Home Again

After three months away I am back in Utah. It still doesn't feel as though I have been gone for three months, more like two or three weeks. As I talk to people and hear all that has gone on since I have left only then do I realize that I really have been gone for a good chunk of time.

My last few days in the village went by very quickly, but I really enjoyed them. Friday through Sunday I still took advantage of resting and really started to feel better. I was still working and playing with the kids, but still took advantage of afternoons to rest so I would have energy for the next day. By Monday I was feeling much better and was really able to pour myself into the last few days that I was there. I continued to help with the holiday program at the school and had a blast! Each afternoon was spent doing a number of different things, whether finishing training for the girl who was taking over my teaching, random small jobs that needed to be done, or packing getting ready to leave. I also enjoyed the last few afternoons with Rachel and spending as much time with the kids as I could. Although saying good-bye was not easy it didn't really hit me that I was leaving everyone until I was on the bus on my way to Kuching.

The trip home was very long and tiring and by the time I got to Salt Lake I was so happy to not be getting on another plane. The first leg of the journey from Living Waters to Kuching was bumpy as expected but not a bad as when I went in last time. It is much easier going from the village to Kuching rather than going in because you get through the worst of the roads first rather than saving them for last. I had a day in Kuching, which ended up being very nice, before I began the rest of my journey home. On Saturday afternoon I headed from Kuching to Singapore where I stayed the night before starting the long leg of my trip home. After almost 24 hours of traveling and three plane rides later I finally arrived in Salt Lake.

As much as I miss the kids and wish I could still be there with them I am confident I will go back and be able to see them all again. It is also great to be home and be able to catch up with everyone and share all about what has been going on the past three months. I look forward to being able to tell whoever wants to hear all about my time there and share my excitement about all that is going on in Indonesia.

Again, thank you all so much for your continued prayer support as I have been away. I look forward to catching up and seeing you! Enjoy the pictures!

Blessings!

This is where we were, or somewhere close to that.

These are my Kindergarten kids that I taught.

All my 1st graders who I taught English to.

Some of my 1st grade special ed kids.

3rd grade special ed kids

These are all the kids I got in front of for birthday night. There are more kids on either side of the picture that you can't see.

Me with all of the teachers on birthday night.

Two of my favorite girls!

Such cute kids!

One of my favorite boys!

The Week of Lasts...

Today begins my week of lasts… Today is my last Friday in the village and each day will be my last of that day. It’s strange to think that in just a handful of days I will be back in the States again, it still seems as though I just got here. I find it very hard to believe I have been gone almost three months, and am now preparing to head home.

This past week has been full of many new adventures for me. On the third Saturday of every month there is a birthday party to celebrate all the kids who have birthdays in that month. Well last Saturday the teachers were in charge of the birthday party for the month of March and they convinced me to join in. This required me to get up in front of over 300 people and basically make a fool of myself. I spoke English and one of the other teachers “translated” for me, which really meant he took everything I said and changed it to make the kids laugh. After the kids got a good laugh at me the tables turned and Iwan, the other teacher, started to speak English and I translated it into Indonesian, which of course I was changing what he was saying. It definitely put me out of my comfort zone, but at the same time I really had a lot of fun with it and the kids really enjoyed it. Then on Monday at Easter day at school I again was in front of the kids, though only about 100 this time to sing a song with the teachers. Again, this is something that was definitely out of my comfort zone, however I’m glad I did it and really enjoyed it. Being here and being one of the teachers at the school has really forced me out of my comfort zone, in more ways than just getting in front of large groups of people to perform. Although it has definitely been challenging I’m glad I have done it. Normally if I have to choose safety or stepping out I choose safety, but living here has really challenged me to step out more. It’s amazing to see what happens when you do!

