tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-85107833051232223292024-03-05T05:00:06.593-08:00Roamin' Catholics in East TimorUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger78125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-14036174016077239362009-09-17T19:33:00.000-07:002009-09-17T20:29:02.984-07:00The Final MomentsAs Brendan and I sit at the front of our house and watch our neighbors go by - walking with their small children, catching up with friends and relatives, or going to buy fresh vegetables for dinner - we prepare ourselves to leave this place in only 1 week to begin the journey back to America.<br /><br />We will have to been gone for over 1 year, 10 months of that we have been in Timor Leste. During that time we've been through flooded rivers, dengue fever, earthquakes, met large families in wood and tin shacks, swam with a crocodile, and learned from the eye witnesses about the massacres and terror that have stalked this people through the 20th century.<br /><br />More simple difficulties included adjusting to a culture where most people eat rice 3 times a day, the months of cold bucket showers, doing all the cooking on 2 gas burners, dealing with power outages and often no running water (and that the drinking water was unsafe when it was running), and washing all our dishes and clothes by hand.<br /><br />But what has made every minute worth it is what we're always talking about: the people! The people here are quick to open their hearts to you, to trust you like you are part of the family, and they are disarmingly generous with the little they have.<br /><br />And they have taught us so much! It's difficult now to know how much we've changed from living and working with them these 10 months, but even now some inspirations stick out.<br /><br />They've taught us:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">How to Live a Simple Lifestyle</span><br /><br />In America, a lot of people talk about simplifying their lifestyle or living simply. The problem is that everyone's definition of living simply is different - to one it might mean giving up the daily Starbucks trip and to another it might mean only eating out 3 times a week instead of more often. But there's a radical difference between <span style="font-style: italic;">that</span> simple living and the dirt or concrete floor, few modern conveniences, limited access to safe drinking water existence of many people in East Timor and all over the world.<br /><br />Brendan and I have blended Western and Timorese living styles together this year (for health and nutritional reasons), but the Timorese side has taught us to appreciate so many more things than we did before. One example is laundry - it will be <span style="font-style: italic;">sooo</span> nice to be able to use a laundry machine when we get home... but we hope that we will never forget the women who are washing clothes daily for their big families by hand (we had it easy with only 2 people). Everyone knows that we shouldn't take privileges for granted, but to a certain extent, until you've been to a developing country, you can't understand except academically just how many little things we should be appreciating.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">How to be Rich in Family</span><br /><br />Recently, Brendan and I were going for a walk and we ran into one of the high school seniors from Canossa while she was on her way with her sisters and cousins to a celebration. She was chatting with us and she told us a story of a conversation she had with her Dad. Her Dad had just come home from work and was sitting down working on something new when she approached him and exclaimed, "Dad, we are <span style="font-style: italic;">sooo</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">rich</span>!" Her Dad looked up in surprise and confusion because he knew, while they weren't hurting as badly as some other families, they were by no means rich.<br /><br />To alleviate his confusion she continued,"...In family, Dad. We are rich in family!" And her Dad smiled. The student has brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles and cousins who all live nearby and are very supportive of each other and her family. I know exactly what she's talking about, as the oldest of 7 kids with both Mom and Dad's sides of the family in our home city. But I think I am one of the few lucky Americans to know the 'rich in family' joy, compared to the many Timorese in this family-oriented society. It's a sad thing that our independent attitude and our 0,1, or 2 child-norm seems to be costing many of us.<br /><br />Living in 3 different countries now for a significant amount of time, it's clear that Italy and East Timor's cultures each have some parts that are better than ours and some worse. But one big difference is the closeness in families, especially with all generations living very close to each other or even in the same house. Going along with this, especially in Timor, is a much greater sense of respect for the elderly and the very young (including the unborn). This special respect for all people of all ages is a virtue that our own culture, sadly, often fails to show.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">How to Be Rich in Faith</span><br /><br />Brendan and I came to East Timor to support the people in their faith and to show them Jesus' love in practical ways, but I think they have helped our faith to grow even more. The witness of how they live their faith is a constant challenge to me.<br /><br />One example of this is their incredible hospitality. They will sit on the floor or stand so that a guest can have a chair, and they will go hungry so they can offer a guest some food. They will give all they can and then apologize that they have not done enough. They freely give from their daily living money, instead of from their excess. As a "saver" who is more likely to save to have extra and then give from that, I am often humbled in their presence. Their overwhelming generosity is what Christians should be known for and not always are.<br /><br />Another aspect of their faith that has had a lasting impact on me is their resilience through incredible suffering. It's true that everyone suffers, but here men, women, and children have died early from violence, young people have been killed without warning for peacefully protesting, and Sisters have been murdered on missions of mercy giving food and medicine to refugees. And not only the violence, but the suffering that is byproducts of conflict have killed or wounded many here: hunger, homelessness, and disease. I imagine that experiencing all these things may hurt you in a more traumatic way than other examples of suffering. <br /><br />Yet, in their suffering, so many of them have looked to God for comfort and found strength in Him to start again and to rebuild and support others in doing the same. I don't know if I would be that strong in the same circumstances. All I can say is that to be with them and to hear their stories is to to be inspired.<br /><br />Our friend Cas, a volunteer from Australia, described the witness of their faith very well. She said that here (compared to at her home) the people <span style="font-style: italic;">really</span> pray and the people <span style="font-style: italic;">really</span> sing. They put their heart and soul into it because Jesus is their Source, as He should be for all of us. The constant crazy changes in developing countries provide an opportunity for them and us to much more fully depend on God for our daily needs. And when we depend on God, we have found over and over again that He is faithful.<br /><br /><br />So that is a very short summary of some important things we learned this year. This will be the last blog written from East Timor, although there may be more from America as we have a chance to further process our experiences and what we've learned. We hope you have enjoyed reading this blog throughout our journey and that you have grown somehow too.<br /><br />Please pray for us during our week long journey home for health and safe travels. And if you would like, you can meet us at the Des Moines airport October 1st! We will be flying in a little before 8 pm on that Thursday night and we would love to see you there. If that doesn't work try to see us as soon as possible. We've missed you all!<br /><br />Love Always, In Christ, Your friends,<br />Rachel and Brendan<br /><br />P.S. Also published today is the blog on Sharing Our Witness just below this one. Read that too if you get a chance.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-90648144526189467962009-09-17T18:29:00.000-07:002009-09-17T19:32:30.768-07:00Sharing Our WitnessRecently Brendan and I have been excited to have some opportunities to share our witness. The first was right before the day remembering the life and example of Saint Magdalene of Canossa (an Italian Mother Teresa who founded the Canossian Sisters). The Sisters and the 80 girls who live at the school had been doing a novena that would finish on the eve of St. Magdalene's feast day. Sister Terezinha invited us to help with the prayer on that evening.<br /><br />We prayed and sang psalms together in Tetum and read scriptures. Then out of nowhere Sr. T asked us if we would be willing to share our witness of our recent life and how we ended up in East Timor. So we stood up and told all the students and Sisters how God had worked mini-miracles in our lives to bring us to East Timor and what He has been teaching us here. They seemed to understand and appreciate what we said. We just hope it will encourage them to really strive to know Jesus more and to have a good attitude about the crazy twists that happen in life that God uses to get you where He wants you.<br /><br />Another opportunity came when we were asked to be on a vocations panel at a Singles for Christ retreat. Here in Timor there are very strong and supportive programs for Kids for Christ, Youth for Christ, Singles for Christ, and Couples for Christ. Each group meets regularly for prayer, praise and worship, and to encourage each other in the faith. We've been really impressed by the people who organize all of them, who we see at Mass every week and who have been a blessing to meet.<br /><br />So we agreed to be on the panel, talking about both marriage and missions as potential vocations. It was a 2-day retreat and the young people were pumped up for God by the time we got there for the workshop the 2nd day. Among the speakers were a Sister (Sr. Sonia), a priest, another married couple, an international lay missionary, and us as married volunteers/missionaries. All were Timorese except us and Sr. Sonia, who is Filipino.<br /><br />It was beautiful for us to see all these people - most were young graduates our age trying to pray and search out what vocation God is preparing them for. They were at this retreat hoping to hear from God in a special way.<br /><br />The vocations talks also seemed very helpful for them. We couldn't understand all of the fast Tetum of the Timorese speakers, but the retreatants laughed often at the speaker's anecdotes and were also very attentive when speakers shared about more difficult times in the discernment process. For us, in addition to our mission experience, we shared about dating throughout college and trying to pursue purity in our relationship, while discerning whether or not we were supposed to be married or a Sister and priest respectively. We shared with them that for most people it's quite a process with lots of prayer involved, but the answer will come. For us that came when we felt God's blessing for us to be married and He also worked everything out for the marriage and our volunteering trip.<br /><br />After everyone presented there was a Q & A time when anyone could ask questions to any speaker. The question we and the other married couple received was 'How can you make sure you will stay together forever?' (no divorce). Divorce is starting to become an issue here, as it is everywhere. One thing that we told them was about being 2 + God and that the strand of 3 is a lot harder to break than 2 (especially since one of them is unbreakable already). We talked about how as a couple when you pray together, read the Bible together, and do other Church activities together it keeps both spouses focused on Christ and what's important. That's what keeps marriages together - so has been our experience in our marriage so far and it has also been the advice we've had from many long-married couples who we really respect.<br /><br />In my opinion we have really benefitted from this advice. This year has been an amazing time for us not only to really make an impact on others, but because we also get to spend a lot of time with each other and much of that time is doing activities focused on Christ. To me it's obvious that our marriage is very healthy and blessed because of this time. I'm especially glad that God gave us this time together at the beginning of our marriage so that we have a strong foundation to build on in the future.<br /><br />The last opportunity I'll write about was with English Club. We spent a week talking just about faith and one of the days our conversation topic was, "Is Jesus important to you? Why?" We discussed for a long time and I think it was as encouraging for me as it was for them. Each student said at least one very profound thing with a distinctly different perspective - Jesus as a friend, Jesus as a confidant when there is no one else, Jesus making the impossible become possible...We also talked about the difference between going through the motions in your faith only because it's a family thing, and the need to go much deeper into a relationship/friendship with Jesus and to let your daily actions be inspired by that friendship. They said that they want that deeper faith and I believe it. Some of them really understand already, especially some of them who have suffered most. One student's father died this year and she seems to have the deepest faith of all.<br /><br />During a more recent English Club I shared my faith story with them. It was almost all in Tetum and afterward I realized that I finally have a good grasp on the language and can quickly figure out how to say what I want to. So that was a great revelation, but the better part was that they seemed to understand and react to it. I just prayed that the Holy Spirit would work in their hearts so all these little things will add up to make a real difference in their lives.<br /><br />After my story and some discussion, I gave them each an English New Testament with a special note for them in the front from Brendan and I. It's great because it's really multitasking: to help them know Jesus more, to help them learn English, and to help them fulfill their life goals (the other week we made Life Goal lists and many of them said they wanted to read the Bible often or daily).<br /><br />It's really been an amazing experience to work with these students who I see as my younger sisters (and one brother : ) Brendan has had similar experiences with his university classes.<br /><br />So God has generously given us many formal opportunities as well as countless informal opportunities to share His love here in Timor. Maybe someday we'll know the impact He has made through us. But you don't have to go out of the country to make a difference - remember to keep making an impact right where you are (as many of you are constantly doing)!<br /><br />K, hope you are all well at home! We can't wait to see you! 1 week and we'll be on our way! Love you and miss you A LOT!<br /><br />Always,<br />Rachel and BrendanUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-24332395927358689852009-08-23T19:44:00.000-07:002009-08-28T18:57:13.326-07:00Surprise!Brendan and I are going to have a baby!!! Finding out was a bit of a process, but since we found out I'm pregnant we've been very excited!<br /><br />We found out July 15 with a positive pregnancy test at a pharmacy near our house. It was funny because Brendan and I were waiting in the office while the clinician went to use the Indonesian pregnancy test. We expected her to be gone for a few minutes, but she came back after about 20 seconds, sat down, and said one word as she looked up at us... We didn't have any idea what word she said, but she repeated it a few times while pointing to the "positive" check box on her sheet and it became clear we were pregnant! So, after that 10 second delay, we burst into smiles and hugged each other as she started filling out the information for the doctor. She also gave me some advice in Tetum as a young mother with 3 children herself : )<br /><br />Since that time it's been a whirlwind of telling family, friends, and the Sisters here. We've also met with two docotors to start getting information. Dr. Christiane is a German doctor who married a Timorese man and she is pregnant too! So I know she knows what she's talking about : ) She recently left to give birth in Germany, so before she left I tried to meet with her a lot to get advice (in English).<br /><br />Brendan and I also met with Dr. Amita, an obstetrician from Nepal who works at the National Hospital here. She's a colorful, lively woman who told us she came to East Timor to help for 6 months and she's been here for almost 4 years now. Timor seems to have that special pull on people. It's obvious that she has a special heart for mothers and helping them ease through pregnancy.<br /><br />On July 21st, Dr. Amita did our first check up and ultrasound. It was amazing...she expertly twirled the wand around until she found our baby and she pointed out his or her beating heart! Using the computer she was able to determine, based on the size of our baby and the gestational sack, that the baby was 6.5 weeks old at the time! But today our baby is 11.5 weeks old - almost 3 months! And when we get home I'll be 4 months pregnant. The time goes fast, especially with all these new things to think about.<br /><br />But the ultrasound was really special. The emotions that you feel when you look at that black and white screen and see the pulsing of your baby's heart are difficult to describe. For me, I think the overriding feeling was AWE - awe that there was another life inside me and awe of the God-designed perfectness and complexity of our bodies that allows life to continue. It made me think a lot about grace. I've done nothing that could merit this gift, but it was given all the same, and that is grace.<br /><br />So since the ultrasound I've been reading up on the do's and don'ts. Brendan had found a book about pregnancy at the school library that was written by an Australian nurse. A line in the book that made me think of the ultrasound said: " Being pregnant and having a baby are the closest things to a miracle that you will ever see." That's how I feel right now : )<br /><br />I sped through that book and one of our Australian volunteer friends, Therese, bought us a copy of "What To Expect When You're Expecting" while she was visiting home. The book is super-thorough and has been wonderful to read so I'm not so worried about being pregnant in Timor.<br /><br />But, because we are pregnant, some things have changed and we're starting to figure everything out. The biggest change is that we will be coming home a little early so that we can find jobs and housing soon. We will already have been here for the full school year and we will stay until we see our students graduate. After that we have a few weeks for goodbyes and to finish our side projects and then we will be coming home. We will arrive at the Des Moines airport October 1st around 8 pm.<br /><br />It's a Thursday night and it would be incredible to see as many of you as possible at the airport! We've missed you A LOT and will be looking forward to transitioning back into life at home with the support of family and friends!<br /><br />So that's our big news! Please pray for the health of our baby and that we would finish our work here well, and that God would guide our future. Thanks!<br /><br />Love always,<br /><br />Rachel and Brendan<br /><br />P.S. Interesting fact: The Tetum word for pregnant is "isin-rua" literally translated it means "two bodies" : ) Appropriate...Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-44427003424021532052009-08-16T19:32:00.000-07:002009-08-16T19:45:50.208-07:00UpdateHello everyone! Just wanted to apologize quickly for not writing much recently. Most of you understand because of our special news that many of you already know: WE'RE PREGNANT!!! It's very exciting, but more on that in the next blog (which is already written, just needs to be typed, etc).<br /><br />Just to fill you in, lately we've been REALLY busy but when we weren't figuring out final details about when to leave, going to Doctor's appointments, continuing our projects at school, etc., we were:<br /><br />- Going to a Timorese wedding party (our first)!<br /><br />- Taking a relaxing weekend trip with other volunteers to Atauro Island (the little island 2 hours from Dili that is part of East Timor)!<br /><br />- Preparing for and attending the official accredidation of the Canossian university. Brendan worked long and hard to help prepare for it, and it went really well and we're sure that they passed and the school gets to stay open!<br /><br />- Saying goodbye to other friends who have finished their term of service. Chris and Sali and Dagmara are back in Poland and two of our Australian friends leave in less than 2 weeks. It's been difficult and sad, but at the same time we are preparing to come home ourselves - we will be home on October 1st!<br /><br />- Preparing to finish school. My 3rd year students at SMA are finished, but we are continuing English Club. They will graduate on August 29th, earlier than expected. Then we have about 3 weeks before we leave to get ready, say goodbye to all of our friends, and finish working out all the details of our homecoming.<br /><br />I think that's about it. Again, sorry it's been so long. Coming in and spending hours on the internet has been low on the priority list the last few weeks. Depending on how many of the blogs we get put up you may have to enjoy the few quality ones and then have lots of questions for us when we get home : )<br /><br />Ok, we'll put up a blog about our baby soon : ) So don't get discouraged when there isn't anything new for awhile - just keep checking.<br /><br />Love you all,<br />Rach and Brendan<br /><br />P.S. Check out the b-day blog. Even though it says July 19th it was put up, it was started then and finally finished and put up today. So you can read about how awesome my birthday was : )Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-86963236789600488682009-07-19T20:13:00.000-07:002009-08-16T17:40:05.722-07:00Birthday Extravaganza(Sorry it has taken us so long to put up another blog, things have been really busy and the computer has been playing tricks on us. There are more blogs to come in the near future!)