Leah's Adventures in the Dominican Republic

Well I find myself here again.

2011-01-13T22:12:00.000-05:00

I am back to trying this. I'm not sure how many times I am going to say I'll keep up with this blogging thing (especially considering the last entry was in May). So I'm just not going to promise anything this time around.

Since starting seminary at Princeton I have been toying with the idea of writing down my experiences, thoughts, etc. during my time here and as I get back in to the American way of life. After talking with a close friend I thought it would be cleansing to be able to write out what I am going through on the blog.

I have approximately one semester and 1 1/2 weeks of seminary under my belt. The first four months have flown by. Getting back into the swing of things has not been the easiest thing to do. First of all, everyone here drives so sensibly and I actually enjoy drinking milk again (it is not some strange liquid that can be stored on a shelf for years at a time at room temperature in a cardboard box called "listamilk"). Seminary itself is a beast of it's own. I thought I would be able to throw myself back in school and get to know the community much easier than is proving to be the reality. It is a strange place to be in and knowing that so many people I love are still suffering in Haiti does not make this transition any easier. However, I will say that there are a ton of wonderful students, professors, and pastors here on campus and they all seem genuinely kind, compassionate, and interested in the happiness and well being of others. It is refreshing.

I look forward to seeing what the long semester will bring. Everyone says "your first year is always the hardest." I hope I am able to deal better this second semester around and really start to take advantage of the amazing opportunities PTS offers us here. And hopefully, I can actually keep this up (that is still not a promise).

I vow to update before I leave!

2010-05-31T19:57:00.000-04:00

Hey everyone!
I am wrapping up my amazing visit home in Yardley, Pa! I had an awesome time and I loved all of it! I took advantage of my super fast lightening speed internet connection and made a Youtube page! Please go and check it out! I have all my videos from Haiti, Dominican Republic, and even some fun stuff from home of my Dad and I flying at the Philadelphia Glider Council in Hilltown, Pa. Let me know what you think! Miss you all and I look forward to my next visit! Happy Memorial Day!

Check me out being all internet savvy!

Just when I thought it couldn’t get any better…It did.

2010-05-07T10:55:00.001-04:00

April 26^th-May2nd

I had my final nursing group come out last week to work in Fond Parisien, Haiti in Love A Child camp as well as Camp Hope. This trip held many “unknowns” for me. This would be my first trip really “leading” it alone being that the boss, Kristin would be in Brasil. We also would be camping out on Love A Child’s property in tents because the gentleman who owned the home we slept in at Jimani passed away about a week before the group came down.

Camping out in Haiti can be a little more difficult than sleeping in Jimani. In order to get clean water and ice for the group we had to send out staff members to cross the border in to the Dominican Republic because there is virtually no ice in Fond Parisien and no reliable water system. Our staff worked so well in providing for the groups needs and I was so thankful that Ruth and Pastor Brony knew exactly what was needed and got the job done without hesitation.

So the week came along and I was extremely nervous about arriving to Love A Child and being set up in tents. It is rainy season here and I expected a downpour every night, but God had other plans for us. We had the most beautiful weather every day in Haiti without rain. Every night we slept on cots provided for us by Love A Child with out tent flaps open and a beautiful breeze that kept us cool. I even got too cold one night and had to put more clothes on to keep warm!

The nurses who came down on this trip couldn’t have been more perfect. We had three nurses and an EMT (Michelle Horton!) led by Carrie Steele. They were all so amazing and easy going which makes it so much easier for me. I am so thankful for them and their amazing outlook on everything that week. They spent the week working in both camps and doing an amazing job. The care they provided to the patients was inspiration to me and lovingly received and appreciated by all the Haitians who met them.

Every week I spend in Haiti, I learn more and more. This week was by far the best week ever because I was given the opportunity to really learn more about the Haitian culture and to relax, talk, laugh, sing, worship, pray, and play every day with my Haitian friends. With the change of sleeping arrangements to Love A Child came an opportunity to spend every possible second of free time with the Haitians and really get to know them. The group didn’t have to worry about rushing off at 4pm every day in order to make it to the border before it closes. In the mornings we were able to start earlier and we could take our time with our work and finish when we felt the work was done. One day after work, we were even able to go to the community talent show! It was so much fun and all the groups came up with little skits, songs, or jokes to present to the audience. There was two amputees that were both missing one of their legs and they had a dance contest! It was so beautiful to see them having fun, laughing, and dancing, and healing.