On Saturday I also gained three new roommates. Two girls came in from Holland and one from Wales. They have been a lot of fun to hang out with and get to know. One of the girls from Holland will be taking over teaching English, which is great! Even better though there is officially someone taking over all my special education classes!! One of the girls from Australia who will be here for nine months to a year is going to take my groups. She is not trained as a teacher, however I am spending time with her teaching her how to do things and showing her what I have been doing with the kids. It’s a huge answer to prayer knowing the kids will continue to receive help after I leave.

Although I gained new roommates on Saturday I also had to say good-bye to one on Tuesday. Merel, who I’ve had as a roommate since moving to the guesthouse, headed back home to Holland. It was sad to see her go, and has been strange not having her around, but I’m very glad I had the chance to meet her and become friends.

Now that the kids are on holidays my days look much different than before. In the mornings I help with a holiday program down at the school. The plan was to continue to pull some of my students who are the furthest behind, but so far that hasn’t happened due to just helping to keep everything running smoothly. It’s been fun to play with the kids and do different games, but it is definitely different than sitting with them and teaching them. In the afternoons for the most part I have been resting. The cold I got last week has gotten much worse so by lunchtime I’m normally pretty exhausted. I have spent some time with the new teachers showing them things and helping them to be prepared for when they start teaching after the Easter holiday. Other than that my afternoons have been pretty low key. I am hoping to start feeling well soon so I can spend my last week feeling as though I’ve done something productive, I just have to be careful to make sure I don’t over do it.

Please pray I would feel better very soon and really be able to pour myself into my last week here. Also please pray for my traveling. This time next week I will be on the bus on my way back to Kuching and after that will begin the long journey home.

This will probably be my last post until after I’m back in the States, unless I get more pictures up before then, so I look forward to catching up once I’m home!

Blessings!!

Another One!

As I’m sitting at my computer trying to type this I am finding my mind is coming up blank. I can think of several things to tell everyone, but when it comes to putting it in words for some reason I am finding it difficult today. So, let’s see what I can do…

I’m officially done with teaching here in Indonesia. I just finished today, and although it is sad to be done it’s also a bit exciting. I had a lot of fun with the kids the past couple of weeks, and look forward to more fun outside of the school the last couple of weeks I’m here. Many of the kids are sad to see me go and keep telling me either to stay or I need to come back, which I definitely plan on doing. The kids I teach English to in 1^st grade all made me thank you cards and gave them to me as I was leaving class this morning. It was very sweet of them J During the last couple of days I made sure to take my camera with me to every class and group that I did, and now have some really good pictures of all the kids I have worked with. I will do my best to get some up soon so you can see them.

At this point there is a potential person who will be taking my place to teach the kids I have been working with. A family from Australia just arrived this week and are going to be here somewhere between 9 months to a year. They have a couple of older girls so I am hoping one of them will be interested in teaching and I will train one of them in what I have been doing and how to continue with each of the students. Please be praying this follows through so that by the time I leave someone is prepared to come back and teach the kids after their Easter holiday.

Although I am now done teaching the kids are not actually on Easter holiday until Tuesday. Monday we are having Easter day at the school, which will consist of different things focusing on Easter. Also, each class will be singing in front of the rest of the school. The teachers, including myself, will also be singing a song. For those of you who know me well know that I am not one to sing in front of people, and now I am singing a song in Indonesian in front of all the kids at the school. It should be interesting, but at least I will not be up there alone, and the other teachers are good at singing loud ;-P

For the most part there really isn’t too much else to report at this point. The Brooks are back from Kuching, which I am very happy about. It’s been nice to spend time with Rachel again, especially since I don’t have much time left here. In the next few days I will be gaining new roommates as well as losing a roommate. It will be fun to have the new girls here, but it will definitely be sad to see my current roommate leave, though I will follow her out just over a week later.

As always continue to pray for the health of the kids as well as myself. I am coming down with a bit of a cold and am praying it doesn’t get any worse than it already is. As for the kids we have another kid with typhoid, one with tuberculosis, and one with the mumps. So, please pray for these kids as well as the other kids that none of the illnesses will be passed around. Also pray for my last couple of weeks here. Being so close to coming home it’s easy to start thinking about home a lot. Pray that I am able to stay focused on what’s before me and fully enjoy my last weeks here.