<br /><br />On Sunday, June 28th, I was blissfully happy! As you've read, the week before had been great and activity-filled, so naturally my birthday was going to be the climax of all the excitement : ) Brendan had planned everything and told me nothing except that it wouldn't be a day for resting - it was going to be busy and fun, just the way I like it!<br /><br />So I woke up early, excited like a little kid, and the 1st surprise was a scavenger hunt. Without my knowledge, Brendan had gone to the store and bought some little snacks and things like chocolate milk and nice-smelling hand soap and Tim Tams. Then I had to search the house for them. I was offered 3 hot-cold lifelines (where Brendan would say cold, cool, warm, hot, etc. as I moved farther or closer to the object). I used 2, but only for speed's sake because I was hungry for breakfast : )<br /><br />After breakfast we relaxed a little until English Mass. Brendan read the 1st reading and I sang in the choir and was asked to carry up the beautiful tropical flowers during the offering that would be placed in front of the altar.<br /><br />It's interesting here, because instead of only presenting money during the offering, the Timorese give the fruit of the land as well as money - on holidays they offer fresh bananas, coconuts, and live chickens to God. As we offer money, they also offer their very livelihood, but in a way that is quite foreign to us. And it's amazing that they always give something - rarely do I see a Timorese person pass the offering plate without putting something in it, when internationals wouldn't hesitate to pass it on. Often they only give 5, 10, or 25 cents, but that's significant here - the equivalent of a couple of dollars to us. It's ironic that they give so freely here despite having so little, where as at home many people have no qualms about buying an expensive coffee everyday but to give $2 at church every Sunday would be unthinkable. Anyway, it's an interesting fact about Timor that has had an impact on the way I think. But anyway, back to my birthday : )<br /><br />After Mass, the choir director asked me to stand up and the choir sang to me. I'm pretty sure I turned bright red, but it was a really nice gesture. Then Brendan and I caught up with our volunteer friends who all wished me a happy birthday and apologized that they were incredibly busy and wouldn't be able to join in any of the festivities. I was a little disappointed because I thought we might be able to do something all together, but they all left to start moving to new house and going back to their work in the villages outside of Dili.<br /><br />Brendan said the two of us were going to go on a picnic after he ran a quick errand, which made me feel better, so he drove us to the beach and stopped. Then he explained he was actually taking me out for lunch (a big treat!) and he led me into a Burmese restaurant, The Beach Cafe, which we had never been to before.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjlB8-Ru8NOusgIzc3HvoW6f9iBEvPL3_CoE06KfvCIZ3hXJf_7RsyscCqcCefd7ZeHyFBQM5LGJ2oF2MXXHpNhlE_ygBe7qGWXRlTCydW9lCq5bGZ5QLmd2ZQ7Rzq9JFUpMma0PVEyA6r/s1600-h/IMG_7078.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjlB8-Ru8NOusgIzc3HvoW6f9iBEvPL3_CoE06KfvCIZ3hXJf_7RsyscCqcCefd7ZeHyFBQM5LGJ2oF2MXXHpNhlE_ygBe7qGWXRlTCydW9lCq5bGZ5QLmd2ZQ7Rzq9JFUpMma0PVEyA6r/s320/IMG_7078.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369645385878016562" border="0" /></a><br />We had only been there for about 2 minutes when all the volunteers who had said they were busy started coming in : ) Therese, Cass, Donna, and Ellie were able to make it! They gave me some very nice Timorese presents and a great birthday party! We were there for over 2 hours sharing and listening to all the crazy stories you get from being a volunteer in a developing country. Always fun/scary/interesting when you get volunteers together : )<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6HXq50q1_RCA_cLvF28fYnByejKQfgcOdlPAeJAKa3kJ04__HUJuBgnOGFYwa8yWyTTGPh-HHrRF261hSgf3bCRW_ngd8N9SSw4zwsyQPnilR3HOWvaniBvF0KQoHZt4Bm6c0QBsRL83N/s1600-h/IMG_7081.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6HXq50q1_RCA_cLvF28fYnByejKQfgcOdlPAeJAKa3kJ04__HUJuBgnOGFYwa8yWyTTGPh-HHrRF261hSgf3bCRW_ngd8N9SSw4zwsyQPnilR3HOWvaniBvF0KQoHZt4Bm6c0QBsRL83N/s320/IMG_7081.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369645399285822226" border="0" /></a><br />After lunch, I found out that Donna, Ellie, Brendan, and I were going to the beach. We drove out to Tasi Tolu beach under the hill with the John Paul II statue overlook. We were going SNORKELING!!! I had heard good things about it from Brendan, but never snorkeled in the ocean before. I was excited to go, but also a little nervous. I think everyone has an unreasonable fear, and mine is death by shark. But logically it was fine - no one has heard of sharks close to Dili and Brendan had been to this spot before with some friends and had no trouble. Tasi Tolu is also a favorite spot for the scuba/snorkeling businesses here, so it has the reputation of being safe. So I prayed that God would have my guardian angel swim beside me just in case : )<br /><br />We had to spit on our goggles (to keep them from fogging up) and get everything tight in all the right places, but once that was completed and we you're in the water everything else fades away. There's just you and the reef and fish below you.<br /><br />As we swam farther from shore the land dropped away under us and the coral got nicer and the fish more colorful. In some areas I felt like I was in the movie Finding Nemo with all the brightly colored fish. The coral ranged from a brown to white color and was not as Finding-Nemo-like, but our friend Donna has snorkeled many times and she said it was some of the best coral that she has seen.<br /><br />But the best part was the fish swimming in and around the coral. There were iridescent blues and purples and oranges and fish covered with multi-colored stripes for spots, each wild and beautiful. Especially exciting was seeing two large, bright purple starfish. It was like seeing fish in the Aquatics part of the Omaha Zoo, except that these fish were in the wild. Somehow that makes it a heck of a lot more exciting. Like the first time we saw a crocodile in the wild here - you have an adrenaline rush and a touch of fear and awe at the same time. It could be compared to the difference between book knowledge and knowledge from experience. We've been getting a lot of the latter here in Timor.<br /><br />As it got later in the afternoon, the tide started to come in and the waves got bigger. We swam to the biggest waves and snorkeled through (or if they crested right before they got to you <span style="font-style: italic;">under </span>them). Brendan started to teach me how to "duck dive" - when you dive about 3 meters down with your snorkel. The first time I tried, I got a mouthful of delicious salt water, but I'm slowly learning.<br /><br />After an hour and half flew by, we headed to shore, dried off, and left. When we got home, Brendan generously allowed time for both of us to have a quick bucket shower and rest before the next activity.<br /><br />Around 6:30, he told me we had a reservation at 7 pm and that I needed to wear nice to really nice clothes. He made it sound like we were going to another restaurant, but when I was ready he drove me out of town towards the school instead. I was surprised when we pulled up at the convent and were met by some of the Sisters, who showed us the way to prayer. Prayer was a great way to finish the day! Besides all the normal prayers, many of the Sisters prayed for me, for Brendan, and for you (our family and friends at home).<br /><br />After prayer we received even more good news - 3 letters had arrived from America: one from Grandma Jane and Grandpa Bill, one was Brendan's slightly delayed birthday card, and the other contained many letters that friends had written at a "letter-writing party" (smart!). Thanks guys!<br /><br />We didn't know, but while we were reading the letters the Sisters were working on dinner and a surprise. When we came to help them there was cake set out on the table with decorations and birthday wishes written in the different Timorese languages. They even had some pasta for us for dinner, in addition to the usual rice, vegetables, and a little meat.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3g_BfQrPza7DwWUqFvZ197eG2z7K5V5ot3KyuG3fXtMiwtpzl0f4qrICO397WGZll1KUSztsWrZWBVd6d_udsd0-jGoIEaiKT4IVfhgYdbjDnVdk65kS3Yl3wk8HPRFyEelqUmuWWrCcQ/s1600-h/IMG_7086.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3g_BfQrPza7DwWUqFvZ197eG2z7K5V5ot3KyuG3fXtMiwtpzl0f4qrICO397WGZll1KUSztsWrZWBVd6d_udsd0-jGoIEaiKT4IVfhgYdbjDnVdk65kS3Yl3wk8HPRFyEelqUmuWWrCcQ/s320/IMG_7086.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369645406788286722" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-nNxGTGvs70E9g8ta3yzJyOacUfhpVw69otS8v1Mgosg3neK5W-vAynxmiCau3tECkBbb9bXWNTInzt1_-olf1RwYVy5NKfd72QerH5Sh3p5jB4sUZr2iwYJhB7-36oEj-yOMCjum2fCT/s1600-h/IMG_7088.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-nNxGTGvs70E9g8ta3yzJyOacUfhpVw69otS8v1Mgosg3neK5W-vAynxmiCau3tECkBbb9bXWNTInzt1_-olf1RwYVy5NKfd72QerH5Sh3p5jB4sUZr2iwYJhB7-36oEj-yOMCjum2fCT/s320/IMG_7088.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5370724328701314066" border="0" /></a><br />Dinner was delicious. After dinner they sang to me and did the customary double-cheek kiss to congratulate me. I cut the cake and we all got a small piece : ) After cake we went over to the boarding house next door, where we had heard that there was another birthday girl.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI5aOzJFtzR-q7ZS2ntL_vre2vGClbG1kNCimNuc65jTvSjhosRS-no40KyalnA1sNrfZgeU-VmeJfu8vbDw3oZ3UfwV7U46bGLtH2AP_EO44FRlfYDQpA18UcqBRyisbrcIiIuIDnXHfk/s1600-h/IMG_7095.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI5aOzJFtzR-q7ZS2ntL_vre2vGClbG1kNCimNuc65jTvSjhosRS-no40KyalnA1sNrfZgeU-VmeJfu8vbDw3oZ3UfwV7U46bGLtH2AP_EO44FRlfYDQpA18UcqBRyisbrcIiIuIDnXHfk/s320/IMG_7095.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5370724336927202898" border="0" /></a><br />When Brendan and I came in they clapped and started to sing Happy Birthday (Timorese style) over and over in different languages until all 80 girls had formed a line and given me the double-cheek kiss. They also put a tais on my shoulders and Zhyzhy, a student from English Club gave me a card with dried flowers. The Brendan and I responded by singing the cha-cha-cha version of Happy Birthday and the 10 year old and very shy Fani had to dance when we said cha-cha-cha. It was super-cute!<br /><br />Finally, after some games with the Sisters and Brendan checking the English of some official documents for the university that were needed the next day, we went home happily exhausted!<br /><br /><br />But that's not the end! The next day I arrived ready to teach English Club as usual, but Brendan had plotted with them to have a beach party because they wanted to do something for my birthday also!<br /><br />They had planned everything perfectly - they all made food for the picnic lunch and brought their swim clothes (there aren't "swimsuits" here, people just swim in their clothes) and cameras. After a <span style="font-style: italic;">really</span> nice picnic lunch on the beach, we went swimming. Many of the girls didn't know how to swim so we started to teach them. The biggest problem was that the backfloat is especially scary while the waves are coming in, but once they could do that they learned quickly. our best swimmer went from having trouble floating to working on her front and backstroke. It's surprising, but true - most Timorese we've met don't have a clue how to swim.<br /><br />Anyway, as is probably clear - my 23rd birthday was definitely one of my best birthdays EVER! If more of my family were here it would have been #1. Special thanks to my incredible husband Brendan, our volunteer friends, the Sisters at Comoro and Sister Sonia, and the English Club students! I love you guys - thanks for making my birthday special!<br /><br />Always,<br /><br />Rachel and BrendanUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-65358518737430846242009-07-09T18:17:00.000-07:002009-07-19T22:51:38.226-07:00Birthday WeekThe week before my birthday was so packed with fun activities that I was exhausted by the time it got to my real birthday on Sunday : )<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The highlights:</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Monday</span> for English Club we cut the English practice short and I taught them tae kwon do! Just the white belt exercises - all the basic punches, blocks, and kicks, and the beginner sparring moves. on Friday we had watched a Jackie Chan movie and they seemed interested so on Monday I taught them the beginner stuff : )<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFrsNYBp_5fjrOcONi5FH8z99cZPkhlxNXGi-wY0Go7hwinuScX-IRg5cea0NtvFpw3wa6lsrTm2AH7s0gUB53lW3lSFxQHvYATiFvqQOnfFIXboMOgQYgPswBKbIO1myWGhloKwGFZi6R/s1600-h/tkd.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 213px; height: 164px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFrsNYBp_5fjrOcONi5FH8z99cZPkhlxNXGi-wY0Go7hwinuScX-IRg5cea0NtvFpw3wa6lsrTm2AH7s0gUB53lW3lSFxQHvYATiFvqQOnfFIXboMOgQYgPswBKbIO1myWGhloKwGFZi6R/s320/tkd.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5360412628594069026" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Tuesday</span> we pulled off a surprise party for Aurita and Marcia's birthdays. All of our birthdays are in June so we wanted to celebrate together. But Brendan and I told them that we just wanted to have them over to our house for some lunch to practice English. But when were supposed to drive them to our house, we kept on going to Castaway, a nice restaurant on the beachfront. Sister Sonia met us there. Sister Aquelina was supposed to come also, but she was very sick.<br /><br />So the five of us went into the restaurant and ordered pizza. Aurita had eaten pizza once, but Marcia had never had it (she hadn't even heart of the word "pizza"). So we got cheese, pepperoni, and a chicken one. They tried each type, but the pepperoni was everybody's favorite. So we talked and looked out over the ocean and at pizza until Sr. Sonia pulled out surprise birthday presents for each of us. The clinic girls each a necklace and I got a new pair of socks and $5 pulsa (phone credit) - perfect gifts for a volunteer because most of my socks are super-stretched from all the handwashing and $5 pulsa means lots of texting Sisters and friends and, if I'm lucky, 3 minutes talking to my family in America : )<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1SJdGk0lpGjSq2rgqF-ISnSVZ3Lq4AGjf4MTBjvPyU3xmNA1IJt4FEpWLvSWGpCmFrGeSQ01trTSZlVZqYFYQ55_M-fVhBuHI5Tm6iKnhD69G4pWydY6UE-M4e2D3hx0YsZIFFBc0scFF/s1600-h/IMG_6944.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1SJdGk0lpGjSq2rgqF-ISnSVZ3Lq4AGjf4MTBjvPyU3xmNA1IJt4FEpWLvSWGpCmFrGeSQ01trTSZlVZqYFYQ55_M-fVhBuHI5Tm6iKnhD69G4pWydY6UE-M4e2D3hx0YsZIFFBc0scFF/s320/IMG_6944.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5360412633931583970" border="0" /></a><br />Tuesday night, after more work, Brendan and I went to our Australian friend Therese's house for a movie night. We had pizza again (2 times in 1 day - Brendan was happy!) and spent most of time talking while the power was out. But eventually we did get to watch a movie before heading home. It was a nice break, and it's always great to be around Therese because she has many great stories from volunteering in the Solomon Islands, Uganda, and now working in East Timor.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Friday</span>, Brendan and I were chaperones for a field trip. The 3rd year students who have an emphasis in science loaded up into the back of 2 big trucks and we drove the 2 hours to the village of Remixio (pronounced ray-miss-ee-oo). We were in the back with the students and they were singing and shouting the whole way, just like high school students at home. On the way they pointed out the Timorese coffee that the country is known for and we saw the house of their Prime Minister.<br /><br />When we got to the high school in Remixio their student were very shy of the newcomers, but slowly they warmed up to us. We started off with plant identification and the Canossa Biology teacher formed groups from both schools. Brendan was in charge of Group 3 and me, Group 4. Basically we supervised their plant-finding in different areas up in the hills above the school, made sure that the two schools are working together, and that the students didn't go too far or get hurt. My group was lucky - we were given a hill that had a lot of the ferns they were looking for and beatiful views down each side. Eventually we came back and presented the plants and their classification by genus.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5p77RndEAA53fk0rrpeF1HVxnbDRHpJ1HRP32GS4kyk6_PpncyHdMaxNfLZ6Dz4T1GMlUyudPAY9kzwmkhn1dhag1AzAtKNBwnuWD-Eh0R_S9CVy2nDLJ-YgZlnKLs7R6Ly_1dcv56ATg/s1600-h/IMG_7024.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5p77RndEAA53fk0rrpeF1HVxnbDRHpJ1HRP32GS4kyk6_PpncyHdMaxNfLZ6Dz4T1GMlUyudPAY9kzwmkhn1dhag1AzAtKNBwnuWD-Eh0R_S9CVy2nDLJ-YgZlnKLs7R6Ly_1dcv56ATg/s320/IMG_7024.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5360412639808952354" border="0" /></a><br />Around 1 pm we had a lunch break, and Sr. Domingas's friends invited us for fresh corn and oranges. After lunch the Canossa students presented to the St. Joseph's students how to use a microscope and test blood. I think it was good for the Canossa students to have to explain what they've learned and good for the St. Joseph's students to be taught by peers and well as teachers.<br /><br />After the lessons there was recreation for about an hour with soccer, basketball, volleyball, and a baseball/cricket game they played with a tennis ball. Brendan and I played volleyball and basketball. Volleyball was fun and relaxed with people from both schools on each team. After that came school vs. school guys soccer and girls basketball. Canossa needed a 5th player so I played basketball, but it was painful. But there's always next time...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQO9kvrFGpcYqOKmYnP99wuBKZxicYnH23aH-yoHJhNBFQGTMgpFNUT0OAydCvMilSIAegX5SxxBWSTHLNcVUB-ZogI2S5yPKpkMGJUk7oauC1-15lIyJCmL6tR-dCuiHanw_Uj73i9p6_/s1600-h/IMG_7069.jpg"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dwS6BvaROXnOBATlnB-3e05882CT6r9wxjF1L8n6TnB9fMFo7K0-4LpEAzt3ROTTAvtxzGxSOXgeq0sEsv5hg' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></a><br /><br /><br />The trip home was even better than the trip there - the students were especially lively and shouting and singing and dancing and clapping in the back of the truck for 2 hours straight. How any of them had a voice the next day I have no idea! We were surrounded by mists as we came out of the mountains and by the time we got to Dili the moon was bright and the Southern Cross ( a beautiful constellation) was high in the sky, but nothing slowed these kids down. We taught them a chant from Remember the Titans adapted for Timor Leste and they loved it and sang it over and over off and on for the last hour : ) We were starting to regreat teaching them it (just a little) when we got back to school and made our way home.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Saturday</span> our Tetum teacher in Rome, a Timorese Sr. Ana Florinda, came to our house for lunch. She had finished her training in Rome and now will be a Timorese missionary in Indonesia. But while she is working out the longterm visa she has a couple of weeks here to catch up with her family and fill them in on what life is like outside of Timor.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGr4ccJIoZpsiZQl_kgwGsGFY1j7YpVOTKGj9uXxjjbIIIxV0BcsKyAc0LiEK0PYYMm2FtO87-YBLJUKkhGvPG4gcT9f21wjtV7wzOPAjh_jRr1gOw0S3PF6DZVNPdkyXgmhRcFknDt938/s1600-h/IMG_7058.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGr4ccJIoZpsiZQl_kgwGsGFY1j7YpVOTKGj9uXxjjbIIIxV0BcsKyAc0LiEK0PYYMm2FtO87-YBLJUKkhGvPG4gcT9f21wjtV7wzOPAjh_jRr1gOw0S3PF6DZVNPdkyXgmhRcFknDt938/s320/IMG_7058.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5360412647054298066" border="0" /></a><br />It was great to see her! She's the kind of person life can't get down - always smiling or laughing... She's the kind of person that you hear before you see them : ) We were blessed to have her as our teacher in Rome because she was the first Timorese person we ever met and she was wonderful. So meeting her helped us look forward even more so to the mission.<br /><br />She shared recent stories from Rome and gave us the updates on the missionary Sisters we met during our formation (many of them have completed their formation and are traveling to the countries all over the world that will be their new home). In return, we told her about how things were going here. She was glad to hear that we were enjoying ourselves and working hard. Before she left, Brendan helped her check some English documents, we took photos together, and she gave me an early birthday present - a box of cookies (practical and delicious)! She is always kind and exceedingly generous. It lifted our spirits to be around her and we hope God will work it out so we can see her again in the future : )<br /><br />After lunch there was time for a quick rest and then we were off to English Bible Study. It was great as always and afterward Yanni, one of the Bible Study girls, asked us to hangout with her at the beach. So the three of us went to a part of the beachfront she liked that was filled with families cooking up fresh fish and corn on the cob for people walking past. We stopped at her favorite place and ordered pop and grilled corn. They put chilis on the corn so it's hot & spicy. It was good, but I'm not gonna lie, it paled in comparison to Iowa sweetcorn. That's one of the critical summer things we're missing, but for one summer we'll probably survive.<br /><br />After the corn and conversation we dropped her off at her house before continuing to another Filipino activity. In June there were two activities - a formal dinner/dance for their 111th Independence Day celebration and this Saturday night there was a raffle, dinner, and presentation from the sports fest. Sr. Sonia gave us free tickets to both events as a gift. Thanks Sr. Sonia!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQO9kvrFGpcYqOKmYnP99wuBKZxicYnH23aH-yoHJhNBFQGTMgpFNUT0OAydCvMilSIAegX5SxxBWSTHLNcVUB-ZogI2S5yPKpkMGJUk7oauC1-15lIyJCmL6tR-dCuiHanw_Uj73i9p6_/s1600-h/IMG_7069.