My favorite time was after the workday and after the staff meetings for the camp. Michelle, Ruth, Carrie, and I would go to the shower stalls and take showers at night always looking up at the stars while we washed all the dirt off from that day (amazing suggestion on the part of Michelle). After showers, on our way back to our tents we would almost always stop by and sit with a group of ladies who would meet outside the large medical tent and sing worship songs.

On our last night there, they all got up out of bed and came out to worship with us. They taught us two songs in Creole and we sang Amazing Grace together. It is times like these than I remember why I am so thankful to be here during this time. I am so thankful that I can witness the great faith, hope, and trust in God the Haitian victims have. I remember to be thankful for everything, the little things, the things I don’t even consider when I am thanking God for all that he has done. These brothers and sisters were worshipping, raising their hands if they had them singing “M’ap leve men” which means I will raise my hand to recognize God for all that He has done. There is such great awareness given to you when you see an amputee raising their one good hand and thanking God for that hand, while you wouldn’t even had thought of thanking God for your hands, your legs, your arms, your feet, your fingers, your toes.

Carrie gave me a book while in Haiti called “He Chose the Nails” by Max Lucado. I began reading it today and I wanted to ask you to do what Max asks in the study guide portion of this book:

Set aside at least fifteen minutes to thank God for all of His gifts to you. Before you begin, make a list of the gifts for which you are especially grateful. Conclude your prayer time with a special focus on God’s gift of salvation. Try hard not to bring up any requests during this holy time, but instead pour out your heart in thanksgiving to God for all his rich gifts to you.

I really encourage you to do this today. I woke up this morning and made a list of what I was thankful for. It sounds so simple, but for me it wasn’t that simple to remember not to bring up requests and only thank God. Personally, I always feel that I am too needy and ask to much of God during my prayer time and need to work on my thanksgiving and praises to God for all He has done for me. So this was a really good time for me to forget about me, to forget about asking God for things and just let it all out, to thank Him for all that He is, all that He has done, and all that He continues to do for me.

I am thankful for:

Family.

Friends. The opportunity to be here.

Acceptance to seminary. Amazing people I have met in Haiti.

Ruth’s friendship. Good health. Ladies who take care of me here. Education.

Family who supports me in my decisions. Postive outlooks.

Being placed where I was when I was born.

Feeling called to do ministry.

Carrie. Doug. Gloria.

Ohmi.

Progress and updates! (Could this title be any more bland?)

2010-04-22T13:35:00.000-04:00

So here I am again, one month since my last post! So many things have happened since I have entered my last entry. Over the last month, we have had American, Brazilian, Haitian, and Dominican volunteers out working in Fond Parisien, Haiti. With each new group of volunteers we are able to offer more and more help in Camp Hope (ARC) and Love a Child. With the last few groups we have had nurses working in both camps helping with a variety of needs from wound care to skin rashes and even to emergency care to the community around the camps as well. Love a Child is now one of the largest field hospitals in Haiti and continues to need help. This Monday, Carrie Steele will be leading out another very small group of nurses to help out on the border which is very needed. I was told today that they currently have no nurses at the camp and they are very excited to have her team.
In Camp Hope so much has been happening! The rainy season has brought many different issues up to the surface, the largest of them has been the mud problem that the residents face. Deforestation has left Haiti a pretty dry and dusty place, and being that Camp Hope is in a valley, when it rains, it pours, and there is a serious mud and run off problem. With the help of some of the donations given to FFP, we purchased a few truck loads of stone and spread them through the camp in hopes that it would cut down on the mud and dust situation. On our last day, after spreading the stones for a week, we were so excited to arrive and find out that it had rained the night before and that the stone spreading had worked! There was barely any mud around the tents and all I saw were clean mud-less shoes!

