,

have pity on me:

I am full of yearning for my Lady Poverty;

I can find no peace without her.

You, Lord, it was who first arroused love for her in my heart;

grant me the privilege of possessing her...

Jesus, you were very poor,

and I want to call nothing under heaven mine

but only to live

on what others may give me."

-Prayer from Francis of Assisi

Yay for Kristin!

So yesterday marked Kristin's 3 year anniversary for living in the Dominican Republic! How wonderful! It is inspiring. Yesterday morning, Danny and I went back to the offices again and finished the inventory on the medicines! Finally! Now we can start counting them out into ziplock bags for distribution at the medical clinics. For a little fun last night, Kristin, Ruth, and I went to see "Prince Caspian" at the local theater. It was an awesome movie and we really enjoyed ourselves. The girls were the loudest in the theater; which was pretty easy considering that there was only 6 movie goers and I think the Dominicans didn't really get the humor because they were reading the spanish subtitles. While we were out, Lily, Greg, and Danny made a wonderful little feast in honor of Kristin for when we returned! They even picked up some ice-cream for dessert! After dinner we played some Dominoes which is impressively confusing but I'm slowly (emphasis on slowly) getting the jist of it all. I woke up this morning pretty early around 7am and am just lounging right now. I might be going to a Haitian batey called Barahona for the weekend, but I'm still not sure. Lily needs to go for a medical needs assessment and Danny is going for a water assessment. So if they need help there I will, but we still aren't exactly sure yet. We'll I know this is short and all, but it is still only 8:40 and I don't think my brain is fully functioning yet despite the fact that I have been up for almost 2 hours! But hey! I'm still in my 20's aren't I allowed to be this way!!??? Hope you all have a wonderful day!
Dios te bendiga.
Leah

Pictures for my Peoples!

Here are some pictures of the girls from the trip! I could only put Kristin and Ruth on right now because my camera just died!! As soon as it is charged up I will put Lily, Joy, Danny, and Greg up! Sorry guys!

That would be me! Hi guys! Your proud missionary making passionfruit juice! Hi Mom and Dad!

This is the beautiful Kristin from Nebraska! She has been living here three years and is like a mom to me!

This is the amazing Ruth from Nebraska as well! She has been here going on two years and is the best cook around!

Laundry Day

Hey Everybody-
I realize I haven't written in a few days so I decided to take the time and post while I am waiting for my laundry to finish! The last few days have been busy. Daniel, Isidro, and I went to different Presby. Offices for Monday and Tuesday to organize and inventory the meds. It turned out to be a bigger task than we thought, but God granted us the energy to keep on trucking. Yesterday turned out to be a test of our patience. While we were trying to organize meds. a lot of children from the neighborhood came over and started helping us. This is a pretty normal thing they usually like to help where they can while we are there working. Everything was going fine, but then the children started going through the boxes of donations and lose meds. and it became pretty crazy, really fast. It is frustrating to see that these children were trying to take the food and meds. for their families and we had to tell them no. We were planning on giving the children vitamins and food after they were done, and we still did. It just was extremelly as frustrating to see them trying to sneak it into there pockets or shirts when all they had to do was wait. We eventually had to send them home because it was getting to chaotic. I thank God for giving me the patience to handle the situation calmly. Everynight the girls all get together and pray and I think for every night so far, every one of us has prayed for patience. Whether it be patience with each other, ourselves, and frustrating situations such as the one I just wrote about. I think God speaks to us in many ways and today I experienced a small blessing. Carrie Steele "Mama Steele" gave me a book by Max Lucado before I left called "God's Promises for You". She told me to take the time each day to read a little segment from it, so I took her advice and it is awesome. I try every morning to read it as soon as I wake up. I have even put it above my head, tucked in between the top mattress of the bunkbed and the bars so when I wake up it is the first thing I see. Before my feet even touch the floor I try to read the bible verses and small food for thought it has and then pray. I believe it is the best way to start the day. I often share the entries with the girls while we are together. Some food for thought for us to chew on throughout the day. (So...I should get to why I am saying of this.) Today I woke up and opened the book to the next entry and it was titled: "Promises about Patience". So it really spoke to me and made me thank God for giving me the ability to remain calm and collected yesterday. I'm going to share the bible verses Max Lucado included and let you meditate on them as well:

"We also have joy with our troubles,

because we know that theese troubles produce patience.