God Bless!

Pictures!!

On the bus on the way home from school.
These are just a few of the boys I teach English to in 1st grade.
Morning prayer meeting.
Hanging out with some of the kids before dinner. As soon as a camera comes out they are all there ready to jump in for a picture. They love cameras!
All the kids that attend primary school in Living Waters Village.
Typical school bus. This is normally full of kids inside as well as kids sitting on top.
One of the many amazing sunsets here in Indonesia.
This is what I wake up to every morning. Absolutely amazing! I never get sick of seeing it in the morning.

Back in Living Waters!

I take back everything I said about possibly growing accustomed to the roads here! I got back to Living Waters Village on Sunday, and was so happy to get back. Getting here was quite the adventure though. We left Kuching on a bus at 7:30am, which was 6:30am in the village. This bus was very nice and pretty comfortable. Everybody had their own seat and it was air conditioned so was nice and cool. After stopping at almost every bus stop between the station and the border to pick up more people we made it to the border and got through without too many problems. Another 2 hours on this bus and we got to The Junction where we got off to catch another bus. This is where the real adventure began. We grabbed a quick lunch before loading onto our next bus. This bus was much smaller, no air conditioning, and they crammed as many people as possible into it. Just when you thought it was full they would stop and add another two or three people. I found it very entertaining to watch as everyone crammed on. I was squished into a seat made for four people and we had five, but I was just grateful to be sitting and not standing. To add to the adventure for the day of taking a bus in Indonesia we also ended up with a flat tire, and a near head-on collision with another bus because they only drive with their headlights on every once in awhile, even when it’s dark. We eventually made it to Nanga Pinho all in one piece and in desperate need of a shower and some sleep. We got picked up by a couple from the ministry and taken back to the village where we finally arrived at 9:00pm, a very long day to say the least. As soon as we pulled up one of the girls I work with saw me and came running up to me to give me a hug. Seeing her and getting a hug made the entire long day of travel worth it, and also made me so happy to be back.

Now the week is about over, which means another week has passed. This week hasn’t been extremely eventful, but it has definitely been nice to be back here with the kids. I really missed spending time with them and teaching them. I continue to see progress with my kids and am very excited to see many of the kids who couldn’t read are slowly starting to read. It is so rewarding for me as well as for them to know they are learning and making progress. I only have tomorrow and next week left for teaching before the kids go on Easter Holiday, so really not much time left in teaching them. Please continue to pray for someone to come who is able to take my place and continue to teach these kids.

The Brooks ended up taking an unplanned trip to Kuching for the week, which means I am the only American here. It is strange not having them around especially since I normally spend several afternoons with Rachel. I was only here a day before they headed out so I definitely look forward to having them back again next week.

Please continue to pray for the health of the children here. It seems every time you turn around there is another kid with a fever or cough, it never stops. Also pray for Kerrie, one of the full-time missionaries here. She is fixing to leave for New Zealand next week after finding out her brother is dying of a very aggressive cancer. Time here is coming to an end very fast, so pray that I am able to continue to give all that I can and love on the kids with the time that I have left.

Blessings!

Finally up to date

Well I decided to cut the last post off a bit short since it was already long enough, however I still had more to share so decided you would just be fortunate to get two posts in a week.

Right now I am in Kuching to redo my visa and I must say it has been a very nice break. Last week was an extremely exhausting week at the village. I wasn’t sleeping well and when I tried to go to bed early it never happened so I was going to school completely exhausted, which meant I was on a short rope. I was getting frustrated when I wasn’t able to communicate with the kids and was just plain exhausted. By the time Saturday morning came and we were ready to head to Kuching I was beyond ready. Although the road was bumpy it didn’t seem as bad as the first time heading in. Maybe it was because I was able to sleep off and on for about 2 hours or maybe I’m just becoming more accustomed to the roads here. Either way I was very grateful it didn’t seem as bad as the first time driving on it.