We also have been hard at work building a school for the children in the camp as well as in the surrounding community! This has been a very exciting project for us to be involved with. Difficult at times, but exciting. The school is going to have 12 rooms and will accommodate approximately 350 students. This is the first time I have been involved in a project right from the beginning and have been given the opportunity to see the progress. The first week on the school was definitely an interesting one! We dug the foundation which turned out to be the scariest part of the whole ordeal yet because we kept digging in to what looked like the homes of small tarantulas. After I saw the first 3 spiders, my mind tricked itself in to believing that I had spiders on me all day long. I even ran away at one point slapping at my clothes because what I thought was a spider was really a fly.
We pushed through the spider nests however and moved on to tying rebar and pouring the footings and the foundation for the school a few weeks ago. This week involved all cement mixing and bucket lines (Woodside's favorite!) and the group that helped were pretty tough. It isn't the easiest thing to do! The cement piles were the biggest piles I have ever seen mixed on a work site here! It took about 3 days us Americans to actually understand the "technique" of mixing (every single person will show you the "right" way to mix cement), but once we got the hang out of we made some amazing progress.

With the last group members we finally are able to see some really impressive work. The walls have begun to go up and even though FFP groups are not currently there working, the work does continue with Pastor Brony and his four main workers along with a whole team of volunteers from Camp Hope residents. A little frustration in the fact that ARC keeps telling us they are going to pay the workers from the camp, and then they go back on their agreement. So, if you feel like donating to help the work continue on the school so the children can start school this year please do at Foundationforpeace.org and mention that it should be directed for the school laborers!

Miss you all very much and again I apologize for my delay! I can't wait to update again after this next group to tell you all about what adventures we had! Did I mention that we are sleeping in tents in Love A Child this time?? Pray for us!

Just a little somethin' somethin'....

2010-03-22T09:57:00.001-04:00

While I was checking my gmail this morning a newsfeed caught my eye. I saw the words "tent city". Before these words would have meant nothing to me, but now, after working in tent cities for almost 2 months since the earthquake means something completely different now. I read this article from New York Times and I wanted to share it with you all because it reminds me so much of the communities that I am working in (both ARC and Love a Child) in Fond Parisien, Haiti. I hope this sheds a little bit of light on to the situation we are dealing with...

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/22/world/americas/22haiti.html

Where is Christine Mannarino when you need her?

2010-03-11T21:15:00.002-05:00

This week is almost over and I am wrapping up my first nursing group mission trip. Yesterday, I helped run my first medical clinic with my co-worker Julian. What a day. I learned so much yesterday about what I would do next time and what I definitely would not do. I have worked with medical clinics before with the Woodside mission trips, but it was a completely different experience being on the side of clinic “planner”. Let’s just say, don’t even attempt to start a clinic before you have the crowd control situation completely in check. With that said, the nurses I worked with did an amazing job and were able to help almost 130 families consisting of anywhere between 5-7 family members each from 9am to just a little after 3pm. I would consider that successful. The whole way home I kept wishing that Christine Mannarino were still with me in country so she could give me another adjustment! Oh how I wish she were! Christine…where are you? Come back! Please.

Speaking of Christine Mannarino….

Can I just give a interweb applause to Woodside! Woodside has had such a strong presence in Haiti since the earthquake. I cannot explain how awesome it is for me to be able to meet and work with so many members of my church family in Haiti. It gives me strength and new energy every time another member comes down. I’m so proud to call Woodside my home. I am so happy to know that I am a part of a church family that really demonstrates what it means to live as a community and to work as a family. This past trip was absolutely amazing. We had some of the most fun group members ever! Everyone was down for anything that the trip might have brought. (Which, if you have ever been to the Dominican Republic, you know that there are many surprises on these trips.) We all had so much fun together at work, on the buses, on the side of highways fixing tires (Bob!!), and definitely during random outbursts of worship. I never wanted them to leave! And based on all the trouble I had getting this group of the bus in Haiti to go home, I’m thinking they didn’t want to leave either. The committee in charge of the site we worked in didn’t want us to leave as well! Everyone felt how amazing this group was and everyone could feel the Holy Spirit just flowing throughout this entire trip.