And patience produces character, and character produces hope.

And this hope will never disappoint us, because God has poured out his love to fill our hearts."

Romans 5:3-5

"My brothers and sisters, when you have many kinds of troubles,

you should be full of joy, because you know that these troubles test your faith,

and this will give you patience. Let your patience show itself perfectly in what you do.

Then you will be perfect and complete and will have everything you need."

James 1:2-4

I also would like to share with you something my Mom has said to me. (Mom, I'm not sure if you even remembered saying this to me, but it sure has stuck in my head. So thank you.) This one day I believe I was complaning about something, and Mom said to me "Just be happy that you are here being able to complain." Or something on the lines of that. But, WOW, has that helped me appreciate everything that I have been given. When it is hott outside and we have been hauling meds. up and down stairs, in and out rooms; I don't complain because I'm happy to be here, and I'm happy to have a body that is able to do this work and even able to complain. (Becky and Liz-For real. I know it is hard to believe.) So next time you want to complain!!!! Just stop, and thank God for being able to complain! And Mom-Thanks for this as well because now the girls are saying this constantly. "Be happy for what your body can offer you today!" Love you all. Miss you all! Practice Patience!

God Bless You

Leah

Sunday's are amazing...

I'm going to post a quick little thing while I watch a movie today! This morning we woke up and got ready to go to a Methodist church down the street a bit. I even got to wear dress pants! The church was very nice with an awesome praise band. They even had a powerpoint presentation up with the lyrics and sermon so I could follow along easily. After church we came home and I learned how to make jugo de chinola *it is officially my favorite thing to drink here. It is just passion fruit and today we mixed it with frozen strawberries!* Then kristin and I made homemade bread. While it was rising we watched Spanglish *good movie*. When the movie was over we made stromboli, rolls, and cinnamon rolls with the homemade bread! Hey Ma' I can finally cook! I'm enjoying the day of rest after such a long day of work yesterday. I think it is well needed for all the people here. Well, that is all for now! I'm going to walk across the street to the local colmado and grab a drink! Until next time.
Leah

Eat When You Can...Day Three!

Hello again!
Last night after I wrote Greg invited me to go to a local church for a prayer group. I was pretty nervous about the idea, but it turned out to be an amazing experience. I have never participated in a prayer group like this before. We spend over two hours praying for each other, reading scripture, and having discussions. It was exactly what I needed. I woke up this morning feeling very close to God. It is hard for me to explain and I believe that until one experiences anything like it they might not understand being. It is such a personal thing that varies greatly from person to person.
So today was one of those typical Dominican days where we were supposed to do one thing and did something entirely different. One really needs to be able to go with the flow down here. Kristin woke us up about 830 this morning for a quick breakfast of fresh mango and (Liz is going to love this one) Mini Spooners with vanilla flavored milk (which was bought by accident and is super super sweet. I was tempted to water it down.) After breakfast we hopped in the soccer- mom van and went to work at about 9. We arrived at the Presby. offices to organize more clothes, meds. , and donations. Today a local pastor was supposed to bring a truck for all the meds at around 12, but being the D.R., 12 o'clock really means 2pm and of course the truck would be way to small to fit all the meds and we ended up having to do two trips. So needless to say our day which was supposed to end at maybe 3pm, ended at 10pm. We spent the entire day lifting heaving boxes, of medicine. I was hot, sticky, sweaty, and dirty but not tired all day. It was amazing to be able to do that! I feel great after such a long day! Yay! Ruth just got here I will write more later! Miss you all! Love you!
Dios te bendiga.
Leah

First Two Days and I'm living great!