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQO9kvrFGpcYqOKmYnP99wuBKZxicYnH23aH-yoHJhNBFQGTMgpFNUT0OAydCvMilSIAegX5SxxBWSTHLNcVUB-ZogI2S5yPKpkMGJUk7oauC1-15lIyJCmL6tR-dCuiHanw_Uj73i9p6_/s320/IMG_7069.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5360415207374982578" border="0" /></a><br />So Sr. Sonia was there with 15 Timorese girls who live at the Balide convent, so we sat by them during the dinner. Dinner was really good, except it was difficult to get used to the Filipino pasta (they like it sweet, which is confusing to our tastebuds). After dinner they raffled off 50 prizes, starting with #50 and between every 5 or so one of the sports fest teams made a presentation. There was singing, dancing, martial arts, and even tininkling. I'm not sure of the spelling, but it's a dance you do with 4 long, bamboo poles and some people click the poles together in rhythm while others dance in the middle of the tic-tac-toe and try not to get caught by the poles. My class did it in grade school - it's one of my favorite memories from music class : )<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMahlKH6Ee_90U3_ALoKTxGkRQx77IPoDrUVG40LM_pw1KKvWJ3td8MA8at5dd0-g1iMdZiCJTsHGMscHs8JuiyGPJwxfRg5VWVRSgp1JfQgeWroOUwnIx4OwQgeFcV6U48DDNH46ZibYn/s1600-h/IMG_7071.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMahlKH6Ee_90U3_ALoKTxGkRQx77IPoDrUVG40LM_pw1KKvWJ3td8MA8at5dd0-g1iMdZiCJTsHGMscHs8JuiyGPJwxfRg5VWVRSgp1JfQgeWroOUwnIx4OwQgeFcV6U48DDNH46ZibYn/s320/IMG_7071.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5360415214540467634" border="0" /></a><br />So the tension increased with each round of prizes. Brendan and I had bought 3 tickets and were hoping to win the mountain bike or another good prize. We didn't have any lucky, but one of the best parts of the night was watching one of the Canossa girls win a DVD player. All the girls were screaming and jumping up and down and were really excited for her. The other highlight was watching the girls do a semi-traditional Timorese dance that one of the girls had choreographed. It was beautiful and set to great music! We could tell they were nervous, but they did a great job and got quite an ovation as they finished!<br /><br />We didn't stay for the end because it was getting late and I knew Brendan had a busy day planned for my brithday Sunday and if I was tired it wouldn't be good. And it <span style="font-style: italic;">was</span> busy and one of my best birthdays ever! But you'll have to wait for the next blog to find out what happened : )<br /><br />Hope all is well with you and that summer is going great! Be sure to enjoy that sweetcorn in memory of us : )<br /><br />Love,<br /><br />Rachel and BrendanUnknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-31503019995698672922009-07-06T19:45:00.000-07:002009-07-07T22:56:00.382-07:00My Birthday Present!Dear Friends and Family!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihYzNJGuZmAbnkzeD21BtMxtsVi7RNf1IyauwfVb0AMYdc_AxruNiMeqZ5En7tkrrXugAAaYAMLgCpPc_ByHQ18ZoxJcJvR26YjS27pKULiBZuaH473TlXlLOFPnnXaKczh71-Yc4XNYRi/s1600-h/IMG_7077.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihYzNJGuZmAbnkzeD21BtMxtsVi7RNf1IyauwfVb0AMYdc_AxruNiMeqZ5En7tkrrXugAAaYAMLgCpPc_ByHQ18ZoxJcJvR26YjS27pKULiBZuaH473TlXlLOFPnnXaKczh71-Yc4XNYRi/s320/IMG_7077.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5355963254640295762" border="0" /></a><br />Just a few days ago it was a very special day - my birthday! On Sunday, June 28th, I turned 23! In the past few years I've had some pretty awesome birthdays and this year was definitely top 3. But birthdays are no fun unless you share them, so Brendan and I are going to ask you to return all the expensive gifts that you bought for me ; ) and consider helping the people of East Timor instead!<br /><br />There are 3 ways that you can help someone - by giving them the 3 T's. The 3 T's are your Time, your Talent, and your Treasure. I'm especially fond of giving Time and Talent in service, but as I get older I realize more and more that money is an important part of the equation. Not much can happen without kind-hearted, generous people providing financial support behind the scenes.<br /><br />Brendan and I have spent more than six months really digging in and finding out what the biggest needs are. To be completely honest there are many, but for simplicity's sake we have narrowed it down to the top 2 needs we have seen with our own eyes in the places were we work.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Canossa University - the Institute of Professional Development Canossa</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6Ags3JNLrZyyIK9b3RZn6Ksi-1VQPOHrWdflEFDl4SJgdXf8MMYGgH-GnjlWFIutscV8Oq7KVe7a5IBIj1VI7Fg7U0YnaBfwSF3Z-gzTLapCz-OxDAqy54o_Ypo91g64JQhwKObjI2d-j/s1600-h/IMG_5907.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6Ags3JNLrZyyIK9b3RZn6Ksi-1VQPOHrWdflEFDl4SJgdXf8MMYGgH-GnjlWFIutscV8Oq7KVe7a5IBIj1VI7Fg7U0YnaBfwSF3Z-gzTLapCz-OxDAqy54o_Ypo91g64JQhwKObjI2d-j/s320/IMG_5907.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5355957970796893698" border="0" /></a><br />Students go to school for 3 years in the Computer Technician or Office Management programs. Brendan teaches English to all of the second year students here and works in the library, preparing the new computer catalog system for use.<br /><br />The top needs here are:<br /><br />1.) Scholarships for Students<br />With food and housing being the top priority, it's difficult for many students and their families to find the money for education. Some of Brendan's students go to school all day, go to work until night, and then study until 2 in the morning. They make big sacrifices, knowing that education is their key for the future. Currently the cost of a college semester is $90 - nothing compared to our college tuition, yet almost unreachable here.<br /><br /><br />2.) Library Improvements<br /><br />The IPDC was started in 2004 and this summer the government will come to check the programs and school facilities. If everything is satisfactory the school will receive their accredidation. One thing that must be improved is the school library. For the accreditation the library must have at least 5,000 properly organized books. Brendan, Sister Etalvinia, and Gina have been working hard on the library for the past couple of months inputting extensive information about each book, and they will continue until the inspection in July or August.<br /><br />Other important parts of this improvement are:<br /><br />- Obtaining hundreds of more books, especially books about business and computers written in English or Indonesian<br /><br />- Getting a printer so the students can work on and print their assignment at the computers in the library. It would be great because it is difficult for most students to get to computer here, and all the public ones are riddled with viruses. It's nothing like at home where almost every family has at least one personal computer.<br /><br />This is great, very concrete project that we can watch continue to develop and show you the changes. It is also a project that has potential to greatly benefit the students in the longterm,<br />1. By providing a quiet workspace for them onsite so they don't need to spend vital time and money to use public computers and<br />2. By helping to earn accredidation for their programs. Brendan has already begun the work, as you saw in the most recent blog, but there is still much to do.<br /><br />*You may be thinking that you have old books that you could send over, but only for our friends and family in Australia would this be realistic. From America, shipping costs would greatly outweight the value of the books. If you send money, we will be able to buy more books (and newer, updated books) much cheaper than you could.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">SMA - Canossa Senior High School</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiHbyOLeIcVkNAd8aIYCj9xbzuMh-bWpqrkdzqfQEasweRqYMwcgEqnoms3PCptjnlOfhgazVUhpFRpWuVwjDDQa0qsFiQTrqRbTwiOdEuqu3LeMsVz3tnwO3U_muwcZk4BS6NaB3-B3JX/s1600-h/IMG_6681.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiHbyOLeIcVkNAd8aIYCj9xbzuMh-bWpqrkdzqfQEasweRqYMwcgEqnoms3PCptjnlOfhgazVUhpFRpWuVwjDDQa0qsFiQTrqRbTwiOdEuqu3LeMsVz3tnwO3U_muwcZk4BS6NaB3-B3JX/s320/IMG_6681.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5355957974950311474" border="0" /></a><br />The senior high school is where I teach the English Club, practice English with the teachers, and participate in many student activities. It is a great place, always bustling with activity and over 450 students. It has consistently been recognized as one of the best high schools in Dili since it was started after the conflict in 1999. Many of the students can be found winning scholarships, awards, and competitions.<br /><br />Two practical needs are:<br /><br />1.)Laboratory for Language (~ $2,300)<br /><br />Sister Ervinia, the principal would love to transform an old science room into a Lab for Language - a place where students can come to supplement what they learn in the classroom. Living in a small country, they must learn the languages of the surrounding countries. So added to their class load are Indonesian, Portuguese, and English. Imagine having to learn three foreign languages in high school - most high schoolers can barely handle one! We have been blessed to be born in a country where we are taught an international language - these students are not so lucky.<br /><br />As an English teacher here, I can tell you how helpful a room for language with books, posters, and headsets for listening to tapes and CDs would be. The students <span style="font-style: italic;">really</span> want to learn , but it is difficult to find someone to practice with who will be able to help correct basic pronunciation, grammar, and prepositions. Whenever Brendan and I walk to and from school or around the city, we are always approached by young people hoping to practice their English. This room would be a great resource for motivated students which could give them more opportunities for the future, especially in regards to jobs and university scholarships.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMfknjDkirWvK2H7kwC3Oiu-YWjDybs_ORbo9cdDSrfDhKho-xVHHiRNipHEiju9FZvHxxjZQETPLnIWKXD_Uki9c2tCkBL-2zYdfRJE1KrMxOPIMx6EF8WSN0xxerYirYOm4bFlq_BZ5r/s1600-h/IMG_7036.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMfknjDkirWvK2H7kwC3Oiu-YWjDybs_ORbo9cdDSrfDhKho-xVHHiRNipHEiju9FZvHxxjZQETPLnIWKXD_Uki9c2tCkBL-2zYdfRJE1KrMxOPIMx6EF8WSN0xxerYirYOm4bFlq_BZ5r/s320/IMG_7036.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5355957984363841250" border="0" /></a> (Some of our students)<br /><br />2.) Computer Lab Updates<br /><br />Their computer lab is full of old donated computers still slowly running Microsoft 2000. Updates are badly needed for the computers and programs, especially antivirus protection (you remember the story of our laptop - may it rest in peace).<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Healthcare<br /></span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The School Clinic</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9pEPa4j2ZG1rEyn0VzaBpLBhgxqg-_Qxf9fT_7srWn-qOCNy4hg9zl3la8Qw999CwNCgVqULZuT82bdNm5_vAwJd0uj9yRem03iIGa8W2KZUjUhZBQLNVZwQ6zjJAuLijW3yV2qa0swCi/s1600-h/IMG_6966.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9pEPa4j2ZG1rEyn0VzaBpLBhgxqg-_Qxf9fT_7srWn-qOCNy4hg9zl3la8Qw999CwNCgVqULZuT82bdNm5_vAwJd0uj9yRem03iIGa8W2KZUjUhZBQLNVZwQ6zjJAuLijW3yV2qa0swCi/s320/IMG_6966.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5355957977671068018" border="0" /></a><br />The clinic at the school where I volunteer 3 mornings a week, is one of my favorite places to be. But while I have worked there I have seen some big needs that I think could be alleviated by:<br /><br />1.) Funds for Food<br /><br />I used to think that there wasn't much hunger in Dili, but now I'm realizing that it's just under the surface. Families that are putting their kids through school and paying rent for a small house may not have enough money for food.<br /><br />In 1st Aid courses they teach you to ask a person who is dizzy or has passed out if they have eaten anything that day. Here that question is much more pertinent. Many different students come in who are dizzy or have severe headaches from hunger.<br /><br />Just yesterday, a small girl from the junior high school came in because she was lightheaded. Tears quietly ran down her face from hunger pains as we got her to rest in the bed. They suffer quietly - I can't imagine trying to stay focused in school if you were hungry all the time and had a headache or stomachache because of it.<br /><br />Another day, a girl from primary school came in because she was sick. When Sister Aquelina prescribed her the medicine and told her to take it three times a day, she burst into tears because she didn't have any food to take it with. And for those of us who have tried to take medicine without food, it's not a pleasant experience because your stomach can feel more sick than before. Also, it doesn't help as much because certain medicines are not absorbed effectively unless taken with food.<br /><br />What we would love to establish is a fund, maybe $40 a month (it goes a long way here), that would be used to buy fresh, healthy fruits and vegetables and rice that Sister Aquelina could give out at her discretion to the children of poorer families when they come to the clinic so they would have food to take with their medicine or to ease hunger-related conditions.<br /><br />2.) Funds for Medicine<br /><br />We've told you some stories about helping to buy more expensive medicine necessary for more extreme conditions. It would be great to keep that up so that Sister Aquelina would be able to prescribe medicine that she knows a person needs instead of giving paracetamol (like Advil/Tylenol) and multivitamins because they're cheap. A lot of times this is all students need for a fever or cough or cold, but when there is something chronic or more serious I think that there should be a small amount of money monthly to have that option.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Los Palos Mobile Clinic</span><br /><br />There are many needs in Dili but we can't forget the rest of the country, where many things are even more in need of development. One of the medical needs that I have heard about is the Los Palos Mobile Health Clinic. Los Palos is a mid-sized city on the eastern coast of the island. The Canossian Sister recently ran a mobile health clinic for the rural areas around Los Palos, ensuring especially that children and women had access to better medical care. It isn't like Dili or Baucau, which both have a decent hospital; in the small coastal villages mobile healthcare might be the only care the people receive. It is more than for convenience, it could save lives.<br /><br />The mobile health clinic has been discontinued the past few years for lack of funding. It cost $8,000 a year for all the transportation, medicine, and maintenance costs. But the Sisters are patient - they pray and trust that if God wants the mobile clinic up and running the funding will come.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Making Your Decision<br /></span><br />These are the needs that we have seen. Brendan and I are here to support the Timorese in their faith, to enhance their Christian education system, and to provide health resources are not readily available. Alone we can do little, but when good people get together we can make a significant difference!<br /><br />If you are considering giving some money to these projects, there are some others things you should know:<br /><br />*#1 Any financial support is appreciated!!! We realize most people could only afford to offer $20 or $50 at most, but even those could be significant here. $50 might provide food and medicine for a month at the clinic, or help a university student pay for a semester of college. Be assured that your dollar can go a long way here: Brendan and I live comfortably on about $120 each for the month, although are housing is provided free by the Canossian Sisters. Still, I bet you wish your cost of living was that low!<br /><br />*The currency in East Timor is the US $ so you don't have to worry about any international exchange rates (unless you are Australian and then I believe it would currently be in your favor).<br /><br />*Every donation you send will be used and used well! If you haven't already - go back and read the June blog "Side Projects". With the donation money we received before we left we have kept careful track of what we have done with it so every penny is used for the benefit of the Timorese.<br /><br />And the Sisters are the same! Recently the IPDC university received a grant for $35,000. It was used to get internet for their computer lab, hire more teachers, and create two business rooms for practical office lessons for both programs. Brendan and I happened to be at school when East Timor's Minister of Education dropped by to check on the status of the funds. We got to meet him and he told us how impressed he was by the Sisters "transparency" - they they had used all the money to make <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">significant</span><span style="font-weight: bold;">,</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"> visible</span> changes.<br />We were told that sometimes the Minister of Education will check on a school which was given a grant only to find that no changes have been made and that the money has vanished. So he appreciated the Sister's hard work and honesty.<br /><br />With the Sisters and us here, you don't have to worry about money being used improperly. You will know that your donation is being used well and we will update you on the progress of the projects with stories and pictures.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">How To Donate</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">1.) Telegraphic Transfer (Western Union)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFpNMUqjKrHGNGvLZYdNGCFFuKW2JsuDdTnR_cUNQGEsLJ_UJ8YlwIR3uA-0KIqBnWBomXaMLDVCq-uXr9DRx1DNquE8BoGXNBeA8MJHl5EeVZt6b-fSHDGCqopLQIICTWv0IjDYPfZTiv/s1600-h/westernunion+logo.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 170px; height: 100px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFpNMUqjKrHGNGvLZYdNGCFFuKW2JsuDdTnR_cUNQGEsLJ_UJ8YlwIR3uA-0KIqBnWBomXaMLDVCq-uXr9DRx1DNquE8BoGXNBeA8MJHl5EeVZt6b-fSHDGCqopLQIICTWv0IjDYPfZTiv/s320/westernunion+logo.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5355959610160486994" border="0" /></a><br /></div>This is the most realistic and quick way to transfer the money, especially smaller donations. Brendan and my parents have agreed to act as contacts for us, so if you would like to make a donation you can give or send them your donations and they will collect them and transfer them to the Canossa Foundation-Dili. This is the best and easiest way because there is only a short delay and minor service fee. We are not going to put our parents' information on the internet, so if you happen to not have it already, e-mail us at rdowney727@gmail.com and we will get you the necessary information.<br /><br />Once again, this is best way, especially for smaller donations because our contacts can pool them and send them at once so it is less hassle for you and for us here. Please make sure you also give your name and contact info or e-mail so we can write you a thank you and if you have a specific project you would like to support, include that also.<br /><br />2.) Check<br /><br />For Australia: Make the check out to "Canossa Foundation Dili" and send it to:<br /><br />Canossa Foundation - Dili<br />P.O.Box 23 Dili, Timor Leste<br /><br />For America: Checks are very unrealistic in this case because they can take over a month to get to East Timor. Also, from past experience of people here, American banks charge a $75 processing fee to get the money here.<br /><br />3.) Tax - Deductible<br /><br />If you are interested in making a larger donation and would like it to be tax-deductible you must donate to the Canossian Sisters within your country. Our Dili project proposals will be passed on to the Head Council of the Canossian Sisters who will ok them and send the money to Timor Leste.<br /><br />The process will take a little time, so if you are interested in this, please e-mail us as soon as possible so we will know the projects you want to support and the amount of your donation so we can get more information to you and start the tax-deductible process.<br /><br /><br />So please pray and consider helping the people of East Timor whom we serve (for their benefit, your benefit, and for my birthday!). There are many beautiful people here who are in desperate need of better education, better healthcare, and even food and shelter. I don't think I can say this enough: <span style="font-style: italic;">ANYTHING</span> you can do to help is appreciated! And every cent you send will be used, as Magdalene of Canossa said, to make Jesus known so that He will be loved.<br /><br /><br />Always,<br /><br />Rachel and Brendan<br /><br />P.S. If you have any questions please e-mail us at rdowney727@gmail.com. Thanks!!!<br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-9923995125002153042009-06-28T21:20:00.000-07:002009-06-28T21:29:32.740-07:00A MilestoneHey everyone! Just a quick little blog about a little milestone for us : ) We have passed <span style="font-weight: bold;">7,500 hits</span> on our blog!!! Actually today there are 7,644 to be exact : ) I haven't worked it out how many a week that is, but I think it's pretty good : )<br /><br />We're pretty impressed and happy that people are still reading the blog. We've been gone for about 9 months now and hope you are enjoying our stories from everywhere from Italy to East Timor.<br /><br />So we wanted to thank you for checking because that little number at the bottom of the blog is nice for us to see and we know that you love and miss us, even when there's not time to say so. So don't skew the number by checking 5 times a day, but if a lot of you check in once a week we appreciate it!<br /><br />In other news - I just had an incredible 23rd birthday filled with people and surprise activities planned by Brendan! I am a super-blessed girl. But I will write a blog about it and it will be up soon! Thanks again!<br /><br />Love,<br /><br />Rachel and BrendanUnknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-32263299906820905852009-06-21T17:24:00.000-07:002009-06-22T00:52:07.680-07:00Side Projects*Hey everyone! Sorry there's no pictures in this one, but this and the next are probably the most important blogs we will write here, so we hope that you enjoy and read all of them!