Every time a group leaves from these trips we pray that God would use them as his witnesses when they return home. I know that without a doubt, this group is at home, witnessing as I type this. They are most likely sharing all the amazing stories they have about sights they saw, songs they sang, and most definitely about the relationships they formed all of the people in American Refugee Committee. People like Jude, Eben, Junior, Robinson, and Olsen who they will never forget. I encourage everyone at home to sit down, ask our amazing Woodside missionaries about there time and their experiences. Take time and approach them with open hearts and minds. Prepare to listen to some changed people. Prepare to be encouraged to go as well. I love when Woodside comes down because I get to meet people who I had never thought I would have gotten to know at home. It is wild how it takes a trip to a developing country to make bonds, but I am so happy we did.

Hilarious stories, amazing adjustments, beautiful smiles, flat tires (about 3), joyful worship, warm hearts, dance parties with guards, sewing tents, digging holes, building latrines, printing pictures, electrocutions, singing guards, new friendships, one amazing family centered in Christ. I miss you Woodside March trip!!!

Mosquito Food

2010-02-09T16:37:00.000-05:00

Well everyone, I have made it past my one month here in the Dominican Republic and I am still alive to tell about it! My mom will be so relieved! After spending some time here I have taken the liberty to assign myself an official title: Mosquito food. It seems to me that I am basically the only person who is constantly attacked by the enormous mosquito population that lives in our office, kitchen, sofa, and under our dinning table. As you can probably guess, I have not welcome this title with open arms. Other than becoming a blood bank, I have experienced and learned so much in my short amount of time here.

I finished my spanish immersion classes today after four weeks of studying. I really enjoyed going to class everyday. I recognize that I have learned so much in just four weeks, but I find myself frustrated often because I am constantly reminded of how much I have yet to learn. A lady from one of the groups last week related this experience to having a relationship with God. She said that learning another language was like learning more about your relationship with God because the more you learn and the deeper you go, the more you realize that you still know nothing. I thought that was a good way to put it.

Ever since the earthquake, we have been very busy working on logistics and schedules for all the extra groups that we are taking to the border to work in the relief efforts. My favorite part of this month has been being able to meet so many wonderful people who donate their time to come and serve along side of us. With every group, I meet yet another awesome mentor and friend, and I always end up learning something new. Last week, I learned how to crust chicken with corn flakes! Who would have known. Now that I have completed school, I look forward to working with all these groups and going back to the border. It has been very difficult to stay behind at the house in Santo Domingo and work from here while I finish classes. Everyone wants to be out in the field actually working face to face with all the victims. My short time on the border resulted in making many close relationships with some amazing Haitians whom I have been so anxious to meet again. I heard word from my friend Luke who has been running hospital relations in Jimani that Olson, (the boy from my last entry whose mother was in the hospital) and his mother had received treatment and where now living in a refugee camp that has been set up on the Haitian side of the border. We are told that this refugee camp is for family members to stay who have family in the hospitals as well as a place for recovering stable patients. The organization who is running it has plans to remain open for at least 2 to 3 years for all of those displaced by this horrible event.

As I am typing now, we have had one group out to the border and we have one group working there now. Our groups are split in to different work sites based on what they are capable of doing. Doctors, nurses, and other medical staff work in the hospital while non-medical people have been helping out with patient transport and in the post-operative camps on the Haitian side of the border. In these other two sites, our groups have been working hard to build latrines and showers for these camps. Prior to these building projects, the camp where patients are sent to recover after surgeries held about 300 people and only one shower. Our first group has built five more showers and this second group was planned to build more.

I will be leaving on Saturday afternoon for Jimani and Haiti with the leaders group. I am really looking forward to this trip and I can't wait to be working with the Haitians again. I encourage everyone who is interested and feels called to help to sign up and go. Whether you are a doctor, a nurse, or have no medical background at all you are still going to be used and still going to be ministered to. I hear from many that they don't feel that like can be a help if they do not know medicine, but that could not be further from the truth. One of the most important jobs in this effort is interacting with people. Letting these victims know that they are loved and cared for. Sitting with patients, holding their hands, coloring pictures with orphans and children mean just as much as attending to the physical aspect of this relief. The acute emergency stage has ended, and now people here are beginning to start to understand how to cope with this tragedy. It is a strong spiritual experience no matter where you are coming from. If you are interested go to foundationforpeace.org and sign up. Don't worry about the details, if you are really being called by God to go, then he will prepare the way. Keep your hearts, mind, and body open to the Holy Spirit moving and working through you. Be a vessel.