Hola Todos!
Well this is the first oppportunity I have had to sit down and actually write a little! I arrived in Santo Domingo a little before 11am and Kristin was waiting to pick me up! We drove home, ate a quick lunch (rice, beans, and beef of course!), unpacked my bag only to make my bed and set off to meet the truck driver with our shipping crates of donations from the states. Kristin, Lily, Daniel, and I ended up sitting at a gas station for about 2 hours for the driver to final arrive! It was pretty typical for the Dominican considering they told us it would only be a 15 minutes wait there! Once the truck arrived we drove about another 25 minutes to the Presbyterian Offices to unload the truck with about 25 helpers from a local church. It took three hours to unload the entire crate even with all the help. Afterwards we had a chance to talk with the members of the church while we ate the dinner the women made for us. (P.S. MOM, DAD, SIBLINGS, AND FRIENDS WHO KNOW MY HATRED FOR KETCHUP-I ATE A KETCHUP, MAYONNAISE, AND CHEESE SANDWHICH FOR DINNER AND HAD NO CLUE WHAT IT WAS. BUT I LOVED IT. LOOKS LIKE I WAS WRONG ABOUT THIS TOMATO BASED PRODUCT!!) On the way home Kristin stopped at the local bakery and bought us all great iced fruit slushie-like drinks to cool off with. We returned home about 830 to eat pizza and have an all girls dance party to Whitney Houston and then we all fell asleep in the living room watching My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Once we woke up again, Lily and I were certain it was time for bed after some night prayer together, but boy were we wrong. Kristin then had us climb a steel door on to the roof of the house so we could look at the stars and pray together in her favorite spot. It was an awesome experience once I mustered up the courage to climb onto the roof and suprisingly enough, getting down was actually easier than climbing up. I slept great in my own room and stars wars sheets! Then I awoke this morning on my own around 830ish (I'm not really sure because I don't have a watch nor have I yet to see a clock in the house). Waking up this morning was amazing. I awoke to the school children laughing and playing outside my window and I was filled with happiness. It was almost creepy. I got to spend sometime this morning bymyself to read some pearls of wisdom from Max Lucado. It was really nice to reflect on some bible verses by myself before anyone else was awake and running around. I also met Joy today who came in from a neighboring town. Joy, Lily, and I returned to the Presbyterian offices today to organize all the things we unpacked yesterday. We worked on bagging clothes, organizing toys and medicines almost all day until about 330. It was a really awesome experience to get to unpack the things that I and Horton had just packed a few weeks ago in the states. I kept finding tons of clothes that Liz and I had donated. It is nice to actually see it being put to use! I went to the grocery store with Kristin and Joy today after working at the offices and picked up some grocerys for dinner. We had a real Dominican dinner...sloppy joes! And now we are just watching some television and hanging out drinking some of the strongest coffee known to man and I'm not sure why considering it's 9 at night. Oh well, I guess I will have energy for our ridiculous dancing party we are planning. I would have put pictuers up but I lost my camera today for about 18 hours so I wasn't able to take any pictures! Sorry! I'm going to go now, but I hope everything at home is going well! I miss everyone very much! I'm doing great so Mom and Dad-Don't worry!!!! I love you very very very much! I'll post again soon! P.S. Mom-last night I lead the girls in yoga on the roof! We did some cool tree poses and Proud Warrior! Seeee you thought I didnt' listen to you! Thanks for the lessons! They came in handy! The girls say you sound really fun! Namaste!
Love you all!
Dios te bendiga-God Bless You
-Leah

First Entry-Here Goes Nothing!!

Well Everyone, Here We Go:
This is my first attempt at anything like this but hopefully everything will go well. I thought it might be a nice idea to make one of these blogs so I could keep my friends and family updated at home while I am gone. I leave in 8 days (not that I'm counting or anything silly like that...) and I can't wait to start my lessons and adventures. If everything goes well I can update often with stories, pictures, and maybe even videos depending on how technologically adventurous I am feeling. I look forward to hearing from all of you as well. So please leave comments back to my posts! I hope you enjoy my updates!
Dios le bendiga,
Leah