<br /><br />I went on a walk with Donna, an Australian PALMS volunteer, the other day and we were talking about how we handle the times when we are homesick. In my opinion, one of the best ways to maintain focus during the hard times is to have side projects - things to benefit the school and community that we work on after we leave school. We have many side projects going right now and many of them are in the final stages! And all these projects are thanks to Gus and Cathy.<br /><br />Just before we left the country last September some of Brendan's family friends asked us if they could contribute to our mission. They gave a significant amount of money to us with an incredible amount of trust - allowing us to use it as we saw needs and in whatever way we thought best. While we have been here we have tried to be completely worthy of that trust - using the money for significant needs of the Timorese (not on anything for ourselves) and keeping careful track of every penny. So today I'm going to tell you about our side projects so Gus and Cathy can be assured that their money is being used well.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Textbooks</span><br /><br />In March, volunteers with the Christian Brothers gave us an English-Tetum textbook and Teacher's guide that they had developed so we could use or photocopy it as necessary. In March, we photocopied 15 books and gave them to the youth at Ahisaun. Ahisaun is a home for young men with physical disabilities. After Brendan finishes work on Fridays, he teaches an English lesson to the boys there. They go through the textbook and then practice what they've learned in conversation. The guys are great - all open and friendly and grateful for every little thing. They have appreciated the textbooks in a place where having a textbook is rare.<br /><br />Last week, with the help of some of our students, we photocopied 70 more of the English textbooks, with an inscription in the front that says (in Tetum),"From your friends Gus and Cathy. Jesus loves you!" We plan to give one to each interested family in our area. They'll go fast - any help learning English is in high demand here. Some families have asked us for an English book without even knowing we were planning this. The textbooks will be a welcome surprise and supplement to all the people who we don't have time to help in person.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Bibles</span><br /><br />Like I said, here anything in English is considered valuable and highly practical. So we gave Sister Sonia money and asked her to buy English Bibles while she was in Singapore. It's hard to find English Bibles here - much more popular and Bibles in Tetum and Indonesian. But we thought that English Bibles would give us an opportunity to multitask - helping along their English and, more importantly, helping them to grow in their faith.<br /><br />Sister Sonia was able to get 28 English New Testaments and we have given out about half of them so far, all to peole who already have a decent level of English so it can actually be used. And it does work well. Just today I was working in the clinic and Marcia took the Bible we'd given her out of her purse. She was reading through Proverbs, trying to grasp the English, but we started talking and ended up translating my favorite Bible story - when Jesus walks on the water. Hopefully we'll continue talking about it soon. It's especially rewarding to practice English by talking about God and life and the deeper things. That's why we're here!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Library Improvements</span><br /><br />As you know, in addition to being a Professor of English at the university, Brendan works a lot in the university library so it will quickly improve in time for the government accredidation. He helps with the computer program KOHA, which he, Sister Etalvinia, and Gina use to input all the books so soon they will have a computerized catalog system in line with the Dewey decimal system.<br /><br />For the accredidation, the library is supposed to have more than 5,000 books (and it did not have that many yet). To help pass the accredidation, Brendan gave $300 to the university to buy more books - $250 for appropriate books for the Computer Technician and Office Management programs and $50 specifically to to used for books to expand the Faith and Christian Living sections. The last I heard, Sister Terezhina was planning to go to Indonesia to buy the books - there will be a lot more available there and they will be cheaper so the money will go much farther.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Medicine Project</span><br /><br />My side project has been translating the medicines at the clinic into Tetum and Indonesian, so that all the medicines can be used if necessary. The clinic has almost exactly 100 different medications stored there. Many of their instructions were in English and as Sister Aquelina and the girls don't know English perfectly yet, the medicines just sat on the shelves and collected dust. So starting in March, I began going through all the medications - writing down all the important information.<br /><br />It has been quite a process - it turned out that only 40 of the medications had the instructions with them or the necessary information on the containers. Many they use by memory - which won't help when a new nurse or volunteers come. So over the past couple months in my spare time I've been on the internet at school a lot looking up the information I needed. It was a slow and painful process until I found www.drugs.com, which lists the info for all the drugs marketed in the US. Then only the international (especially Indonesian) drugs gave me trouble.<br /><br />A few weeks ago I finished my part - the English instructions are ready. I made a form using Excel that has the name of the medication and 3 sections for the basic instructions in Tetum, Indonesian, and then English. Each page is in a plastic sheet protector and everything is in a red binder. The information is divided into medical sections and within each section they are in alphabetical order. The donation money paid for the 100 photocopies, sheet protectors, and binder.<br /><br />Now it is almost finished! Because medical translation is something that should be done by a professional, Sister Maria is currently translating for me in her free time (she is fluent in all 3 languages and very nice to help). Then I will ask Sister Sonia, who is a trained nurse, to check the English and Tetum and make sure that the translation is correct. When that is finished I will give it to Sister Aquelina at the clinic so she can know about all her available resources when she is prescribing.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Medicine</span><span><br /><br />People from the community also come to the clinic. Recently, an elderly man came in with a severe cough. He said he had been to the hospital several times, but it had not helped (in general the hospital does the same thing as the clinic - giving out the cheap medications of paracetamol, multivitamins, and antibiotics). Sister Aquelina assessed him and said she knew of a medicine that should help, but it was very expensive ($30). He offered to pay for it over a long time, a little each week and by bringing in fresh oranges instead of money. Long story short we gave the money to Sister Aquelina, who bought and gave him the special medicine. He has since gotten better and he's always smiling when we see him on our walks to and from the school.<br /><br />I've heard that the clinic is run on about $100 a month, which leaves no money for special expensive medicines. And many of the families who live close to Canossa and may come to the clinic are farm families. They don't have the money to pay for special medicines although they often need them (they don't come in unless they really need help). So when I see that there is a real need, Brendan and I talk and pray about it, and intervene with money to get medicine that could cure the condition instead of only dull the pain. In my opinion, quality of healthcare is one of the biggest things that separates East Timor from America and Australia. Less money = less options, worse medication, worse equipment, and fewer staff (especially highly qualified staff).<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Physiotherapy/ Physical Therapy Therabands</span><br /><br />Speaking of health-related things, a blessing we had was that Peggy, a personal and family friend and great physical therapist, donated 3 sets of PT therabands of different strengths. 1 set we gave to Assert, the only physical rehabilitation location outside the National Hospital. I have been volunteering there for a couple hours on Tuesday afternoons since March. Sister Aurora, my official boss, is on the council that founded Assert (which is desperately needed here). The clients are mostly children, so they love the brightly-colored therabands and the PTs were excited to have equipment that they recognize. The second set we will probably give to the rehabilitation area of the National Hospital and the third will probably go to the Canossa clinic. Thank you Peggy!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">RAK</span><br /><br />One of our most fun side projects lately has been RAK (Random Acts of Kindness). In this the English Club doubles as a secret mission force. Each has a code name which they use during RAK missions and they bring normal clothes to wear instead of their school uniforms.<br /><br />$12 from Gus and Cathy provides enough to buy a 35 kg. rice bag for each mission. 1 rice bag can last most families 1-2 months. We take the rice bag and tape a note on it that says (in Tetum) For you and your family. Jesus loves you! Then we deliver it as secretly as possible, trying to make it an anonymous gift. We give it to families whose need is obvious from our personal contact, and seeing their houses, clothing, visible resources, etc., with a preference for the very poor, widows, and orphans.<br /><br />We worked out the details for a few weeks and since then have completed 2 drop offs, both very successful and appreciated by the families. We will try to do one RAK mission per week, all at houses in the poor areas close to the school.<br /><br />One of the most rewarding parts for me is having the English Club students involved. The 10 students are learning that giving is exciting and rewarding. But they are also learning to look around their community, notice needs, and try to meet them - not for personal recognition, but because they have been blessed and can. Because the Canossa schools are among the best schools in East Timor, many better-off families send their children here ("better off" being relative to people within Timor). These students will be the next generation of well-educated adults who can make a positive impact...and I think they these students will : )<br /><br /><br />To recap, Brendan and I want to thank Gus and Cathy (and Peggy) for their donations and their trust. Without <span style="font-style: italic;">their</span> help, <span style="font-style: italic;">our</span> ability to help would be much more limited. But right now we feel that our side projects are making a significant impact to improve education and healthcare in our area, as well as helping people to grow in their faith and in knowledge of Jesus and His unconditional love which is what life's all about! : )<br /><br />Love,<br /><br />Rachel and Brendan<br /><br />P.S. I just taught English Club and told them I was coming to write you all. They said to say hi to you from them!<span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span><br /></span></span></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-35182480293274082112009-06-08T22:23:00.000-07:002009-06-18T17:17:17.973-07:00Our First Anniversary!<span style="font-size:85%;">On May 24th, Brendan and I had been married for 1 year! In that year we have been everywhere - Iowa, Australia for World Youth Day and our honeymoon, training with the Canossian Sisters in Italy, and now we are volunteering with them in East Timor. With all this excitement (in addition to the excitement of being married!) the time has flown. It's difficult for me to imagine how we are going to top this 1st year, but I know we'll find a way. Marriage is awesome!<br /><br />So to celebrate our 1st wedding anniversary we wanted to take the ferry to Ata'uro Island, a beatiful island off the shore of Dili, and spend the weekend there. But, as often happens here, the best laid plans never turn out exactly as you expect. We found out the Monday before that the ferry had been taken to Indonesia for 3 months to be repaired. The other boat for rent was outrageously expensive, so we knew we had to come up with a new plan.<br /><br />Everything is busy here around this time of year, so it's difficult to even take a day off. The weekend of our real anniversary was packed so we decided to postpone our celebration one week (I'm sure that this will have to happen a lot throughout our lifetime). So we reserved a room at the nicest hotel in Timor and got Saturday.<br /><br />And it turned out to be a glorious day! We got to sleep in just a little and had a nice and slow breakfast, before going to the Comoro Market for some shopping. Then we came home and washed clothes. After washing we had a quick lunch and packed our backpacks and left for the hotel. As we walked through the doors we were greeted by the friendly employees and the cool of the air conditioning. After some confusion at the front desk (they gave us a room that hadn't been cleaned yet so we had to change), we made it to our room and collapsed!<br /><br />When I was a kid, I remember my uncle telling us that the way to judge a hotel room was based on how springy the beds were (he had caught me and my siblings jumping on and between the room's 2 double beds : ) Well, I didn't try it, but this bed would have been a 10 for bouncing. It was perfect and a little like a trampoline - firm, but delightfully springy.<br /><br />Other features we had to take advantage of:<br /><br />1.) REAL SHOWERS! The 2 things I miss most about home are: 1. Family and friends and 2. Real showers! It had been almost 9 months since I had a real shower (in Rome they had a bath tub). Let me tell you that although bucket showers can get you clean, they are not comparable to real, warm, high-powered showers. To have a real shower after so many months of cold bucket showers felt like it must feel to go from this life to heaven (like going from ok/good to AMAZING!).<br /><br />2.) Did I mention that the hotel had air conditioning? Also a great thing to experience every now and again, especially here.<br /><br />3.) TV. I never thought I'd say this, but it was really nice to get to watch a little bit. Throughout our time at the hotel we got to see part of an episode of Man vs. Wild on the Discovery Channel, part of a Cops episode, and some basketball and soccer. It's a little luxury that we really appreciate now.<br /><br />Lately we've been living really simply. Since the computer crashed we have no music or movies, and we've never had a TV. So at night we do a lot of exercising, reading, playing games, and talking. It's definitely been good for our marriage, as any extra time together is, and we are both happy about it, but it was also nice to relax and watch a little TV together too : )<br /><br />Our time at the hotel was so relaxing - almost an unofficial marriage retreat. No work, just time together like it should be for a wedding anniversary. Our only committment for the day was Bible Study at 4 pm. Brendan is the leader and the group recently doubled in size so we wanted to be sure to go. It went really well - we're now up to 10 regular members, half Timorese and half internationals working/volunteering in Timor.<br /><br />After Bible study we went back to the hotel and relaxed until we got hungry. Around 7 we got dressed up in our nice, new clothes and went to try a restaurant we hadn't been to - the Coconut Restaurant.<br /><br />It was Saturday night and we expected there to be people around, but there was almost no one. Even at the restaurant we were the long customers, although it was very clean, nicely decorated, and the food amazing! Well, we got excellent service - there were four people at the the counter watching us constantly, ready to respond if we needed anything : )<br /><br />The dinner was excellent with reminiscing conversation and great food, especially the mango chicken and rice presented as nicely as I've seen in any Asian restaurant at home. We left full, relaxed, and happy for the opportunity to have so much uninterrupted quality time.<br /><br />The next morning we enjoyed the hotel's complimentary breakfast buffet - an interesting mix of Western and Asian-style foods catering to the business people who stay at the hotel. I had never had fried rice and noodles for breakfast, but it felt like a necessity since this was the first time I could : ) After breakfast and packing we checked out of the hotel and drove to Mass for Pentecost Sunday (when the Holy Spirit came down on Jesus' followers after He ascended into heaven).<br /><br />Mass was especially relaxing this week because usually we're doing something up front - reading or singing in the choir, so we don't get to sit together. But this Sunday we sat together in the middle. Mass was great - there was a guest priest who is a chaplain with the Australian military and also, one of the Sisters we know, Sister Francisca, renewed her vows to love Jesus and live with and serve the poor in front of the whole congregation. It was as beautiful as watching a married couple renew their vows, but in this case our human eyes could see only one of the spouses : )<br /><br />After Mass, we caught up with friends and went home, you guessed it, for more relaxing. We decided that because Saturday had been such a success we would continue it and make it a real weekend! Normally, Sundays are as busy as every other day - just not with work. Because they have school/work 6 days a week here, Sunday becomes the "Free Day," and we've gotten in the habit of filling it with things to do too. Everything is optionally - playing with the girls who live in the boarding house at school, prayer and games with the Sisters sometimes, helping an SMA student with her English course for kids sometimes. All are very worthy and fun things, but to have a real day of rest was great for us.<br /><br />Later in the day Brendan played basketball and I went for a walk and when we got back there was a message from Sister Sonia inviting us to the Balide convent for dinner in honor of our 1st anniversary. We drove over (our car had been returned after a month in the shop and it's in much better shape now - it's so nice to have it back) and we talked and ate with the Sisters and some other guests. Eventually we headed home rejoicing in the blessing of our marriage and refreshed and ready for a new week : )<br /><br />Blessings on you always! Hope your summer is starting off well!<br /><br />Love, Rachel and Brendan<br /></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-44467006725682051202009-06-02T23:47:00.000-07:002009-06-09T23:20:52.831-07:00Independence Day!May 20th was East Timor's Independence Day! Because it officially became a country in 2002 (3 years after the independence vote and the violent aftermath) this year was only the 7th Independence Day celebration.<br /><br />It's difficult for me to imagine what emotions the Timorese felt on this day. I mean, I appreciate my American liberty and have a deep respect for my country, and I remember the good in America and the blessing of freedom on the 4th of July. But I wasn't alive for our independence struggle so I have a more distant perspective from learning about it from history books.<br /><br />But being here, with all the emotions and experiences of the independence struggle so fresh was really eye-opening to me. How often I forget that many countries earn their independence in a bloody struggle. Often many sacrifices are made, including many lives of friends, family, and neighbors.<br /><br />On the day before their Independence Day, Brendan and I participated in a Mass with over 1,000 people, honoring the memory of those who died in the independence transition.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDUpvq7uHjOS8wmpesor8ftvwbbuvFqmhXW18VZWqhue7e1kjbstmmL_vG4gQQXZg2sbplvYRD9kC366dBrCq9-RDg8KdpMGAE3hhIBBVD5C3dYQMLS26JBL0X2ljAyz4fhbjtH4uh2f-P/s1600-h/IMG_6807.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDUpvq7uHjOS8wmpesor8ftvwbbuvFqmhXW18VZWqhue7e1kjbstmmL_vG4gQQXZg2sbplvYRD9kC366dBrCq9-RDg8KdpMGAE3hhIBBVD5C3dYQMLS26JBL0X2ljAyz4fhbjtH4uh2f-P/s320/IMG_6807.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344771863860068130" border="0"></a><br />After Mass, led by the Saint Peter's High School band, most of the people marched to the Santa Cruz Cemetery to pray where one of the worst massacres took place.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglvHDJdBVzcVwO1pVE4PqTU0C3iatRgptH2l5F2CRh-qDynBmHgFnniH7zzy8qdQRd7ryuJaAzvuJDLBGLg32mAW4VxcUs9izPPhVIM4M9Vfth7TrH2446hIgFr2izR5XYsf9MfXP2_PTO/s1600-h/IMG_6818.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglvHDJdBVzcVwO1pVE4PqTU0C3iatRgptH2l5F2CRh-qDynBmHgFnniH7zzy8qdQRd7ryuJaAzvuJDLBGLg32mAW4VxcUs9izPPhVIM4M9Vfth7TrH2446hIgFr2izR5XYsf9MfXP2_PTO/s320/IMG_6818.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344771862077218530" border="0"></a><br />In the Santa Cruz massacre, about one hundred college students and young people were killed during a peaceful protest. Ironically, they were protesting the murder of a student who had been peacefully protesting and they were walking to the cemetery in his memory. The Indonesian military set up an ambush and opened fire on the students. The incident was videotaped by an international journalist - the tape survived and was smuggled out of the country and aired on international news. It was one of the first clues that the rest of the world had of what was happening in Timor.<br /><br />And the people remember. Almost everyone has been touched by a death or injury to someone they cared about and many of them were part of the events. Sister Terezhina, the principal of the University where Brendan teaches, shared that she had been a university student during the Santa Cruz massacre. She was at school when the shooting started and her and a friend rode a scooter to the cemetery to try to get some friends to safety. As with most horrible situations, they are contrasted by the brave and selfless actions of many people.<br /><br />So the Timorese really have reason to celebrate and they celebrate well! There is no school and no work (except for the taxi drivers taking people to and from the Palacio do Governo and the food vendors located there).