"For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." -Ephesians 2:10

I am the worst blogger in the world.

2010-01-25T10:08:00.000-05:00

So here I am again, attempting to post. Having a blog is not the easiest thing I have done before. I feel that I could compare it to wanting a pet when you're a kid. You really, really want one because they are so awesome and all the cool kids have one, but your parents tell you that if you get one you have the responsibility to care for it and keep it updated! When I first left for this trip I swore that I would update once a day. What a bold statement. As you can easily see, I haven't been the best parent to my blog. However, I will try to update more often. Where should I start this update? I guess, from the beginning.

It is easy now to break up my time here so far in to two segments. Before the earthquake and after the earthquake. I say this because I feel that so much has changed since the earthquake hit Haiti.

Before the earthquake, everyone here in my house was busy preparing for education conferences, unpacking shipping containers, baseball teams coming from the states, and a large nursing team. I started my Spanish language school about three weeks ago and I am really enjoying it. I learned how to take public transportation to school and back from my house. I also learned just how crazy public transportation is in the Dominican Republic. Whenever our big bus of Americans drove by a big bus of Dominicans during one of the many summer trips I have been on, I always wondered what it was like in the other bus. Where are they going? How ever did they figure out what bus to get on? Why are there so many people on that bus!? It must be so hot on that bus! Friends, after my adventure on public transportation I am able to answer these questions. To begin with, my professor explained to me that in order to understand public transportation here you basically need to ask every single bus driver you come in to contact with how to get where you want to go. Great news, public transportation is so confusing that even the natives don't understand it. Secondly, there are so many people on the bus because the bus driver is paid based on how many fares he collected that day. This means, that just when you think you can't fit just ONE more person on the bus without the sides bursting open, the bus will in fact stop and let 6 more people on. I have also learned that hanging out the door with only one foot in the bus still means you have to pay for your ride. And finally, yes, it is as uncomfortably hot as it looked like all these years staring in to the other bus from our air-conditioned bus. I miss those big air-conditioned busses. So to wrap things up, school is great. I feel that I am learning a lot, but it is still frustrating at times because I recognize that I still have so much to learn.

I was even able to get to a beautiful beach named Juan Dolio with Ruth one day for about an hour. It is one of the most amazing sites I have seen! The ride out to the beach from our house took about an hour and a half with traffic on a road that runs along the shore. I kept joyfully saying, "We live in paradise!!!" to Ruth. (I think she thinks I'm crazy now.) I will never get used to seeing such beautiful water so close to our house! Sorry Jersey, but you don't have anything on warm, crystal clear blue waters in the Dominican Republic. Ruth and I ate at a restaurant on the beach. I ordered my favorite juice, Passion fruit juice, and we shared the most delicious dish of chicken with garlic butter sauce. It was so beautiful I took a picture. Actually, I took two pictures. Now that is some lovely chicken.