Since being in Kuching I have enjoyed quite a bit of down time, which I have really needed. I have been getting more sleep at night and although still exhausted and have more sleep to catch up on I am feeling more rested. I have also enjoyed some different things that I haven’t had a chance to experience since being here.

Sunday we went to church and it was in English! It was so refreshing to be able to worship with others and understand what was being said. The message was simple, yet exactly what I needed to hear. The pastor talked about the importance of sitting at Christ’s feet. Not walking with Him or even trying to stand with Him, but simply sitting with Him. It’s there at His feet where we find rest. It was so refreshing to hear especially since I’ve been in need of rest. Also Sunday was the last day to celebrate Chinese New Year (it’s celebrated for two weeks). The neighbors next to us at the house we stay in had a traditional Chinese blessing done at the house, which involved two dragons dancing to the beat of drums and cymbals. The neighbors invited us over to watch, which was very interesting. It’s interesting to see how different cultures celebrate holidays and some of the traditions they have. Also that night I was able to see about 30 different firework shows around the city. It was quite the experience, but very fun nonetheless.

I had a chance to wander around the city of Kuching on Monday while the couple I am with did some shopping for the ministry. It was fun to wander around and look in a bunch of different shops though I got stared at quite often since I was the only white person. I got asked several times where I was from and often met by excitement when they found out I was from America. Yesterday we headed to the beach for part of the day, which was great! It was so relaxing to just hang out at the beach for awhile and not worry about anything. The beach we went to is at a huge resort so after we were done at the beach we went for a walk around the resort which has paths that cut into the jungle and have a bunch of different activities to do. We just enjoyed the walk and another swim in a small pool that was fed by a stream. While we were walking we saw dozens of huge spiders! The bodies were only about an inch or a bit bigger, but their legs were about 3-4 inches long. They were disgusting! Other than the spiders the walk was really nice as was the swim in the pool. That night we also enjoyed a nice dinner with a friend of the ministry. It is amazing the kind of support that is found here in the city of Kuching. There are so many different people and families who take part in what is going on out in Indonesia without living there. It’s huge!

The plan was to originally head back on Friday, but now I’m not sure exactly when I will be going back. We have a lot of people coming and going this week so the latest I will be heading back is on Sunday, however I am hoping to head back Friday or Saturday. It just depends on when others are heading back. I will most likely take a bus back in which means another new thing to experience. Like I’ve said before one week is never the same as the last here!

Once I am back in the village I will have only four weeks left before I will be leaving to head home. The last weeks are going to disappear quickly and at this point though part of me is ready to head home I know it’s going to be hard to leave. I have come to really love some of the kids here and don’t want to have to leave them. They are such sweet kids and you can’t help but love them. I wish so much I could bring some of them back, but unfortunately that isn’t a possibility. One thing to be praying about are the kids I work with everyday at school. At this point I have seen such improvement in many of the kids. From the one kid who wasn’t working in class and is now working to one of my students who could not read or even knew the sounds of most of the alphabet to being able to start reading. It is so exciting to see these kids start to succeed, especially since in class they find little to know success because it is above their heads. Unfortunately once I leave, at this point there is nobody to take my place and continue to work with the kids. If this happens and the kids stop receiving the help they need they will just fall back to where they were before I started with them. Please pray that somebody would come along that either already has the knowledge to teach these kids the way they need to be taught or that I could train somebody in what needs to be taught to each kid before I leave. This has been a huge concern of mine the past few weeks and I don’t want the success these kids are finding to be taken from them. So please pray God would provide the ministry with someone who can continue to teach the kids who are struggling to learn.

Rumor has it that internet at the village is back up and running, which means I can finally update again weekly, provided the internet stays up and running.

Blessings!

Finally an update!