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-9-HnHpbxdS7WAMwIUIXq7V1qivRSefGSPL9jpLrikxwqL5kBVh5c7YMYVoAOqOqXWoFMAiUYxoeMl9024GVjQB13ZWs6XVckT65RnIboOIKIeNzu89UgKOx4LMSr4tV7hSZcz69H_pr9/s1600-h/IMG_6845.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-9-HnHpbxdS7WAMwIUIXq7V1qivRSefGSPL9jpLrikxwqL5kBVh5c7YMYVoAOqOqXWoFMAiUYxoeMl9024GVjQB13ZWs6XVckT65RnIboOIKIeNzu89UgKOx4LMSr4tV7hSZcz69H_pr9/s320/IMG_6845.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344767813365255794" border="0"></a><br />For the holiday, everyone flooded the square in front of their main government building to watch the full day of activities, including a ceremony, parade, and concert, along with their President Jose Ramos Horta. Everyone who couldn't make it in person watched on the TV or listened on the radio.<br /><br />To enjoy the holiday, Brendan and I started off the day with...laundry, because I was entirely out of clean clothes and Brendan was almost out too. I wanted to go to the Palacio by 9 am because that's when everything was supposed to start and we wanted to be sure to see the Canossa drum band. But instead we leisurely handwashed our clothes, because Brendan in his wisdom knew that 9 am here = 10 am or later.<br /><br />He was right. We showed up at 10:30 and we had missed part of the ceremony, but were just on time for the parade. These aren't like parades at home - there's less hype, no politics, and most difficult to comprehend, parades here are not synonymous with candy-gorging sessions (for most of my young life I associated parades with candy, especially tootsie rolls).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx_uwrYQzbM4se6whMBesi8J78Z0jmQ24FYiO8OyCOB_Z2M0jlO_Fm7HLgh7YL-47fKpyG_vKtnZDbLKdQdhcjecRf0h6cV14RXGz5dJsgqTjQL1gggu63QWPgvuliK15GdGHNZGyoVF1E/s1600-h/IMG_6829.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx_uwrYQzbM4se6whMBesi8J78Z0jmQ24FYiO8OyCOB_Z2M0jlO_Fm7HLgh7YL-47fKpyG_vKtnZDbLKdQdhcjecRf0h6cV14RXGz5dJsgqTjQL1gggu63QWPgvuliK15GdGHNZGyoVF1E/s320/IMG_6829.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344767812066594082" border="0"></a><br />But for their national parade here they had representatives of military units walk by with flags, uniforms, and guns. Then the police force.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyQidv_XnvchXGssQ6FzK5n3tMItICZm65WCOt3AoDpJSxjwhurb3vjybrLs2Z9BocCnlKcEKt99DDom5GQ5HhCOt_ALb198Rig67p35YiYpzQxrG9aMrI3iX_LUJflXIduWdG6sgQYGXV/s1600-h/IMG_6830.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyQidv_XnvchXGssQ6FzK5n3tMItICZm65WCOt3AoDpJSxjwhurb3vjybrLs2Z9BocCnlKcEKt99DDom5GQ5HhCOt_ALb198Rig67p35YiYpzQxrG9aMrI3iX_LUJflXIduWdG6sgQYGXV/s320/IMG_6830.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344764709286597042" border="0"></a><br />After them came a group of men in traditional Timorese garb and carrying swords. And after them came the marching "drum bands" from different schools (with the Canossa drum band going first : )<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6p6p_-hEgnAvcxoWIERbXuBWDHjJsIAzBEjrcfMOqXctM8r4aAO9aIS-V9evJ3y6wCyQK4Jq9hcwK0VcPunifUv7EW_1Nhp88Z6_nQEvRyAX2AUxb8uw-Jg5hGCbIo6NCo4G3WSfew2Y-/s1600-h/IMG_6854.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6p6p_-hEgnAvcxoWIERbXuBWDHjJsIAzBEjrcfMOqXctM8r4aAO9aIS-V9evJ3y6wCyQK4Jq9hcwK0VcPunifUv7EW_1Nhp88Z6_nQEvRyAX2AUxb8uw-Jg5hGCbIo6NCo4G3WSfew2Y-/s320/IMG_6854.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344764705183778450" border="0"></a><br />Before they started marching we got pictures of the English Clubbers, who were more than half of the snare drum section. They had on snappy uniforms and looked a little nervous to be performing in front of their country's leaders. But they did great! We were shocked when, after only a few weeks of practice, they pulled off a 10 minute show with different songs and riffs dead center in front of their President, while the school cheerleaders did stunts and dances on the sides. After they had finished, Brendan and I caught up with them to congratulate them on a nice show. They were very hot, but very happy.<br /><br />It was really interesting for me to watch the drum bands, because I was in marching band all throughout high school. The Timorese bands were better than I expected, but still so different.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZGCaKGYWXNZEyIOtifoI0YTL02u0tZA8P4-2IycIf6wcPjuaycoDPcwY02RSMgm3Zfi-obIHZaUx5cUBGHiJ4bGySJ9xyTm90QB572LBLbXU6Ky3JQYqf2IJ4ZNviofchNfKV-BRafO5e/s1600-h/IMG_6842.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZGCaKGYWXNZEyIOtifoI0YTL02u0tZA8P4-2IycIf6wcPjuaycoDPcwY02RSMgm3Zfi-obIHZaUx5cUBGHiJ4bGySJ9xyTm90QB572LBLbXU6Ky3JQYqf2IJ4ZNviofchNfKV-BRafO5e/s320/IMG_6842.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344764706601750882" border="0"></a><br />There are almost no instruments besides drums. Only the military band had 4 trumpets in addition to drums, and those were rough on the ears. My Grandpa Bill was a band director and is still a great trumpet player and I thought of how he would have cringed at the sound coming from those trumpets. But it's understandable - <br />1. Instruments are expensive and there isn't extra money to spend on much here <br />2. If you do get a hold of an instrument you probably have to teach yourselves.<br /><br />Brendan played trumpet and he noticed that the soldiers weren't even using the keys to change notes - only the shape of their mouth like a bugle. So having no money for instruments and no professional instruction limits what they can do, but like everything in Timor the people use what they have and make it work better than expected.<br /><br />What the Canossa drum band did have was 3 sizes of drums, marching xylophones, and small keyboards (that look like children's toy keyboards) where a tube connected the keyboard to the player's mouth like a straw. The player then blew air to somehow amplify the sound as they hit the keys. All very interesting (I had never seen keyboards like that before).<br /><br />After we said goodbye to the students and the crowds we relaxed! We caught up on some work, walked, and had a long afternoon nap. Another great day here in Timor Leste!<br /><br />I got a $3 t-shirt the other day that really sums it up well. The shirt has the outline of a traditional Timorese house and a quotation underneath, "Timor Leste - beautiful land, lovely people." : )<br /><br />Loving You Always,<br /><br />Rachel and Brendan<font style="font-style: italic;"><font style="font-style: italic;"></font></font>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-35638261652527932772009-06-01T00:13:00.000-07:002009-06-07T18:19:01.601-07:00PrayerOne thing that's been very enriching lately was seeing neighborhood prayer meetings happening all over Dili. During the whole month of Mary there is continuous prayer going on, with each neighborhood taking 1 full day.<br /><br />Our neighborhood, Delta 3, did prayer last week. Each neighborhood prepares an entrance over the road made with banana and palm trees. Then, around sunset, the neighborhood who is finishing their prayer shift marches to the next neighborhood, praying, singing, and doing traditional dancing along the way.<br /><br />They carry statues of the Holy Family (Mary, Joseph, and Jesus) dressed in traditional Timorese dress with tais draped over their shoulders. When the people and statues arrive at the next neighborhood, the prayer begins.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0rj-nH92A-zQr13wYqMAcMD9f7mjkR8AJal9LX4KM1DR7fZAkG7e8zVZveKOAZ1QutDVZu3QGVqqjiirTR_T95-uQkZNtz8zdcbG9Wis_mWjG1KrQaGXpsd4yratGjJS1ZHRK_qi-uyqj/s1600-h/IMG_6789.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0rj-nH92A-zQr13wYqMAcMD9f7mjkR8AJal9LX4KM1DR7fZAkG7e8zVZveKOAZ1QutDVZu3QGVqqjiirTR_T95-uQkZNtz8zdcbG9Wis_mWjG1KrQaGXpsd4yratGjJS1ZHRK_qi-uyqj/s320/IMG_6789.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344759399549846178" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP-cLIdC85Et8GRwkx0fxchWigwQKraUj4O6MZhqfPFMzFjWgOJOgDWowulq8dCAJRDOFeswC05dGixmGIpWejcpYI0IfKQkLkFKnr4FiXtwsQ0Ns8TOo_yXT3xtXzMUdBWoS9gaiR3oG3/s1600-h/IMG_6784.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP-cLIdC85Et8GRwkx0fxchWigwQKraUj4O6MZhqfPFMzFjWgOJOgDWowulq8dCAJRDOFeswC05dGixmGIpWejcpYI0IfKQkLkFKnr4FiXtwsQ0Ns8TOo_yXT3xtXzMUdBWoS9gaiR3oG3/s320/IMG_6784.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344759401539682130" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjobDrzWc1pVEk27ogzjebNrrLlSbGbLYor5MUaKk73pmcSH2Ryu6Ld2xAYWczT1Xp4TenocvLaTInm-KIIBk-8t3WGKwmt1mMTLa2nih3rSpzkhCRjGChBjUwH5x96p7FmRdSslmiO1bbG/s1600-h/IMG_6765.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjobDrzWc1pVEk27ogzjebNrrLlSbGbLYor5MUaKk73pmcSH2Ryu6Ld2xAYWczT1Xp4TenocvLaTInm-KIIBk-8t3WGKwmt1mMTLa2nih3rSpzkhCRjGChBjUwH5x96p7FmRdSslmiO1bbG/s320/IMG_6765.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344759395636735794" border="0" /></a><br />Our prayer began around 7 pm because an afternoon rain. When the previous neighborhood arrived we began. It was only us and ALL the Timorese of the neighborhood. One of the people who live close to use was in charge. They started with a prayer asking God to help them be like the Holy Family, saying that they are the model family for the world, for East Timor, and for Delta 3. Then there was a drama about the Holy Family in full costumes.<br /><br />After the drama, all of us turned and walked to the area set up for the all-night prayer vigil, singing and praying along the way. The procession was led by young women playing drums and dancing in the traditional style. When the crowd of maybe 100 reached the venue it was set up nicely with space for kids to sit in the front and the adults got chairs behind the kids. More singing and praying and then we prayed a rosary together with young people acting out the Joyful Mysteries. It was obvious that a lot of work had gone into it - all the lines were memorized as they acted out the stories of Jesus' life in full costume, even the little boy who played Jesus when He was found in the temple.<br /><br />After the rosary and more singing, we prayed in different Timorese languages. I was asked to pray in English, appropriately for the faith of the youth of East Timor. The prayer was beautiful! Praying together in different languages always makes me so happy to be part of the universal Church. It's a great feeling!<br /><br />After the languages prayer was completed, Brendan and I went home because it was already late and we hadn't eaten dinner yet. But groups from our neighborhood continued to pray all night and all the following day until we passed on the opportunity to the Fatuhada neighborhood.<br /><br />Another great thing happening this month is the nightly prayer organized by the youth. Each night they pray and sing at one house for about 45 minutes. The next night they will move on to the next house on the street. Last night we joined them at one of our neighbor's houses and Sunday everyone should be coming to our house for the prayer.<br /><br />All this has come at a great time! To be around Timorese is to be renewed in your faith and refreshed enough to continue the work. During the pray I wondered if a month-long community prayer like this would be possible in my neighborhood at home, but I doubt it... In our society it's hard enough to even get a block <span style="font-style: italic;">party</span> scheduled. I doubt that an all-nighter for prayer could work. There are a few things people are willing to stay up all night for, and from my experience prayer isn't one of the top ones for the general masses.<br /><br />But, to be fair, Brendan and I do know many people who would stay up all night to pray for something important and that is such a treasure. We plan on returning to Des Moines when we finish our service and staying close with these family and friends forever : ) You don't run into people like that everyday, so when you do, you must recognize their value and fully appreciate them.<br /><br />So thank <span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;">you </span></span><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span></span>for being one of our family and friends who would pray all night if it was needed. We appreciate you and your rock-solid priorities, and we can't wait to see you again (in only 6 months)!<br /><br />Love Always,<br /><br />Rachel and Brendan<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-33695628535134772122009-05-26T23:42:00.000-07:002009-05-27T00:08:59.926-07:00Timor PartieseganRecently we had a chance to go to our first big Timorese community party. The Delta 1 men’s b-ball team that Brendan plays for and the Delta 1 women’s b-ball team were throwing a big party to celebrate the team doing very well in recent tournaments.<br /><br />These guys went all out: the festivities started on Friday morning and everything finished on Saturday morning around 5 am. Even before that I saw them cutting up one full, skinned cow on Thursday evening. So a lot of work went into this!<br /><br />Friday morning we went to the basketball court where the Delta teams played exhibition games against Baucau.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340391501015687538" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnt3FvaeScMeqF1tJo53arf7InmtM36iL-7gaFjJIyYjU7fGt5IepXIU653sCYwUV1fjsfMuxUWxSyEjGUeH_evPa0ktoG81nisWEO-txf-CwuqIVcVMd77rY7NemLtEjn2Oq0MMHYIIYd/s200/IMG_6507.jpg" border="0" /><br />Here you can see Brendan going up for a dunk and people watching in awe (they don’t do dunks here : )<br /><br />At the same time, tarps were being wrapped around the perimeter of the court, and big tents and a couple of hundred chairs were being trucked in and set up. The court was buzzing with activity that continued after we left at noon to go to school.<br /><br />The official party with speeches, food, and lots of dancing started at 5 pm. It being Timor we knew we should not come until 7, 8, or 9 pm – not to be fashionably late, but to be fashionably early! Somehow all the Timorese know when to really show up, but we are still learning when to show up 30 minutes late or 3 hours late (mostly by trial and error). So we chose an in between time and arrived around 7:30, just in time for one of the first speeches.<br /><br />We felt a little out of place because we were the only foreigners there and because we were underdressed compared to everyone else’s party clothes. But we tried to sneak in and find a seat as best we could, while listening to the congratulatory speeches and thank yous.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340395436708327618" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzczylYfm_h4FmspJf3-RkwZcjxXbwT-RaVRpNRkZYqkZZ1G67x4wJvYuYbFdggOqEszPXFTIf7lIXmC4DsBZTScqCCJTpH2gUE0_1QqdAdARVscLxOvwyE7mFUDSfniDhF_aVJO88uZI9/s200/IMG_6517.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br />After all the speeches came the food. We didn’t know how much food there would be, or how safe it would be to eat it, so we had eaten dinner earlier. We tried to hold off on the food, but Terezhina, one of the High School students who plays for the women’s team and was MC for the party, physically dragged us over to the buffet line. So we had a second delicious dinner and it went down with no problems.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340395440548268610" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0pKFeBEBdyCWri_Gd4QOnQHuRU8d4p948MBQ8kAnJucLI8dPe2CkTqJ8Ik6Uqrlps6MbNtAf1x0yCDpUkiaPkI0bYmV5zMkh0xELCb6C9gYOdRVPzU8ERR6qDRpXPHy6A4o-Ns6P7KHq7/s200/IMG_6518.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br />Brendan chilling with some of the basketball guys.<br /><br />After dinner, the coaches cut the cake (decorated and shaped like a basketball) and opened a bottle of champagne! Then the dancing began that would continue until 5 am. Here is the dancing doesn’t last until the morning it wasn’t a good party. It was very interesting and a little different from home.<br /><br />They had hired a couple of DJs, but these DJs really earned their money. They don’t just pick and play music, they sing and play keyboard for each song. They set a Timorese beat in the background and then they sing and play and improvise all with no written music. And like all Timorese we’ve met, they were great singers.<br /><br />The dancing was fun – a great time for people-watching and we got to see some interesting cultural differences. One thing that’s different is that between songs everyone clears the floor and at the beginning of the next everyone gets back up, sometimes finds a new partner, and goes out to dance again. They’re lucky they’re so in shape because doing that from 9 pm – 5 in the morning has got to be exhausting! And it’s not like there’s a 5 minute break between songs – there’s maybe a 30-60 second turnaround for people to find a seat, sit down, and get right back up.<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2M5zdVjINnzRKykiWpr1bjp_SW-IFMnPz_VBF1T3_XkSEqyrZltj_jPTfi9mNaN7xESMHDPBsUoa-x5YP-pyQNuRhbFd-d55hWSxNz63i34Zh6p1n3_yVKqBywB6BbVeVt8BMTIi4oGcJ/s1600-h/IMG_6525.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340395443535071538" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2M5zdVjINnzRKykiWpr1bjp_SW-IFMnPz_VBF1T3_XkSEqyrZltj_jPTfi9mNaN7xESMHDPBsUoa-x5YP-pyQNuRhbFd-d55hWSxNz63i34Zh6p1n3_yVKqBywB6BbVeVt8BMTIi4oGcJ/s200/IMG_6525.jpg" border="0" /></a> So after the first few dances we decided to try it. We did swing dancing first and everyone clapped for our first big move, but then we tried to learn the Timorese partner dance. It’s a closer dance with a 1 2 3 & 4 beat. It wasn’t pretty, but we started to figure it out by the end. Every now and again we would revert to swing dancing and we would immediately be followed by little Timorese girls who were trying to imitate us.<br /><br />The other funny part of the night was being asked to dance by the chefe suku. The chefe suku is the equivalent of the mayor of our Delta neighborhood in Dili. He had 1 or 2 too many drinks and was dancing with the young women. Not wanting to offend, he asked Brendan 3 times if he could dance with me. Brendan just said ‘la bele’ (no can) each time : )<br /><br />Around 11 we said quick goodbyes and snuck out to get some sleep before work Saturday morning. The stars were out and it was peaceful and beautiful. It was a great night after a great party!<br /><br />And just today we had our own party on a much smaller scale – we had an English practice party for the people we work with. During the party we introduced them to another western food – sloppy joes!<br /><br />We worked in the morning, walked home, and prepared lunch for the people we work with at the university and clinic. They’re all trying to learn English so we thought it would be a good chance to set aside time to practice. During work it’s always some version of Tetlish (Tetum and English mixed).<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixqY9VBrikpYlpyPgch9ZlYHji5_MGNXvJnrtMXrZOjAxhgZpRvwWg9xMs6y7SI0BAsUQXhL4zvg6oeLM8t4UJ8Ry2eensxIi5JlqQ3uLGsuuA3Tw97gSXXSzmZb03arjy-AtAA0XRDpU8/s1600-h/IMG_6649.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340395449115064978" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixqY9VBrikpYlpyPgch9ZlYHji5_MGNXvJnrtMXrZOjAxhgZpRvwWg9xMs6y7SI0BAsUQXhL4zvg6oeLM8t4UJ8Ry2eensxIi5JlqQ3uLGsuuA3Tw97gSXXSzmZb03arjy-AtAA0XRDpU8/s200/IMG_6649.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />So we made sloppy joes and noodles and brought everything we needed to the clinic where we ate. We said a prayer in English before and after the meal. The meal itself was a bit hit! They had never had anything like it and all seemed to enjoy it (especially Sister Aquelina who wanted to keep the leftovers to eat as an afternoon snack : )<br /><br />We talked mostly in English during lunch, cleaned up, and went to the senior high to watch a movie. Movies are a pretty special thing around here, so they seemed excited. </div><div><br />We watched Ever After, the ‘real’ story of Cinderella, with the English subtitles. It’s a good story and they talk slow enough that they were able to catch a lot of the dialogue. Movies really have been a useful addition for practicing English. The students are extra interested, they learn new vocabulary (they write down words they don’t know throughout the movie and we explain them during the next class), and they’re forced to practice listening at a more realistic pace.<br /><br />After the movie was over it was raining so we all crammed into 1 taxi, who dropped us off close to our house. There are many special moments like this – hopefully making fun memories of new experiences for our fellow workers that will be part of our legacy when we go home.<br /><br />Hope you’re all well and enjoying the end of school and beginning of summer! Blessings especially on the graduates, including Phil and Zach and friends from high school and Mary, Sarah, Luke, Abigail, and friends from 8th grade!<br /><br />Love,<br />Rach and Brendan<br /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-89367657867961453882009-05-21T00:47:00.000-07:002009-05-21T21:04:24.204-07:00Timor Harvest Time<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dyMSrO5X8GP0J-AihaPSmcVk2R5bacFqiUdFBVzvpopzgal9RUbHLLlBxAT5JkpgQcf7iHc_AZqseTMlZrEZA' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br /><br /><br />We ran across this group of people, while traveling in central timor, who were harvesting wheat the old fashioned way. The priest we were traveling with told us a little bit about the process. He said that all of the neighboring farmers will come over and assist, they they play music and dance around in a circle while stomping on the wheat. After stomping for a while, the grain separates from the wheat and falls to the bottom. It is then gathered for food!<br />Simple and effective.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-13566555873228770442009-05-17T23:47:00.000-07:002009-05-20T17:13:18.253-07:00Just Another DayToday was a good day with challenges to make it interesting. It's Tuesday today, which means it's a full medical day. I spend the morning helping at the Canossian clinic at school and in the afternoon I volunteer at the Assert Rehabilitation Center.<br /><br />There were three really interesting situations today. First an older woman, "grandmother," came to the clinic today to get a fungal infection on her feet treated. She is from a farm family that lives near the school and Brendan and I see her often on our walks. After we treated a relative of hers at the clinic, yesterday she asked me if she could come too. I said of course and encouraged her to go the following morning. The clinic is for the 2,000 students at the school, the teachers and employees, <span style="font-style: italic;">and</span> the community, but many do not know about the clinic if they have never been on the school grounds. On my daily walks I try to refer people who are visibly sick to the clinic so they can spread the word.