The day after we went to the beach we left for Jimani. Jimani is a town in the DR located at the border between the Dominican and Haiti and is about 4-5 hours from Port-au-Prince, Haiti. On the way in to the town I was incredibly shocked by what I was seeing. The entire town had turned in to one large trauma center. Virtually, every church, hospital, school, pharmacy, and every possible building had been turned into trauma centers. Huge army tents had been sent up all over town housing more patients that the other buildings couldn't accommodate. Baseball fields and other large grassy areas had been turned in to helipads for helicopters that continuously brought in more patients from the capitol. One of the Pastors, Pastor Brony Novas, who was working with our group called us on the way in as we followed his car to our hospital and told us that what we were about to see was really horrible. That it was going to be really hard and he offered us the chance to stay at a local pastors house if we didn't think we could handle it. We explained to him that we were ready. We didn't drive 5 hours from the capitol just to avoid reality. After Brony's call, I started praying silently to myself in the back of the van. I know that God doesn't put us in situations that we can't handle, and that when we do find ourselves in those situations he sends us with a way and with support. I prayed that God would give me the strength to get over my fears of not being able to handle what I was about to see so that I may serve God and the Haitians to my fullest ability. As we drove through this on the way to where we would be working I remember thinking that if it was this busy in this section of the town, then our hospital couldn't possibly be busy as well. I found out soon that I was underestimating how many victims were able to get across the border in order to receive help. We pulled onto the property we would be working in. In any other circumstance, I would have considered myself lucky to be able to stay at this facility. It is absolutely beautiful. The property has two very large white buildings that overlook water and mountains. It was built by a pastor to be an orphanage and he is waiting for the furniture to be delivered. It is amazing how things work out, if the orphans would have moved into this facility already, I don't know where we would have been able to put the hundreds of refugees that flooded the area. We pulled into the parking lot and before we were out of the car or even parked we were immediately greeted by Renee, who was in charge when we showed up. He told us were to park and were to stand right away. I remember feeling like I was in a war scene looking out the window of the van, staring at all the chaos around me. I took one deep breath in, (Be still), and exhaled, (and know that I am God.) and got out of the car. It was a little before 11am on Monday when we started working as soon as we arrived. It was a little after 7am on Tuesday when we were forced to stop because our team had to leave to go back to the capitol for business. None of us wanted to go. Our hearts remain with all the people we met there. Ruth and I were in charge of what Renee coined as the "man pool". We found all the people who were not injured in the earthquake and joined them together in order to form a group of people who could move patients around and basically do whatever the doctors needed. We moved patients from one area to another by picking up their mattresses with the victims on them. We organized ambulances and later trucks to transport patients from one building to the other where they did amputations and operations. At one point, Renee told me he wanted four patients moved in to this one room. I was relieved to see that finally these four patients who had been lying on the grass outside of the building would get an actual room with a roof over their head and out of the sun. I later found out that he wanted me to move them because these patients’ injuries were to great and he wanted them to have their own private room until they died. I was surprised that I didn't really have a period of "getting used to" people dying and seeing dead bodies and horrible injuries. I guess when you are put in this type of situation you recognize that no one will benefit from you crying. You just enter in to work mode and stop thinking about what fears you may have had.

Chaos continued throughout the day and actually became worse whenever there was a shift in doctors. There was no continuity between shifts and doctors were not communicating with one another about patients, medicines, techniques, nothing. It was a frustrating situation to be in as a non-medical person who has little to offer but muscle, willingness to do anything, and love.

Love. I couldn't help but feel for these patients. The doctors are amazing at attending to the physical need of the patients, but because of the enormity of the situation, the chaos, and the language barrier, the doctors were not communicating to the patients what was going on. I saw so many eyes that were so fearful and confused. Patients we waking up missing arms and legs and not understanding why. One woman was surrounded by tons of people at one point and they were all yelling at her while she lay sobbing, holding her baby on a mattress. They wanted her to get off but she had a broken leg and refused to move out of fear. I don't know what came over me, but I pushed my way through the circle of people and even though I don't speak Creole, I was able to tell everyone to go away. I knelt down beside the woman and tried to console her. I waved Olson over, a 22-year-old boy I had become friends with whose mother was in the clinic. He spoke English and Creole and I asked him to translate for me. He told me that she was told to get in the back of the truck so they could take her back to Haiti because she had been treated and she needed to go. What the doctors didn't explain to her was that she was simply going to another refugee camp where we were sending patients for post-op recovery. She thought that she was going to be dropped off in Haiti, with no family, no food, and a new baby and a broken leg. Once we were able to explain this to her, she left relieved knowing that she was still going to be cared for and watched over. After that situation, I made it a point to make eye contact and smile with the patients I walked over and between all day long. I started to understand that maybe God sent me this way so that we could minister to one another like this. With love and compassion and simple smiles that lets one another know you acknowledge them, you feel for them, and that you are here with them. There is no one beneath us. We are all the same. Created equal in God's eyes.

Around 3am Tuesday morning most of our patients had fallen asleep, thank God they were able to. I noticed my friend Olson, from earlier was awake. We began to talk and he told me how his mother would be taken to surgery in the morning. He confided in me about how scared he was for her and that he didn't know he she was going to loose her leg, or die. I sat with him and helped him understand the doctor’s notes for his mother and we learned that she had a bad break in her tibia, but she would be just fine. I was so moved my Olson and his courage. I asked if he would introduce me to his mother. So we went over and I sat next to her mattress on the floor and was able to have a small conversation with her with the help of Olson's translations. They both told me how they are Christians. His mother loves to sing in their church's choir and Olson plays the piano in his. Unfortunately, the church and their home both collapsed. But, what moved me to tears was what Olson said next. He told me that it didn't matter and that him and his mother knew that everything was going to be ok. They knew this. They also said that they knew God is good and they are thankful to God that they still have their lives and each other.