Sorry it’s been so long between posts the internet in the village went down for three weeks was up for less then 24 hours and was down again. Unfortunately during the short time that it was actually up I did not get anything posted. Due to not being able to post sooner I have quite a bit to update so sorry it’s so long!

Since the last update there have been tons of different things going on and many changes happening as well. It seems one week will never be the same as the last here. I am already more than half way into my trip. Time here is flying by so quickly and I have a feeling it’s going to go even faster my last weeks here.

On Saturday, Jan. 30, I was part of a teacher training. For the most part I was put in charge of the training, which ended up going well. Rachel translated for me, and it seemed the teachers took quite a bit away with them. Since I have been involved with some of the trainings it has been fun to go into a classroom and see the teachers using a game or strategy that I taught them. Seeing them use something I taught them is extremely encouraging because I know I was able to share some of what I know with them.

The first week in February, though still teaching I had a very different schedule, which changed even more in mid-February. I am officially down to just one English class, which is 1^st grade, and I really enjoy it. The kids are a lot of fun to work with, and still get a good laugh when I mix their names up ;-) After English I have 4 different times when I pull students for one-on-one help. These students are the lowest in their grade and need significant support in order to learn. Two of the students I’m working with we are working on the very basics of learning the letter sounds and the other two we are working on reading. It is interesting to read with the kids because I can read the words without too much of a problem, but understanding it is a whole different thing. After I’m done with one-on-ones I still have my four groups I pull for extra support. By the time the day is over I have had 9 different classes/groups, which I’m finding to be pretty tiring, but at the same time I really enjoy because it keeps me on my toes and busy. Now that I am working with the kids more and more I continue to learn more Indonesian. I still have a long ways to go, but slowly I am starting to pick words or phrases up, which is proving to be very helpful.

I got to see the village of Mangala, which is about 10 minutes away from Living Waters a couple times recently. For three days the students at our school went in the mornings to compete with other village schools in events like soccer, badminton, table tennis and a few other things. I went the first day, which I wasn’t expecting and ended up a bit sunburned. I didn’t go the other two days but the kids who competed did very well for their first time at the games and brought home several trophies. The second time I went to Mangala was for church. Every first Sunday of the month everybody goes to Mangala for church. It was extremely hot and stuff, and of course in Indonesian which makes it hard to understand, but another new experience nonetheless.

Saturday, Feb 6, even more changes were added to my days. On a normal Saturday I am only at the school from 9-12 rather than all day like during teacher training. During this time we meet together as teachers and discuss how things are going. I still understand very little, but I do enjoy hanging out with the teachers. I found out at one of the meetings that one of the students I am helping in 1^st grade is already starting to show improvement in class. Before I started working with him he would not write anything in class. Now he is working and writing. When I heard this I just smiled, it’s reasons like this I teach. No matter how frustrating it can get at times hearing things like that makes it all worth it. After lunch instead of working with kids I help paint the bakery that is being built. It is nice to have a change in what I’ve been doing and do some physical work. I don’t know how long the need for painting will be needed at this point, but until it is done I will continue to help paint Saturday afternoons. After that ends I don’t know what I will do, but I definitely want to find something else that requires some sort of physical labor. It’s nice to change things up a bit, even if it is only for a few hours a week.

Another change that has come is I’ve moved to the guesthouse. I was going to move in at the end of January, but Ben ended going back to Kuching for the week so I stayed an extra week with Rachel and the kids. I am staying with two other girls, one from Wales and one from Holland. They are great girls and though it is very close quarters it’s been fun. Right now we have two rooms between the three of us and an adjoining door that we leave open. This provides for more room and also more ventilation in the rooms. Since getting here there have been heaps of guests coming and going. Right now we a girl from Wales, a girl and a guy from Holland, and a guy from England. In the last couple of weeks we have also had several people leave. Three guys from Australia left not long ago as well as a lady from another part of Indonesia followed shortly by a guy from New Zealand, two ladies from New Zealand and a couple from England. It’s been fun to meet all of them and learn even more about different cultures as well as develop some friendships with other people who speak English.