<br /><br />She was there this morning and, while Sister Aquelina assessed her and got her appropriate medicine, I looked in. She put her hands together like she was praying and nodded her head toward me in a 'thank you' gesture, but I shook my head and pointed up to God. She smiled, pointed up to God too, and nodded slowly. She is a beautiful woman who works very, very hard and lives a tough life. Today was the first time I had ever seen her with any type of shoes on (probably one reason her feet have suffered). But despite her tough life I always see her smiling as she works and she is very appreciative of the smallest things. And she knows the One who helps her make it through the day : )<br /><br />(Since this day when I pass her on the walk to school when she sees me coming she will point up to God and smile and nod and I do the same. It's the unspoken communication that means the most).<br /><br />Secondly, later that morning Sister Aquelina let me off early because there was a long lull in patients. So I went to talk with Sister Ervi at the High School. We talked about getting the students ready for the Canossian Global Youth Conference in Hong Kong in July. The three students Brendan and I helped with their applications were accepted (yay!), but now they must do a lot of research and write a position paper in English about social issues in the country they are assigned. A few weeks before the conference they will download their papers on the internet and the participants will read the papers to be able to discuss them at the conference. The students are excited, but very nervous. None of the three have ever flown in an airplane or have ever been out of East Timor! This trip will be quite an experience for them.<br /><br />After we talked, I went back to the clinic to pick up my backpack, but as I got to the door Maliana (a student we sometimes play basketball with) limped out. I asked what happened, but she could barely talk she was in so much pain. What I eventually heard was that a wild dog had been coming towards her barking and she got nervous and jumped away, but when she jumped she got a deep cut from a piece of metal that was sticking out of the ground.<br /><br />Her leg was already bandaged heavily when I got there and Sister Aquelina wanted her to go to the hospital to see if she needed stitches. Her friend waited with her by the road to try to find a quick way home and then to the Hospital Nacional. They hadn't moved in a couple of minutes so I asked if they needed money for a taxi. Maliana slowly nodded her head yes. Between Sister Aque and I we found enough money. Then I explained the situation to Victor, the gatekeeper, who flagged down a taxi quick and Maliana was off! We will find out soon how it all went.<br /><br />The third exciting event today was at physical rehabilitation clinic, Assert, this afternoon. After helping Yenni, the Indonesian physical therapist, clean all the toys used for the therapy, she asked me to help her set a cast for a baby with club foot. Club foot is one of the top conditions treated at Assert. They work with the midwives throughout East Timor to get early diagnoses so that the children with club foot can be treated as early as possible. I learned just today from an Australian orthopedic surgeon that the surgery is very simple on young children - in most it requires only a local anesthetic and the tenotomy of the Achilles tendon can be finished in literally 1 minute! As in most cases though, later diagnosis decreased treatment options and their effectiveness.<br /><br />At the Canossian Sisters' convent in Balide, the gatekeeper Fernando has severe club foot that was never corrected. His feet are turned completely inward - 90 degrees farther than they should be. This limits his movement outside of the convent. When I started volunteering at Assert I asked if anything could be done for him, but they said that because he is in his forties the only viable option was that they could fit him for a wheelchair so he could go farther into Dili.<br />It's difficult to hear that - that it's too late.<br /><br />So lately I've had the opportunity to learn about club foot and all of the work that they are doing to improve early detection and minimize the disabilities caused by this condition. On this particular day I was able to help Yenni as she wrapped a 9-month old's legs and smoothe the plaster to make the cast. While she wrapped, I held the child's knees and feet at the appropriate angles (which was harder than it sounds because this baby was a shockingly big boy for a 9-month old and he could kick hard when he didn't like the angle you were putting his foot in). After the casts were on both legs and dried we all took a picture that will go on the wall so that the family of the child can see the progress and other families can be more comfortable with the process knowing it has worked for other children.<br /><br />The technique that they use to treat Club Foot is the Ponsetti Technique, which was developed by a physical therapist in Iowa! When I first started volunteering I was shocked that they had heard of Iowa, and it is because of Ponsetti who developed this club foot treatment which is now the "gold standard for everyone from first world to third world" they told me.<br /><br />In his method, they have a series of castings where they gradually change the angle of the foot until it is as it should be. There are six castings and for optimal effectiveness surgery should be done after week three. Then another three weeks of castings and, finally, "bars and boots". These special boots must be worn day and night for 3 months and then every night for 3-4 years. You can see what a problem this would cause for any person older than a baby. As they told us, 3-4 years of nights is a small price to pay for a normal foot for a lifetime, but it's still difficult for the Timorese to understand that even when the foot looks normal and healed that they must continue for this long to prevent a relapse.<br /><br />Everything is in the beginnings here. In Australia or America, almost all babies are born in hospitals where they can be immediately diagnosed with club foot and it is almost never a problem. Here they are still trying to make the public aware that club foot is a treatable problem. We are so blessed in so many ways I never realized!<br /><br />So that was the rollercoaster of one day in East Timor. Hope all is well with you!<br /><br />Always,<br /><br />Rachel and BrendanUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-10838685574577858422009-05-13T00:37:00.000-07:002009-05-13T23:37:58.874-07:00Baucau AdventuresWe arrived at our fellow VOICA volunteers' house in Baucau around 11 am and after hugs and jokes they promptly fed us in true Polish fashion (generously offering us a lot of food). While we started catching up we ate Timorese rolls with no-need-to-refrigerate margarine, tomato slices, onions, salt, and pepper. Even with the subpar margarine there's something magical about them and none of us can get enough.<br /><br />My parents are probably laughing as they read this because I've always shied away from tomatoes and I've <span style="font-style: italic;">never</span> liked onions. When I was a kid and we went to McDonald's I'd always whine if they put the finely chopped onions on my hamburgers. They didn't have much taste, but they were crunchy so I knew they were there and they drove me crazy!<br /><br />But slowly throughout high school and college and especially on this trip I've developed a small love affair with fresh tomatoes and even onions are great too. The Polish and their cooking skills can convince me that most anything is delicious. They even had me eating a tomato and cucumber salad on the last day...and liking it, although I'd always vowed to stay away from those weird salads that only adults ate. So I'm embarrassed by how long it took me, but now I know most every food can taste good.<br /><br />In Baucau, both the food and the conversation was always great! A lot of the time Chris and Brendan will go off exploring (they climbed a small mountain by our house last time they saw each other), play 1-on-1, and have guy time which is harder to come by here. While they're gone, the rest of us catch up. Dagmara is amazing - she's Sali's older sister and has volunteered in Baucau three times now. She if fluent in Tetum, knows everything and everybody, and has many stories about volunteer life. We've all learned a lot from her. And Sali and I get along great. It's nice to have someone here I can talk about married life with. Chris & Sali and Brendan & I are the first married couples to serve with VOICA and all of us are recently married. It's ben an interesting beginning to married life, what with living in community for a big chunk of it, but we all agree it's worth it.<br /><br />So there's a lot of talking when there's no action, but because all of us are pretty adventurous there's a lot of action too. Friday afternoon, Chris and Sali let us help out in their English class. We had an English game day and taught them 'What Time Is It Mr. Fox?' to practice time, numbers, and Mr/Miss/Mrs (they call everyone Mr. here). Later we taught them Heads Up, 7 Up, the grade school classic. The girls seemed to love these games - any fresh way to practice English is appreciated here. One of the girls came up after class and said she loved the games and when she went back to her village she wanted to teach the children : )<br /><br />After the class, Brendan and Chris went to play basketball while Sali and I hung out and Dagmara finished her accounting work at the school. When everyone got back, we hiked up to the top of a hill that overlooked the city of Baucau and the sea in the distance. There was a giant white cross on the hill and we sat on the rocks next to it and watch the sunset. It was a little cloudy, but the view was still spectacular!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig403q4jpiA7bN358H6Vylx0_7w8EOvKPiJOdWWcZD7DAmmWJfMDiaL_Nois3GUnRhImW_8jgnLH3wC5fEcE4FNg8RLM42MDtsN93SmkS4d0uyPK6L5hEy-oG1MmRTe0K9mAQTRRgIj6sA/s1600-h/IMG_6550.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig403q4jpiA7bN358H6Vylx0_7w8EOvKPiJOdWWcZD7DAmmWJfMDiaL_Nois3GUnRhImW_8jgnLH3wC5fEcE4FNg8RLM42MDtsN93SmkS4d0uyPK6L5hEy-oG1MmRTe0K9mAQTRRgIj6sA/s320/IMG_6550.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335564057592516402" border="0" /></a>Here Brendan sits near the edge of the cliff, watching the sunset over Baucau.<br /><br />The next morning we left early to go to the mountains near to the city of Ossu. They had organized a trip with Inga, her family, and her brother who was visiting from Germany. Inga came here as a volunteer and ended up marrying a Timorese man who is chief of his village. She works with the graduates of the Canossian school in Baucau, helping them find jobs and use their skills. So with Inga and her family we piled into two cars and made the 1 1/2 hour trip to Ossu.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVT0oXmarhHeM0UVLSf3wnFRjwveM9w2TYZKpiB8FQpHwYAosvtP9t6tUg3LQEq6ZUrzV90uMM0ll4SNjpGV-YctFNT3p7Y2cMFSFyNXzATFjbwZNwKzZnJg91w9iRfMufQlmC65AoIE6-/s1600-h/IMG_6571.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVT0oXmarhHeM0UVLSf3wnFRjwveM9w2TYZKpiB8FQpHwYAosvtP9t6tUg3LQEq6ZUrzV90uMM0ll4SNjpGV-YctFNT3p7Y2cMFSFyNXzATFjbwZNwKzZnJg91w9iRfMufQlmC65AoIE6-/s320/IMG_6571.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335564056476258706" border="0" /></a>Along the way we saw tunnels that the Japanese had used during WWII after they forced the Timorese to build them. We walked through dead-end tunnels that we were told were prisoner-holding places and later store rooms. The last opening had a shaft that at one time connected to a series of tunnels up the hill, but it was unstable now and it was obvious that there had been at least one cave-in. Brendan would have loved to explore more, but we had to keep going and the tunnels were not so nice because now they are community out-houses. But it was nice to learn more about Timor's history. If you're interested in South Pacific WWII trivia, you can check out the Australian movie Debt of Honor about the debt Australia owes to Timor for acting as a buffer between Australia and the Japanese during WWII and for protecting the Australian units who were stranded on the islands. Then it compares with the Australian soldiers' stories who are helping out here now. Very interesting.<br /><br />We kept driving - trying to get to the mountains before the midday heat. We passed Ossu and moved on to dirt roads that were being repaired by the community. On our way to a small village, we passed men with wheelbarrows and women carrying heavy buckets of dirt on their heads.<br /><br />Everyone grabbed a water bottle and, with a 16 year old boy as our guide, we started to trek to a cave near the summit. The ascent took about 45 minutes. When we were quiet, it was like listening to a nature CD except sometimes we could here monkeys chattering in the distance. On the way up, we crossed paths with the Australian ambassador and a group of his friends. They were super-nice and lent us 2 flashlights because we only had 2 for our big group and they said we would need them inside the cave (they were right!).<br /><br />We made it to the mouth of the cave and had a quick rest break. As we entered the cave there was a sharp descent. It was damp and it was DARK. If there wasn't a flashlight shining in your area you just went slow and hoped not to fall over, on, or off anything. The guide led us back and forth through connected rooms until we couldn't have found the way back if we tried. I was shocked to find how easy it would be to lose yourself in a cave, and maybe never make it out. With no light, there would have been almost no chance. But with a reliable guide we saw a room full of bats, stalagtites and stalagmites in all stages of formation, and rooms full of crystal-like growths!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidyD4Hi6XC6Ll5rDcwsZrBstue3B68pKvSUIDmKR0ZW8ORCBpGXXTkXUZmRXthiuyYrpL6m9bHt3WQM81DN9cC0kw6Ame0FyhzlLz7sOxfbry9XYc9bsJ0NRe_Z8wVAzMXGCmlMH2aH8hc/s1600-h/IMG_6596.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidyD4Hi6XC6Ll5rDcwsZrBstue3B68pKvSUIDmKR0ZW8ORCBpGXXTkXUZmRXthiuyYrpL6m9bHt3WQM81DN9cC0kw6Ame0FyhzlLz7sOxfbry9XYc9bsJ0NRe_Z8wVAzMXGCmlMH2aH8hc/s320/IMG_6596.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335564047949493170" border="0" /></a><br />Brendan and I were excited to explore the cave.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQlEMtgSFsW78BMZbwIgQWVWsCAShOnyzIFvVl2WecjAgI9R2IA2vzYwRwrmo6arSfZrqOUPpZg8Djca-oSpXTVZEzLi83o9qq6RsNPAw8-FZn8KVi1WCapjYonfA18YiFF2BOHw-sTTyg/s1600-h/IMG_6603.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQlEMtgSFsW78BMZbwIgQWVWsCAShOnyzIFvVl2WecjAgI9R2IA2vzYwRwrmo6arSfZrqOUPpZg8Djca-oSpXTVZEzLi83o9qq6RsNPAw8-FZn8KVi1WCapjYonfA18YiFF2BOHw-sTTyg/s320/IMG_6603.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335564045853822162" border="0" /></a><br />Chris gets ready to crawl hands and knees through the tiny opening that led to the next room.<br /><br />After maybe another 45 minutes we made it out into the sunlight. We had seen less than half of the cave and would have loved to see more, but not on this trip.<br /><br />That cave trip is probably a good analogy comparing East Timor and America/Australia. One of my most memorable cave experiences in America was when we went as kids to Cave of the Winds - a cave attraction in Colorado. It was great! We saw stalagtites and stalagmites there too...but they were roped off so they wouldn't be touched and the process interrupted. We walked through the cave on a concrete path with handrail, seeing in the fixed spotlights the cave crystals. Our country has come to a point where there are safety regulations for everything and an emphasis on natural preservation. On the other hand, East Timor is a young and wild country. They do take care of their land as much as they can, but it will take many years until more extensive preservation and safety regulations have become a part of everyday thinking, but that is ok. Once higher priorities have been worked out then these can move up the ladder of importance. So safe, but less adventurous, or wild and not as safe seem to be the options good and less good on both sides.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcVa7koeYDeNkd98PSWnqMUp8tdBG6GoAEEpp1rG_mkLx7woD_pcNAKg3XbVqrnzA3JAYWE1NWdJji8_N3QULY_kFFofdSbvODQHLF856vngRYL4VBliH7L7_KTxoeevp5GTrXphwzQHug/s1600-h/IMG_6605.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcVa7koeYDeNkd98PSWnqMUp8tdBG6GoAEEpp1rG_mkLx7woD_pcNAKg3XbVqrnzA3JAYWE1NWdJji8_N3QULY_kFFofdSbvODQHLF856vngRYL4VBliH7L7_KTxoeevp5GTrXphwzQHug/s320/IMG_6605.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335564048006548210" border="0" /></a><br />While coming out of the cave, we shine our flashlights to help everyone find their footing.<br /><br />So the cave had been a great time, but it was midday by then so we hiked back down, paid our guide, and returned the flashlights. On the way home, Brendan and I were able to ride in Inga's car and we talked with her about what it's like working in Baucau. She also told us many stories about the school and past VOICA volunteer's accomplishments. We hope to be people she can tell good stories about someday.<br /><br />The highlights of Sunday were, of course, going to church and later going to the beach. There is no English Mass in Baucau, so we went to the 7 am Tetum Mass, which is always beautiful. With now instruments, these people compensate by singing like you wouldn't believe. They sing with such power! How Southern-gospel-like sounds emergy from their tiny frames I will never know.<br /><br />After Mass, we got ready to go to the beach. We walked down the steep hill for one hour before we made it there. Along the way we saw some interesting things. The Timorese who live by the beach road were either getting ready for a party or it was national pig-slaughtering day, because we saw two pigs in the process of being slaughtered. One thing that we noticed was that the pigs here are a lot harrier than the pigs at home. They might be pink underneath, but they're covered with black hair so you can't tell. As we continued walking we talked about the disconnect we city-dwellers have between the meat we get at the grocery store and the real animals and slaughtering process. After watching a pig get stoned and speared to death I remembered where pork comes from.<br /><br />But we made it to the beach and it was even more beautiful than when we had come on Christmas Day. The boys swam while us girls walked along the beach and discovered a hermit crab colony. Later we joined the boys, after they didn't get eaten by the crocodile that had been there on Christmas. After hearing more about sea crocodiles, we wanted to play it safe.<br /><br />The day was glorious and we had fun splashing around, eating tuna sandwiches in the shade, and watching the clear blue water. At 1:00 we had to start walking back. We were lucky and after walking halfway up the hill a mikrolet drove by and we caught a ride to the top. Then Brendan and I made lunch for everybody before got a ride back to Dili with Fr. Martinhu. On the way back we talked about the life issues as well as learned some more about Timor culture. After a quick trip, he dropped us off at our house, we grabbed a bite to eat, and headed to bed wondering where the weekend had gone.<br /><br />Hope you can find some time to relax too!<br /><br />Always,<br />Rachel and BrendanUnknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-86459683827685802772009-05-08T20:13:00.000-07:002009-05-08T20:44:47.818-07:00Baucau Bus TripIt had been a long week, but we were getting excited. Early in the week we found out that East Timor's Labor Day was on Friday, May 1st, so if we could take off Saturday we would have a 3 day weekend to try to go to Baucau and visit the Polish VOICA volunteers.<br /><br />After some confusion where our ride fell through, we decided to attempt the public bus on Friday morning. It was an option we'd been dreading because we'd heard not-so-nice stories of the conditions, but we decided the extra day in Baucau would be worth it.<br /><br />First of all, some background on the public transportation in East Timor. I think that the government here is pretty lucky with the situation because all their public transport is privately operated and maintained. The taxis, mikrolets (minibuses), and full-sized buses are run by a driver with the help of one or two friends who help passengers in or out, put baggage on the roof (sometimes even live animals), and collect fares. The average prices are 10 cents for a mikrolet ride, $2-3 for a taxi (malae price, Timorese pay less), and $4 for bus rides between cities. The drivers and workers can constantly be seen driving, cleaning, or repairing the means of their livelihood. And somehow it all works out - the taxis patrol everywhere, the mikrolets pick a route and paint the route number on the front and back where people can see it, and the buses are labeled by the starting and final destinations (example. Dili-Baucau). There is no set schedule, but because transportation provides a steady job there are many options and you never have to wait long before the mikrolet you need comes by. It's a pretty interesting system.<br /><br />So Friday morning we each piled our stuff into a backpack and taxied to the bus station on the other side of town. We were very lucky because even though it was a holiday, there was one bus at the station. We got out of the taxi and a man ushered us onto the bus and gave us seats. We were sitting in the very back row with our backpacks on our laps while we surveyed the situation.<br /><br />The bus was surprisingly clean, had pretty comfortable seats, there wasn't much space but there was enough, and they even had music for the trip. I wondered where the catch was. The answer came as we got ready to leave, the driver honked the horn and 15 more people crowded onto the bus to stand in the aisle and hang out of the door for the 3 hour ride. My big sister radar went through the roof as I watched young men my brother's age struggling to hang on through the open door. Usually there were 3 or 4 in each door, grabbing onto one thing inside to steady themselves.