About 4 hours later the morning silence was broken by the most beautiful thing I have ever heard in my 23 years. Songs of praise and worship. The room that held our most serious patients some of who were dying while they waited to be taken to surgery was singing. All of them. They were supporting one another up in seated positions. If they were paralyzed or and couldn't sit up they had their hands raised as high as they could manage and they were all singing. Worshipping, praising, thanking God for all that He is and all that He has given us.

It is amazing to have the privilege to meet people like Olson and his mother and all the other patients, who are so strong in their faith that they remember to be thankful to God for their blessings even after they have lost so much. What most would view as loosing 'everything'. It reminds me to be thankful for everything that I have been blessed with. I am so thankful that I have such an amazing and strong support system at home of my family and friends. I am so thankful that I have a family that understands my call to be in a strange land, much different from home. I am so thankful that I have been called by God to be his hands and feet and that he has given me an able body to carry out his work. I am thankful for the team of people I have the chance to work with here and how we are able to minister to one another and show one another what it really means to live in community as Christians. This list could go on forever and I'm sure yours could as well. What are you thankful for? Be sure to thank God for his endless blessings, especially in the times when you seem like you can't find a single one. One lesson I have learned from this is that we need to pray the hardest especially when it is the hardest for us to pray. When it seems like a task to reach out, but it is OK if the other words we can muster up or put together is "I need you." or "just get me through today". After the earthquake, there is a long road ahead for many people. Just in a week, our foundation has had more calls from people interested in volunteering than ever before in the history of the Foundation for Peace. We had to add trips to our calendar for the next month and a half and keep getting busier and busier. I ask that you would all continue to pray for the Haitians who are still in need of medical care. Pray for the doctors and all the volunteers who are reaching out to the thousands of people affected by this tragedy and please pray for the Foundation for Peace that God would continue to guide us to where and how He wants us to serve.

Finally, an Update!

2010-01-08T11:09:00.000-05:00

Hello everyone!

I'm very sorry about not writing for so long! Truth be told, I completely forgot which email and password I used to login. So, today I decided to try again and I got in on the first try! Yay! So I'll give you all a quick update on what has been going on since I last saw you:

I arrived in Santo Domingo on Saturday afternoon and was picked up at the airport by Ercilia and Luke who are two of my housemates. Ercilia has lived in this house almost her entire life and is in charge of the school that is attached to the house. She is such a wonderful strong woman and has been helping me with my Spanish every night before bed. I'm so thankful for her friendship and all the wonderful advice she gives me. Luke (Lucas in Spanish) is from Washington State and has been in the DR for 4 months. He was a Biology student at Seattle Pacific University and is applying to medical school now. He is supposed to leave in March and is hoping to come back to help us out in the summer. I hope he can. He is an extremely gentle person and reminds me a lot of my friends at home. He gets my sense of humor, which is also a big bonus because telling a joke, and not having anyone laugh can be pretty awkward. Kristin is another missionary who has been living here for 5 years. We call her the singing/dancing missionary. I have never met anyone who works as hard as her and never complains. I need to learn a thing or two from her. Ruth is another missionary who has been here for 4 years and who will be returning from Nebraska (where her and Kristin grew up) on Monday. She was enjoying a much-deserved long Christmas break. Next we have Ana who is from the Dominican Republic and is the most amazing woman ever! She was working for an organization called Living Waters until she felt that they were becoming more of a business rather than an outreach and they no longer listened to what the communities actually needed. Instead, they would go in to a community and tell them what they need, which, as you would believe doesn't work at all. Ana really surprised me when we went to church the other night and the pastor asked her to lead us in worship. She jumped right up and led us in such powerful prayer, then with the most beautiful strong voice I have ever heard she lead us in a beautiful song (Ven Espiritu Ven/Come Spirit Come), and she gave us a powerful message as well. I was so shocked by this and now I can't stop asking her tons of questions about her testimony as well as to sing for me whenever we are in the car. The next person who works with us is Isidro, he is the brother of Ercilia and has also grown up in the house. He is a full time employee of the Foundation For Peace and is quite a character. I have really enjoyed getting to know Isirdo over the last 8 years. And finally, we have Julian who works with us. He helped to find a good Spanish immersion school for me to attend and speaks very good English. I look forward to getting to know him more. So there is the update on all the people who work for the Foundation For Peace. I know it seemed lengthy, but whenever I refer to someone in the future you can come here and get an idea of whom I am talking about!