Sunday, Feb 7, a group of us, over 30, went for a float down the river. It was awesome! I came out with many cuts and bruises due to running into rocks and trees, but it was well worth it. Being able to just hang on to bamboo and enjoy floating down a river and enjoy creation, you can’t get much better than that. It was for the most part very relaxing, except when you had to dodge rocks and trees. It was great to do something different for the afternoon as well.

Saturday, Feb. 13 I had the opportunity to go to an engagement ceremony of one of the teachers I work with. It was very interesting to see the different way they do things here. An engagement here is not something done between just the guy and girl, but it is something that is done as an event in front of a bunch of people. When a couple decides they like each other and are going to get married they then make it official by having an engagement ceremony. At the ceremony they give each other traditional objects, which represent different things, to the man a basket and to the woman some material. They also do the exchange of rings, both the man and the woman. It was very interesting to be a part of and I’m glad I had the opportunity to go. Another one of the teachers is getting engaged next month so I should have the chance to go to another ceremony before I leave.

Sunday, Feb. 14 I went to Nanga Pinho to celebrate Chinese New Year. It is a very big celebration here, about as big as Christmas to us. We went to a guy’s house who is a friend of the ministries and enjoyed a huge meal. It was nice to have a change in food for the day. It was definitely a good time and a chance to celebrate a holiday I’ve never had reason to celebrate before.

Every Sunday evening the Western visitors get together to worship and dig into God’s word in English. I have really come to cherish these times and look forward to them each week. I love being at the meetings with all the Indonesians and seeing them worship God, but since I don’t understand them it is hard to be fed which can be tough, so being able to come together on Sunday evening and worship God in a language I understand means a lot to me. During those times God has really spoken to me and continues to blow me away with what He has to show me. He continues to do amazing things in my life and seems to challenge me daily with something new. Some of the things that seem to be the biggest focus at the moment are trust and living each day to the fullest. Trust has always been an issue for me in my life, and although I trusted God before coming here in many things He has shown me so many areas in which I don’t trust Him. Some of them are very small, but I still lack the trust and try to do it on my own or rely on my own strength. He has been challenging me with little things and teaching me how to trust Him. He has also begun to challenge me about living each day fully. I’ve been gone for a month now and though I’m not ready to leave here there are definitely times when I miss things about home. When I start thinking about this my focus changes to when I come home which takes away from where my focus should be. The other night as I was talking to one of the girls here we were talking about how fast the time goes here and how it is so important to take each day and enjoy it as much as we can. God really challenged me with that, to take each day and live it, live for today. We aren’t guaranteed even our next breath so there is no point in me thinking weeks in advance. I guess that’s a small glimpse into some of what God has been doing in me since I’ve been here. All of it is a process and there is much to come, which means there is much to look forward to.

Please be praying for the families here in the ministry. One of the families here went to Kuching to redo their visas and while they were there their car was stolen. There is no chance of finding it so the only thing they can do is buy a new one. Please pray they are able to raise the funds needed in order to purchase a new car. Also, another couple whom live here had to head back to Australia suddenly due to the husband having heart complications. Please pray for them as they are back in Australia and for the doctors he will be going to to have wisdom. Pray nothing serious happens and they are able to return soon here to the village. Also continue to pray for the health of everyone here. We have so many kids sick at the moment. Please pray specifically for a little boy named Beno. Since I have been here, which is about the same time he arrived, he has had pneumonia, malaria, typhoid and has now just been diagnosed with tuberculosis. Be praying he can fight off yet another disease and become well. We have two others with tuberculosis right now as well so be praying for their health as well as all those around them that they are able to stay well.

I hope to be able to try and upload some photos this week or next weekend, no promises that it will work, but I am going to try. So check back sometime later in the week and maybe you can see some of what my daily life looks like right now.

Blessings!