<br /><br />Sometimes while everyone in the open doorway jockeyed for position, one person got pushed outside of the rest and hung on dangerously. When this happened usually the person, while the bus continued driving at top speeds along the seaside cliffs, would try to make it to the ladder on the back of the bus and climb up to the roof. I was so glad that no one got hurt on our trip, but we were told by one of Brendan's basketball buddies that many of the crosses along the road were because of deaths of the men on the roof and sides of the bus. It sounds like the police are beginning to pull the bus over when they see those riders, but there's only so much they can do.<br /><br />So that was hard to watch, but there were pleasant distractions. Two guys that Brendan had met were sitting close to us so we got to talk with them. Secondly, there was an amazing range of Timorese music and Indonesian country and rock. And then we were surprized to hear an Avril Lavigne song and even the Numa Numa dance song. You never knew what was going to be next.<br /><br />During the ride we got to do a lot of people watching which was interesting. There were men and women from villages in traditional dress, students in jeans and English t-shirts, and everything in between. One thing that we found impressive was how the guys treated the women and children. If a seat opened up one of the aisle-standing guys was happy enough to fill it, but when women or children entered the bus on the way to Baucau they stood up immediatedly and gave them the seat. I love that - it's a sign of respect for the women and a good example for the children. At home some people seem to think chivalry is when you see the other person as weaker (and that could be the mindset for some people), but when the person's motivation is treating someone with a special respect because you care about them, it's beautiful! So if it's done right, like it appeared to be on the bus, it's appreciated and super-cute to watch.<br /><br />Eventually we made it to Baucau in just 2 and a half hours. We got dropped off in Old Town at our friends' house and started our free weekend!<br /><br />Hope all is well with you guys! Congrats to the college kids finishing finals!<br /><br /><br />Love,<br />Rachel and BrendanUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-51694377781788670732009-05-05T23:13:00.000-07:002009-05-05T23:51:09.426-07:00God Did It Again!A short time ago I was ready to come home... in the after effects of the stomach infection I was fatigued and felt the effects both mentally and physically. My motivation was waning from the lack of energy after sickness and from the sadness of missing all the end of the school year activities - Confirmation, graduations, and summer weddings of our friends and family.<br /><br />I also noticed in myself a growing desire for something new, something exciting - an escape from this simple life, if only for a short time. But what to do? Could Brendan and I go to a movie? No, no movie theaters in Dili. No bowling alleys, no shopping malls, nothing open late.<br /><br />But as I was walking to school it dawned on me - I bet I'm not the only person who feels this way. The Timorese also search for escapes. There are a few culturally accepted escapes, mostly for men. Almost all Timorese men smoke and many drink localmade palm and coconut wine. Also, in the smaller cities and villages they have daily cockfights. There are also football and basketball for the young men (and the educated women in Dili). Women's escapes seem to be mostly relational - doing things like walking with their children on the way to the market or talking with a neighbor. Their poverty precludes more damaging escapes like drugs, but it also limits their access to good recreational activities. But what they don't have access to in material things they make up for in relationships. Their life is the epitome of simple.<br /><br />To be fair, many Timorese don't know what they're missing of our more elaborate escapes. From talking with other volunteers there are some countries that are very difficult to work in because the poor <span style="font-style: italic;">know </span>they are poor, they <span style="font-style: italic;">know</span> what the rich countries have, and they <span style="font-style: italic;">know</span> their chances of living that lifestyle are right around zero. This knowledge, understandably, can make a person very bitter. But East Timor is not one of those countries, and I hope that it won't ever become one.<br /><br />Timorese affectionately call their country Timor Lorosae, which means Sunrise Timor. They think of themselves as the sunrise people. After suffering severe human rights violations for the 25 years of Indonesian rule and having earned their independence by the burning of their homes and the blood of their people, they are beginning again with the fresh start and new hope that comes with the sunrise.<br /><br />That is one of the qualities that make the Timorese so beautiful and great to work with. They are open and trusting. They love learning. They have big dreams for their children and their new country, and they're willing to work hard to make them happen.<br /><br />After reflecting for awhile about how the Timorese react to their simple life I felt my need to escape lessen. I really couldn't be more pleased with the work we do and the people who we work with. I have no need to escape when I recognize all the blessings I continually receive.<br /><br />After concluding all these thoughts, God sent some more blessings as encouragement to renew our motivation. Brendan and I had a surprise 3 day weekend which we used to go to Baucau and have adventures with our fellow volunteers Chris, Sali, and Dagmara. It was a great chance to catch up and encourage each other while doing some cool things. Then I got back to full health, which makes a big difference in motivation level.<br /><br />And lastly, the next day we worked in the morning and were ready to walk home for lunch when Sister Lucia called us over and said that there were <span style="font-weight: bold;">3</span> boxes and a letter waiting for us. Oh, we were excited! We barely stopped ourselves from opening them before we got to our house. When we did finally get them open the contents covered the whole table!<br /><br />The letter contained a card from my family for Easter and a late birthday card for Brendan from his family. One Easter package was from our friends at Crosspointe Church, and the other two were from the Downey clan and had been sent by Aunt Anne and Uncle Joe. Everything was perfect and it was obvious that a lot of thought had gone into it all. The best were the Easter cards and photos and news from home. What a tangible sign of love!!!<br /><br />And then the last puzzle piece fell into place. That was why we we're here - to be a tangible sign of God's love to the Timorese! They deserve all we have to give and so much more! So as you encourage us with words and signs, we will turn around and encourage them with words and tangible signs to have hope and a strong faith in a God who loves them!<br /><br />Hoping you experience a tangible sign of God's love today : )<br /><br /><br />Always, in Christ,<br /><br />Rachel and BrendanUnknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-52985680308128852862009-04-29T22:16:00.000-07:002009-04-29T23:14:13.087-07:00Pre-Easter PhotosHello everyone! Sorry it's been quite awhile. Lately the technology has been less than friendly and even today, we had hoped to put up the 1st Easter blog because a version of it was saved on the flashdrive, but because it's infected with viruses the document can't be opened. So I'm free handing this in the 15 minutes we have. Just trust me - the original was great : )<br /><br />Here are some pictures from the week before Easter. The Friday before Holy Week we went at sunrise to the John Paul II center on top of one of the hills on the edge of Dili and right next to the sea. There we did the Stations of the Cross, walking up the hill and thinking about Jesus' passion and death and what He has done for us. We reached the top of the hill as the sun was rising over the ocean and all of Dili - it was gorgeous! Afterward the event climaxed with an outdoor Mass before everyone had to hurry off for work.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX30krEl4-DZOf8BXaRVs-cPvwBRyf2GLBniQsqjKwA8vDKXLLTumLt1f7sssUeVQlDeFE1yWdhC8_NVoSHdB46sfaGILXHUnsMcXRN3D-tSTUTIhwvElih8vXW1HjqZV0MRaADJl2Y-2m/s1600-h/IMG_6288.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX30krEl4-DZOf8BXaRVs-cPvwBRyf2GLBniQsqjKwA8vDKXLLTumLt1f7sssUeVQlDeFE1yWdhC8_NVoSHdB46sfaGILXHUnsMcXRN3D-tSTUTIhwvElih8vXW1HjqZV0MRaADJl2Y-2m/s320/IMG_6288.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5330352665151552658" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Here's part of the group gathered to meditate on Jesus' passion.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">After the day events, we were back at school to help with the annual retreat for the seniors in high school. It was incredible! There were about 100 students there and we had Mass, dinner together brought by the parents, took lots of pictures as they love to do. </div></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtqsa8uNBK-RmNytVYNwkVomRNFs5RZtyka-Ib8emDkNDERtVQpw_SfK2cIaqRLkciHq7kYSuu3Sa1MmVl8BUwzeFZBpzryPKVsms3VjCcDdPSaHd_5GLsVJJZqMV0LFfAI-P62cSOeWD2/s1600-h/IMG_6305.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtqsa8uNBK-RmNytVYNwkVomRNFs5RZtyka-Ib8emDkNDERtVQpw_SfK2cIaqRLkciHq7kYSuu3Sa1MmVl8BUwzeFZBpzryPKVsms3VjCcDdPSaHd_5GLsVJJZqMV0LFfAI-P62cSOeWD2/s320/IMG_6305.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5330352664883754450" border="0" /></a>Here I am with one of the SMA teachers who volunteered to help supervise the students and lead a small group during the all-night retreat.<br /><br />Later there was a reflection and group sharing. We didn't understand everything because it was in fluent Tetum and when they go full-speed it's still a little difficult to understand, but we talked with Sr. Ervinia and some of our English students later and the reflection had been on suffering and finding healing in Jesus. Many of the students were crying, some of them opening up for the first time.<br /><br />Many of them have grown up pretty fast with all the violence with their country's independence and in the 2006 conflict as well as their less-than-optimal current situations. Many students have left their families in the districts and come to Dili for an education. Here they live with extended relatives or family friends that even in the best situations can't love them like their parents and immediate family. Sr. Ervinia, the principal, said the sharing was eye-opening for her too because when the students aren't on their best behavior it's easy to forget where they're coming from and how they're living. She tries to balance expecting the best from them while understanding them. She is currently trying to find a counselor who could be there for the students.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPJCjXZFkP-AeqpIinl-nG6JivvEXrEBCljouqaji5t7NW_d13Me7Wb9vBbQdIKeBVtQWMARUR4fMHnf2K7228oTUwQtTzB3H2KQfdl_Yo4PETvvvKe9tBt_oU9CSL4ssxT9Uzl96vXArg/s1600-h/IMG_6324.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPJCjXZFkP-AeqpIinl-nG6JivvEXrEBCljouqaji5t7NW_d13Me7Wb9vBbQdIKeBVtQWMARUR4fMHnf2K7228oTUwQtTzB3H2KQfdl_Yo4PETvvvKe9tBt_oU9CSL4ssxT9Uzl96vXArg/s320/IMG_6324.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5330351705590722226" border="0" /></a>After the sharing there were snacks and a movie. They watched Maria Goretti in Italian, while one of the Sisters translated into Tetum. During the movie we stole some of the English Club students to teach them the games so they could give an example to their classmates. It worked out great - they are quick learners and interested in all thing international.<br /><br />Brendan and I were in charge of the games to keep the students awake around 2 am. We played Blob tag and did 3-legged race, both of which the students had never done.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRyQmviEcAiGNX1n22A9FMsNeaVBCzZBd-Zxe3k_1BAUk14kGwyLUS-cD3F_7Tnq1wDmBRsPvxQXP8NzggZWtQpukHq5z6SxYTLCb1QepufzgEe-snXetSErnX0cBPJQ9NxaqtwLyzWpbY/s1600-h/IMG_6328.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRyQmviEcAiGNX1n22A9FMsNeaVBCzZBd-Zxe3k_1BAUk14kGwyLUS-cD3F_7Tnq1wDmBRsPvxQXP8NzggZWtQpukHq5z6SxYTLCb1QepufzgEe-snXetSErnX0cBPJQ9NxaqtwLyzWpbY/s320/IMG_6328.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5330351700661502322" border="0" /></a><br />Here some of the English Clubbers practice their 3-legged racing. It was funny at the beginning, but after the first time we gave them some hints and they streamlined their racing quickly. Later they taught their classmates, but dominated the competition.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4HW0N1ctsyxAEGoPgPCI8SYGwdz0QosPbfOTCizuWNMhfyySL1wwL9EqkCCmdUjP6uCSO4GTirBnKJX3Do_AmAwUktFyzn_eQgeDdKlEL4hbsgKA5pOb6JcRt0lFwMagoyAjen-xRgU42/s1600-h/IMG_6333.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4HW0N1ctsyxAEGoPgPCI8SYGwdz0QosPbfOTCizuWNMhfyySL1wwL9EqkCCmdUjP6uCSO4GTirBnKJX3Do_AmAwUktFyzn_eQgeDdKlEL4hbsgKA5pOb6JcRt0lFwMagoyAjen-xRgU42/s320/IMG_6333.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5330351695543999330" border="0" /></a><br />All of my big sister training has come in handy here, because the students love games! Here the guys play a round of Blob tag, where one person is 'it' and when they tag someone they become attached and continue tagging people. They split once and continue until there are two giant blobs of people who are 'it'.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmxdtuvQ3A1Rlx8w0l4socDgvwbJqUwG7x35w_bLIhgQDnW8WeLpNiava5dqSnPSIr5fB1mh7igdaMDrk4mdQw3lLVxCQuFmlFrkPYy0I5CJFwSjGnlJOJ30Hhl_faRH1TIa6-nS77vwld/s1600-h/IMG_6345.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmxdtuvQ3A1Rlx8w0l4socDgvwbJqUwG7x35w_bLIhgQDnW8WeLpNiava5dqSnPSIr5fB1mh7igdaMDrk4mdQw3lLVxCQuFmlFrkPYy0I5CJFwSjGnlJOJ30Hhl_faRH1TIa6-nS77vwld/s320/IMG_6345.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5330351698709083474" border="0" /></a>After games and some more events we were able to duck out a little early around 4:30 am, to get a little sleep. Our first all-nighter since college it was a great experience and good chance to hang out with the students during retreat!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlm1gDfmxN3CB0HQCG4MW8GFLy_33ftW2Hg_sAMOFpwLmlFb-ZOz4CdovFqXki8Isgm06Qh4kwrPzAJeyRN7sKLzfHGgOhqR-_I7UACgxCLp56Ix0M5A9SOamW5JsyUGfMdZI8far_XgeG/s1600-h/IMG_6356.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlm1gDfmxN3CB0HQCG4MW8GFLy_33ftW2Hg_sAMOFpwLmlFb-ZOz4CdovFqXki8Isgm06Qh4kwrPzAJeyRN7sKLzfHGgOhqR-_I7UACgxCLp56Ix0M5A9SOamW5JsyUGfMdZI8far_XgeG/s320/IMG_6356.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5330351691580171154" border="0" /></a><br />And, oh my goodness, Palm Sunday was incredible! It was probably the closest that I'll ever get to experiencing that first Palm Sunday. We decided to go to the Tetum Mass to get a feel for the really Timorese celebrations. As we approached the church two things became clear: 1.) We were late. There were at least two thousand people crowded into the church and surrounding the church on all sides. 2.) We had missed the memo to BYOP (Bring your own palm). Everyone else had large green palms cut from their yards, many woven into intricate designs.<br /><br />Mass began with a huge procession and palm-waving after the palms were blessed. Little girls dressed in traditional tais feto went before the procession, laying tais cloths down on the ground around the church. They were followed by a group of children and their leader playing drums. Then there was a group of men and boys in traditional garb and with swords dancing. It kind of reminded me of King David dancing before the Lord. They were really into it! They were dancing to the beat provided by the women that followed playing local drums. And finally the readers and servers came with Fr. Peter, who was carrying a palm made into the shape of a cross. Phenomenal!<br /><br />Mass was about two hours long and we were standing outside the church the whole time, but luckily they have a good sound system because this happens all the time. They did a small drama of Palm Sunday until the Passion, as a preview of the week and to give everyone time to think about it. The homily was great and talked about Jesus' suffering for us then, but also in our present world with many issues. He even told the people about the evils of abortion and mentioned something that Brendan had told him earlier about abortion in America. He's well informed and has the guts to talk about all the hard stuff.<br /><br />I wish I could tell you more because there is so much more, but I must go. We'll try to fill you in on more of Holy Week sometime soon! We love you and will try to keep in frequent contact despite technical difficulties.<br /><br />With all our love, in Christ,<br />Rachel and BrendanUnknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-64546192864900532782009-04-22T19:21:00.000-07:002009-04-22T19:58:45.336-07:00Minor SetbacksFirst of all, happy Easter everyone!!! Sorry that it has been awhile since we we wrote...we have good reasons.<br /><br />I had two beautiful, long, descriptive blogs about the incredible Easter celebrations here in East Timor almost ready to be put up for you. That's when three things happened:<br /><br />1.) I suddenly got sick. All of Wednesday I found myself exhausted and in a bad mood. I finally made it home and crashed. When Brendan got home he came over to give me a hug, but I was radiating heat! I took a quick bucket shower and tried to sleep it off.<br /><br />My fever was up and down (but mostly up) the next day. It got up around 103.2 three times and I had body aches so we decided to go to the hospital. It's good that we did. They took a blood test to check for malaria (don't worry - it wasn't) and let us go home. When we went back later that night a different doctor looked at the results and diagnosed me with some kind of infection in the lower abdomen. So I got paracetamol and antibiotics and a prescription to rest it off.<br /><br />Within a day I was doing better and my fever had gone down and stayed down. I'm telling you Ciprofloxin (an antibiotic) has been my new best friend over here. I've never been a pill popper because before it usually wasn't necessary, but here I'm learning to really appreciate antibiotics because they can take you from seemingly the edge of death to normal in one or two days.<br /><br />While I was sick, Brendan was great and took on all my responsibilities as well as his as much as possible and made sure to check in with me while I was on bedrest. He's also made sure I'm taking it slow this week and I feel 100% now thanks to everyone's prayers and Brendan's care.<br /><br />So since then everything's been going well and, as usual, sickness quickly fades from memory. Work continues and this week has been really good. It took a couple of days to catch up on cleaning and grocery shopping, but now we're almost caught up.<br /><br />Problem 2.) The car broke down. We've been getting more and more skeptical about driving it. After having to push start it three times and the muffler falling off twice, we're giving it a few days to rest. It's good to walk everywhere, but it would be nice to have it in case.<br /><br />3.) The computer crashed. We've had computer problems with my laptop periodically here, probably because whenever we use the flashdrive to put up blogs it gets infected with viruses, which then come back to our laptop. Even though we scan and try to clear the flashdrive, it's a constant process.<br /><br />This time Brendan doesn't think that the computer will be coming back because the computer will randomly tick and it says that it can't read the hard drive because there is no hard drive. Probably not a good sign. The sad part is that those two beautiful, almost-finished Easter blogs were saved on the computer, as well as other important things (although we did back everything up a month ago).<br /><br />So don't worry if the blogs are less frequent for awhile. We'll be trying to find the best way to prepare blogs and work with the pictures now that we can't do so at home. But we'll work it out : )<br /><br />One lesson that we're learning from this is what to do when everything goes wrong at once - learning to practice patience and find more creative ways to do things. That's really the story of East Timor. They have faith and family, but health problems can strike you or your family when you least expect it. Cars have problems and there's no money to fix them so you walk or you drive an unsafe car or motorcycle. Technology is in the early stages here so virus infections and basic problems are bound to happen all the time. But knowing that we are still overly privileged when compared to our neighbors gives us a better attitude and understanding when we have minor setbacks like this. Maybe life doesn't have to be perfect for us.<br /><br />To end on a high note, we also have had a lot of support. We received lots of letters from the Bishop family, the Davises, Grandma and Grandpa, and even a package from some great people who prefer to remain anonymous. The letters were amazing and the package came with perfect timing (there was a peg game that I played all the time when I had to stay in bed all day). God really does work all things for the good of those who love Him and whenever anything rough happens there's always support that comes in just when we need it. Thank you thank you thank you to everybody!<br /><br />We love you! You're in our prayers, please keep us in yours : )<br /><br />Always,<br /><br />Rachel and BrendanUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-40140802610518911492009-04-13T23:50:00.000-07:002009-04-14T00:29:17.112-07:00We've Got MailWe just our third package while we’ve been here from our family AND a letter! It’s definitely a cause for excitement : )<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKVFlibVXMNvNrRzgWnEXKHc5tyzUZLRXyBRn5ON5gbhaZDZi2pZvejJd8wlnU_ZEDKTzEx8PhzITegEeGWHPTdprZ5E5t3bg5T4qpq-PgVbukCcbFLHIkPd6MMv9z7WY2TBrAtKHDO_B0/s1600-h/IMG_6258.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKVFlibVXMNvNrRzgWnEXKHc5tyzUZLRXyBRn5ON5gbhaZDZi2pZvejJd8wlnU_ZEDKTzEx8PhzITegEeGWHPTdprZ5E5t3bg5T4qpq-PgVbukCcbFLHIkPd6MMv9z7WY2TBrAtKHDO_B0/s320/IMG_6258.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324444335616358594" border="0" /></a>It’s amazing how much they can fit into a small boxing with some good organization. Here is all the stuff laid out on our table. Letters and pictures, a lot of food, enough bugspray to keep mosquitoes away for years, more Purell, and therabands from Peggy for physical therapy exercises!!!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv7aJiqifhG9hKP0Mgvyk2GA0cKmcdjLAn9eQ7KCDf6SzPMhKfVuuDpR2mCeDZO_yRGjsajpqbW79ZNni1q0kREancE8HY-y7Df4dh0cw4sHra3V-ratfoPuTahl7UpRjqq9hWRNPtcGOE/s1600-h/IMG_6269.