So, I spent my first Sunday here unpacking and decorating my room so it feels like home. Thanks to all the beautiful quotes Horton gave to me before I leave and all the wonderful cards I received from my friends I had plenty to hang on my walls and door. On Monday, my first group arrived. It was a group of 9 from Pine Shores Church in Florida. What a lovely bunch! They are raising funds to install a water purification facility in a community called Los Alcarrizos. I really enjoyed getting to know them and I had a ton of fun with all of them. I am always impressed by how excited and motivated groups are when they get here. We were able to get so much done at the site! We spend 4 days shoveling, moving dirt in bucket lines, moving cinderblocks in cinderblock lines (Woodside can identify all to well with this method...), and digging a 7 foot ditch which will have walls of cement so they can keep water there. The water will be pumped from the well on to the roof of the church in to the purification facility. The group also got to go to big tourist hot spot for shopping (Mercado Modelo, which is an old airplane hanger that now looks like the biggest flea market ever.) Kristin and I were given a really beautiful hammock for our house by the woman who owns the store we take the groups to. We were so excited and the hammock was hung as soon as we got home!

The church services in Los Alcarrizos are soooooo amazing. You can really feel the Spirit moving and breathing in this church and through all the people. The pastor gave the most powerful message the other night and I was so thankful to have heard it. I really identified with what he was preaching. He spoke about how we all need to be like Abraham, who, when God called him, left his land and went to a place he did not know. Abraham left everything he knew because he heard God's call and knew that he had to listen and leave home. When I started to feel that God was calling me to the Dominican Republic I knew that I had to go. Even though I spent a lot of time denying it and thinking that it wasn't for me to do, I still ended up here. When God gives you such strong messages about what he wants for you it is impossible to deny them. Then the pastor told us how we can not be like Lot's wife who was told to keep her eyes fixed on God and not look back because when we look back from God and what he wants for us, spiritually, we turn in to pillars of salt. Before I left I was feeling separated and it was hard for me in many ways and it wasn't until the pastor spoke that I realized why. I was so consumed by the uncertainties involved with leaving home that I had taken my focus off of God and what he was asking me to do. I had looked back. I looked back at leaving a familiar place, English, family, friends, work, you name it and I let all of what I didn't want to leave get in the way of what I had to do. We are so afraid of change that often it cripples us and we easily forget that if God opens a door, no one can shut it. Once we go through that door, God has promised to take care of us and provide for us and we need to remember that. So long story short, after hearing this message and working this week with the community of Los Alcarrizos I was reminded by how much I love being here and why I love doing this work. It fills me up and encourages me. Thank you to all of you at home for all of your support by prayer, donations, and friendships for helping me to get here. Miss you all! Thanks for reading this super long entry I had no intentions of making it this long, I apologize! God Bless!

Yes, this thing is up to date once again...

2009-12-03T07:18:00.000-05:00

Hello all! Just posting a quick little sentence or two just to bring this blog back to date. It has been awhile since I last wrote anything (since the month I spend in the D.R.) and I am really enjoying reading the old entries! Less than one month to go! I have lots to do in order to get ready for the trip and I can't wait to start some real entries. God bless. Take care!

~Leah

Americanos! San Miguel!

2008-07-01T19:41:00.000-04:00

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!

2008-06-27T22:49:00.000-04:00

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

2008-06-18T08:41:00.000-04:00

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!

2008-06-13T08:15:00.000-04:00

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!

2008-06-11T10:12:00.001-04:00

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

2008-06-11T09:15:00.000-04:00

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...

2008-06-08T18:51:00.001-04:00

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!

2008-06-07T23:20:00.000-04:00

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!

2008-06-06T20:33:00.000-04:00

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!!

2008-05-28T18:54:00.000-04:00

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