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv7aJiqifhG9hKP0Mgvyk2GA0cKmcdjLAn9eQ7KCDf6SzPMhKfVuuDpR2mCeDZO_yRGjsajpqbW79ZNni1q0kREancE8HY-y7Df4dh0cw4sHra3V-ratfoPuTahl7UpRjqq9hWRNPtcGOE/s320/IMG_6269.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324440692167693570" border="0" /></a>The letters and cards were the best part (but everything was GREAT). Brendan got two birthday cards, both hilarious. One of them is shown here. When you look at it from different angles or move it around the hamster dances. And when you open it, the hamster dance song plays. We showed it to the boys next door who loved it (although they were a little confused by it).<br /><br />Thank you for everything else too! There was a Christmas card from the Warrens, Brendan’s relatives, and pictures of my family. I wish you all knew how much we miss you! And my Grandparents wrote two letters in the package and one real letter that got here in just three weeks! Real letters…everyone appreciates them, but I have never appreciated them so much as I do now. Keep them coming if you’re up for it!<br /><br />Other really cool things and what we’re doing with them:<br /><br />- Peggy sent three sets of therabands of different colors and we’ve already donated one set to Assert, a rehabilitation center that works with Timorese with extreme disabilities. One set will go to the school clinic where I work regularly and we’ll see what other opportunity presents itself for the third set. But in the meantime, we used one set to run a 3-legged race for the SMA third year students when we were teaching them games (we told you, you have to get creative here).<br /><br />- A block of wood for carving. Brendan started doing some carving last summer and he’d like to start carving a chess set if he can find some free time. Thanks Grandpa Bill!<br /><br />- We made cheesecake! My family sent a no-bake cheesecake since we can’t do any baking on gas burners.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPryDghyNc-AVzZOl45VvVy2T6ZvoMwIGYn0fqvYhtEXMViZ9VpWb3eK6OILnVZpZiVGHnzIHQIyy-fkVwVt5mKGIKwoV-EtXbxzNecRC4ZwpcN8BQwk_AGP1oEV35H3BVT4S45mwJuOif/s1600-h/IMG_6268.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPryDghyNc-AVzZOl45VvVy2T6ZvoMwIGYn0fqvYhtEXMViZ9VpWb3eK6OILnVZpZiVGHnzIHQIyy-fkVwVt5mKGIKwoV-EtXbxzNecRC4ZwpcN8BQwk_AGP1oEV35H3BVT4S45mwJuOif/s320/IMG_6268.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324444343201271954" border="0" /></a><br />We lasted about four days after getting the package before we made it, but even that was a struggle : ) And it was incredible!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOBzkv-ek9tXwjpxisvOURg2SZdPXF1uy0u3q0Ok-5m31Qi6HNNPPaSj8X85nFR5e2dZmRXspFkb17ZRSS10Q0cvVYJMQm_B-GmFPz1li77r72LQJ7gKvxRDDi9DWHd600_mf76tZTiK7h/s1600-h/IMG_6267.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOBzkv-ek9tXwjpxisvOURg2SZdPXF1uy0u3q0Ok-5m31Qi6HNNPPaSj8X85nFR5e2dZmRXspFkb17ZRSS10Q0cvVYJMQm_B-GmFPz1li77r72LQJ7gKvxRDDi9DWHd600_mf76tZTiK7h/s320/IMG_6267.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324444337767854882" border="0" /></a><br />Here’s the mess as we begin making the cheesecake. Also notice that I’m holding a beautiful ummm put-under-pots-so-they-don’t-burn-the-table thing (the name escapes me). My sister Sarah made it and it has been a great addition to our kitchen! Right before the package came we had an incident that made us realize how necessary these things are – so Sarah sending one was like an answered prayer : )<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfrCemw0QJZc1NcjvEpFzX7ghzLqraHaUbHdPuMZ8qcl-2jAyY-LnX8WGomP7ycxpg-079yrgQMvqxBERUy5BL_GJ1gS2xeNZKhjudcEA7D3saQArS8yVQAELMeygNVB0uIlSWMzI-ZlZM/s1600-h/IMG_6272.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfrCemw0QJZc1NcjvEpFzX7ghzLqraHaUbHdPuMZ8qcl-2jAyY-LnX8WGomP7ycxpg-079yrgQMvqxBERUy5BL_GJ1gS2xeNZKhjudcEA7D3saQArS8yVQAELMeygNVB0uIlSWMzI-ZlZM/s320/IMG_6272.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324440696707972146" border="0" /></a>Brendan preparing the filling for the cheesecake!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeO0xWM4pizCo9o2WSsGzUsalD8QsP9sDvlpNa5_67H8-GQkpo7p_eI2aBvwtM8bIchMKkABVYdwPkaFrPtfE8DcJlzQ_92gLI1kUxPtNQV8hc-SXXdhKDh5MujLFJsMizpAc_ITI1Rqya/s1600-h/IMG_6275.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeO0xWM4pizCo9o2WSsGzUsalD8QsP9sDvlpNa5_67H8-GQkpo7p_eI2aBvwtM8bIchMKkABVYdwPkaFrPtfE8DcJlzQ_92gLI1kUxPtNQV8hc-SXXdhKDh5MujLFJsMizpAc_ITI1Rqya/s320/IMG_6275.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324440696528652834" border="0" /></a>And here he is, showing off the final product, garnished by some peanut butter M&Ms!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPD_FTJ-EZ3Sh_4oJ3OFSxC6ACmF2I0fN8NAalOmtEJvz_ou44gCOk3rYaQ6oeY26GL1JD-clESgHbGm8aiL5MFP9FkUJiH0yOjwQ746owYr1G-WpSZiT0WACG_5O8Yj6Bfd8aqmUz0GZH/s1600-h/IMG_6287.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPD_FTJ-EZ3Sh_4oJ3OFSxC6ACmF2I0fN8NAalOmtEJvz_ou44gCOk3rYaQ6oeY26GL1JD-clESgHbGm8aiL5MFP9FkUJiH0yOjwQ746owYr1G-WpSZiT0WACG_5O8Yj6Bfd8aqmUz0GZH/s320/IMG_6287.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324440701866642274" border="0" /></a><br />But everything is better if it’s shared, so Brendan took cheesecake to these ladies: Sister Etelvina and Georgina. Together the three of them are a team transforming the university library for the upcoming accreditation. They recently all were formally trained on using the Dewey decimal system and KOHA, a computer catalog program.<br /><br />But anyway, it was Georgina’s first time ever eating cheesecake and Sister Etelvina’s second. They thought it was heavenly! Letting the Timorese experience some of our “home” food has been especially entertaining. We had the girls from the clinic over for lunch once and made spaghetti with meat sauce and they ate everything! We think next time we’re going to have people try sloppy joes and see what they think. Hopefully we’ll get pictures of that one ; )<br /><br />Ok, that’s probably more details than you ever wanted, but you can see that getting a package is a big deal. It’s a physical sign that says: We know you’re far away, but we love you and we’re praying for you and thinking about you. Hopefully you can see this blog as a similar message back to you. We do love you and we pray that God blesses you always!<br /><br />Much love,<br />Rachel and BrendanUnknownnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-321017973415686932009-04-08T18:01:00.000-07:002009-04-08T18:10:38.845-07:00Mini MiraclesThis week we have been witnesses to the Holy Spirit’s power. We sometimes can feel the Spirit’s quiet inner stirrings, but this past week the Holy Spirit came with purpose and power!<br /><br />It started with a little thing… the location of English Mass was being changed for Holy Week because of the overlap with the Tetum services. For some reason it kept coming to Brendan’s mind that someone needed to give directions and give them well or many people would miss the Holy Week masses. So he prayed, “God, if you work it out, I will give directions to the people.” So for two days he worked out the best way to explain directions and continued to pray secretly, although he told no one of these thoughts.<br /><br />Sunday arrived and a series of surprising events happened: for the first time some Timorese were helping organize parking (usually it’s a bit of a madhouse and all the internationals park everywhere and it’s difficult to get in and out). So we were guided onto the grass in a different area than where we usually park and then we went in the closest door, far from the door where we normally come in. <br /><br />As we crossed the middle aisle, Fr. Peter was there and he came straight up to Brendan and out of nowhere asked if he would be willing to read the announcements…including the Mass times for Holy Week and the new location. Brendan was stunned, but hid his reaction quickly and agreed to do the announcements at the end of Mass.<br /><br />Everything went well and after Communion Brendan walked up to give the announcement. It was great! There were many things to say, but he didn’t look at the paper. He had everyone’s attention and explained the directions perfectly! And this is harder than it sounds - Dili is a city with few street identifications (most aren’t named or numbered) and it’s easy to miss places when you’re driving there. Only on the drive home did Brendan tell me what had been going on during the past couple of days.<br /><br />This is one example of God quietly, but effectively, working for the good of those He loves. Maybe for the good of just one person he coordinated everything, using Brendan to help that person get to Mass and experience Him and His grace. <br /> <br />But the next miracle was on a much more important topic and has floored me. On Saturday we had a Bible study lunch at our house to say goodbye to Iwuozo, the coordinator, before he went home to Nigeria. So we had lunch first and we got to try African food for the first time. Mary made some rice balls and two types of fish with different sauces. But during lunch the conversation turned to some politics and religion and Iwuozo was saying he didn’t think abortion was a big deal. Mary, who has a daughter who lives in America, tried to explain the facts that Iwuouzo doesn’t know because Nigeria hasn’t legalized abortion yet, although there is pressure on them to do so.<br /><br />The subject was dropped when we went into our Bible study, where we finished up Genesis with the story of Joseph. That Bible study was especially moving and we had some very personal sharing. At the end we all prayed over Iwuozo, for a good trip back with his unit and that God will continue to use him in Nigeria. After prayer we all promised to see him off at the airport on Tuesday.<br /><br />Within the next twenty-four hours after Bible study, the Holy Spirit pulled off a lot, but we didn’t find out until Tuesday. All I knew was that Saturday I prayed about the lunch discussion and was deeply disturbed, because Iwuozo is rock solid and Biblically backed up on every other issue. On Saturday night I went to sleep sad and thoughtful. On Sunday morning I woke up earlier than usually and felt a command to write him a letter because he honestly didn’t know what goes on, like far too many people. So for an hour I poured out my heart on the paper - of the facts of the sheer number of unborn children who are killed in America each year by abortion (more than 1,200,000 – more than the entire population of East Timor), of the women that are wounded emotionally and physically, and of my experience volunteering at Birthrite, a crisis pregnancy clinic in Ames. <br /><br />On Tuesday, the day he was leaving, I knew I had to give him the letter, so we went to his house. He said that he had something important to tell us. When we made it to his house, he took us aside and said that something had happened to him on Saturday night. When he made it home and went to sleep he had a dream.<br /><br />In the dream he was standing beside a giant body of water, an ocean, but it was dark water and filled with bodies floating face down, covering the entire surface. There were many giant pipes that were pouring into this ocean, flushing, constantly flushing, babies into this water. And all at once a young woman was standing there with him. She said to him, “Iwuozo, you must save these babies!” He ran to the water and tried to pick up the babies and hold them in his arms, but they were all dead. And it came to him that these were the bodies of the babies that had been destroyed by abortion – enough babies to fill an ocean. He woke up horrified.<br /><br />After he related his dream to us, he said that God had revealed to him the importance of the abortion issue and just how big it is. I started tearing up just from seeing evidence that the Holy Spirit still works in miraculous ways and because Iwuozo didn’t even know about my letter yet. I pulled it out and explained that on Sunday I had felt the Spirit urging me to write him a letter about this very issue. He took the letter and said that when he got back to Nigeria he was going to talk to his friend to get the story of what happened on the Nigerian radio. Please pray for this mini miracle to have a far-reaching impact and save women and babies from the pain of abortion.<br /><br />But there is even more. Also after Bible study, Mary had been praying and felt that she should get together information about abortion for Iwuozo to read on the plane and pray about the issue more. We found out later that she showed up at the airport and gave him this information also. So within twenty-four hours the Holy Spirit worked in three of our lives to hopefully have a lasting positive impact not just on Iwuozo, but on many more people.<br /><br />So believe that the Holy Spirit is still at work in the world! He truly is “the helper” that Jesus promised He would send to us after He was gone. Some dreams still have meanings and miracles happen everyday if we really open ourselves to God and we have our spiritual eyes open to see the results.<br /><br />But this experience has really had gotten to me. Before I knew that the Holy Spirit is still around and I’ve seen some crazy cool things at charismatic meetings, but how quickly I forget the power and reality of the Holy Spirit. This was a great example for me that the Holy Spirit will keep us solid in our ideals and with God if we are open. But I think the key is that we are really open. Iwuozo has dedicated himself 100% to God. In East Timor his priority has been #1 God and supporting people in their faith, with work being a necessary 2nd that is to be done and done well. That is why I believe that he was given a dream to let him know right away the Truth in this area. I can only hope that Brendan and I will be that close and open to God that if we get off track, He would intervene immediately, even with a dream.<br /><br />Praise God that He works in our lives in a real and intimate way to keep us close to Him! I pray that today we will all be open to the Holy Spirit and with eyes open to see God-caused “coincidences.”<br /><br />God bless,<br />Rachel and BrendanUnknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-6838908877945894032009-04-06T00:20:00.000-07:002009-04-06T01:13:27.946-07:00Random UpdatesWith lots of little things going on it’s easy to forget what has happened. Luckily pictures can help us remember. Here are some of the things that have happened recently that were caught on camera.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuMaGtT1-DOnby3SEClmg1Mwv5H1tyEutxjFJM3JYJnZvNyef3FMUz_Wly37KOl4rv5diIErJu6L_Dq-3Q1WL1LqFWqvszDiqazuSxH2NoWuO_tEj_28Mm4YOE4N1Kmlqk36JNlu6q3j62/s1600-h/IMG_6026.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuMaGtT1-DOnby3SEClmg1Mwv5H1tyEutxjFJM3JYJnZvNyef3FMUz_Wly37KOl4rv5diIErJu6L_Dq-3Q1WL1LqFWqvszDiqazuSxH2NoWuO_tEj_28Mm4YOE4N1Kmlqk36JNlu6q3j62/s320/IMG_6026.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321487636551721794" border="0" /></a><br />Here you can see Brendan judging at the university’s version of American Idol : ) It was a singing contest for the students. Five students confident in their singing abilities sang the same song, “When Earthangels Care,” and were judged by Brendan and two of the Sisters. After each singer each judge had to give feedback.<br /><br />The song is about caring and helping one another and it is the theme song of an organization led by Fr. John from Australia. He is a priest and pilot and he has raised money for the people of East Timor by flying around Australia. Part of these funds are used to send over volunteers including our former housemates, Bernadette and Therese. Anyway, the song is really good and it was a good choice for the contest.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ5WbqnftnF7C13ygBZluWO8khpi76NEd-D8yOfVlaM0QaqA5gEVBAzJDM7Cz92xgpTYCoNGGOs617SUFzdJcQJdeQxpJlii5wy4Wb3H1_YltDp7-Uebi7GKIFLKcbmsKcJDjzRaNKOfcI/s1600-h/IMG_6116.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ5WbqnftnF7C13ygBZluWO8khpi76NEd-D8yOfVlaM0QaqA5gEVBAzJDM7Cz92xgpTYCoNGGOs617SUFzdJcQJdeQxpJlii5wy4Wb3H1_YltDp7-Uebi7GKIFLKcbmsKcJDjzRaNKOfcI/s320/IMG_6116.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321487642029202226" border="0" /></a>Brendan is still playing basketball often. Here’s a picture he took of the court when the first players were getting to the court to warm up. It’s a really nice court, funded by AusAID and an Irish Aid group. It’s definitely a big community gathering place. Basketball goes from dusk until late into the night almost every night and there are always players, spectators, and little kids playing on the two swings and one teeter totter : )<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJGSSc6CXQSpqmlqnhG5_dmA7qE_fw5boaPeQ9VDpocwV5NAJf82lpe6k9WCnzj44SCA14ZuCCBkMgVdcnToBeSQY8c5pwsXjE9kh0BdLwPeN5RpHycWqcxSsNq49owKcneY6Ar82QsTo2/s1600-h/IMG_6124.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJGSSc6CXQSpqmlqnhG5_dmA7qE_fw5boaPeQ9VDpocwV5NAJf82lpe6k9WCnzj44SCA14ZuCCBkMgVdcnToBeSQY8c5pwsXjE9kh0BdLwPeN5RpHycWqcxSsNq49owKcneY6Ar82QsTo2/s320/IMG_6124.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321487640282183282" border="0" />I cleaned the inside of the house while Brendan spent a whole afternoon chopping down a giant growth in our small front yard. When he started it was as tall as him, but he got it down to less than a foot high. Now we can see our neighbors and talk with them as they go by!<br /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ45CmxkWkvFdBVczJR-ULCsxtw53w5GOw-MTtgQxKimaGoXTrwKd4dblPgiz-M48ne7tUV_QEZqeaWuBkqP7SOpjlQSCIBuZOi3ASmLHDowv4EGT3bCw416GChWuItwUEvbcVmJx-uQ5Z/s1600-h/IMG_6137.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ45CmxkWkvFdBVczJR-ULCsxtw53w5GOw-MTtgQxKimaGoXTrwKd4dblPgiz-M48ne7tUV_QEZqeaWuBkqP7SOpjlQSCIBuZOi3ASmLHDowv4EGT3bCw416GChWuItwUEvbcVmJx-uQ5Z/s320/IMG_6137.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321487643985932386" border="0" /></a><br />Here our neighbors Linda, Julia, and their friend show off their loja (shop) next to our house. Linda and Julia and all of their extended family all live in the house behind the shop. This is where we get all of our fresh fruits and vegetables for the week.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-XWwfEXoPD9JBePHbexJy5vI2TOJEeWcut3QuKqCsrFQXdF8SSrvAjiwKd-c__QHAIcTidfjZ6BcbrozPfqZd6HOF3yhD09TucdQvDyWyd7KzyMAS74hO6zDbA9Y852CZN4BFaXzdaEBU/s1600-h/IMG_6151.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-XWwfEXoPD9JBePHbexJy5vI2TOJEeWcut3QuKqCsrFQXdF8SSrvAjiwKd-c__QHAIcTidfjZ6BcbrozPfqZd6HOF3yhD09TucdQvDyWyd7KzyMAS74hO6zDbA9Y852CZN4BFaXzdaEBU/s320/IMG_6151.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321484178868005074" border="0" /></a><br />It doesn’t happen too often, but one night the electricity went out so we went outside to cool off for a few minutes. The night sky was beautiful, but the crazy part was that the moon was so bright it was like daylight. I’m not sure why that happens, but it’s pretty cool when it does.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7TVUor6SzU440aKUcU37cUrCyRYJmrMkTb3G257cmE2N-KsqeMdIdtnwgdGLWShI0Lz_WmgYGuPDpvCuaOEjRWXJHGb-iZc6XJxZ8K8wfl-1T6bb9rW4_axPE0rXW-f1obeFy4gf9cXCL/s1600-h/IMG_6159.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7TVUor6SzU440aKUcU37cUrCyRYJmrMkTb3G257cmE2N-KsqeMdIdtnwgdGLWShI0Lz_WmgYGuPDpvCuaOEjRWXJHGb-iZc6XJxZ8K8wfl-1T6bb9rW4_axPE0rXW-f1obeFy4gf9cXCL/s320/IMG_6159.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321484188753600882" border="0" /></a>There are a lot of geckos around here, which we like because they eat a lot of the bugs. Usually they stay out of sight or they sit on the top of the walls out of reach. But one day we came back from school and there was a gecko curled up in the corner. Brendan tried to get close to it and the gecko got scared and its tail popped off!!! It stayed curled up in the corner while we watched its tail twitch and flip back and forth for a few minutes (probably similar to what happens when a chicken runs around after its head is chopped off). Brendan even got a video. So here you can see the gecko with the reddened stump that used to be connected to its tail.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgO_Yi1rPxT8PR1aM0KnN7PCn-vxsPnO6ibh-Wh9nkt298ohzTbgqNqb24syETb-RvuuX_i9uM3T8ul78JicCqvErwcFhvM7ABtP2yCjr4wzi8ia9RPTDlDoAvrpdEacj7SW-FjC7US4Gp/s1600-h/IMG_6163.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgO_Yi1rPxT8PR1aM0KnN7PCn-vxsPnO6ibh-Wh9nkt298ohzTbgqNqb24syETb-RvuuX_i9uM3T8ul78JicCqvErwcFhvM7ABtP2yCjr4wzi8ia9RPTDlDoAvrpdEacj7SW-FjC7US4Gp/s320/IMG_6163.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321484190563312354" border="0" /></a><br />Here Brendan and I pose for a picture with Tomash, a Polish man, who is cycling his way around the world. We met him because while cycling through Australia he found Chris and Sali’s blog and contacted them to see if he could visit them while going through East Timor. The weekend we went to Baucau he arrived in Dili and we crossed paths while Brendan and I were headed home and he was on his way to meet Chris, Sali, and Dogmara.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnavVHKeCMkbGhAHEqtJ4leHkGlyVhcaL_H_JLHWuxEQujBg6lRNkYuGWVPVRBCaEVnzqU5lDQwzuX8vt0oHN1RCvC0A1yIOvFhmm4520lUMrwvLAE8uSFKHgFbO31rcUEegIZtnxGlykE/s1600-h/IMG_6164.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnavVHKeCMkbGhAHEqtJ4leHkGlyVhcaL_H_JLHWuxEQujBg6lRNkYuGWVPVRBCaEVnzqU5lDQwzuX8vt0oHN1RCvC0A1yIOvFhmm4520lUMrwvLAE8uSFKHgFbO31rcUEegIZtnxGlykE/s320/IMG_6164.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321482076398526290" border="0" /></a><br />He is a very friendly man and I think pretty fearless. He has cycled all over the world for the past couple of years with only the gear you see in the photo above and he stops and camps by the road at the end of the day unless he is invited to someone’s home.<br /><br />After a few weeks of cycling he had finished his loop around East Timor and he returned to Dili with many exciting stories. We ran into him again last week as we were headed out the door to Mass, so he came with us and came back for dinner after. He was very grateful for dinner because on the south side of East Timor it is mostly small villages and there are no restaurants or places that sell much food besides crackers or cookies. But he took it in stride and said that East Timor is still one of the top places he has been to, along with Peru, for the beauty of the scenery and the kindness of the people. I was exhausted so I went to bed, but Brendan and Tomash stayed up late swapping stories of their travels and looking at pictures. The next day Brendan helped him find some new sandals and then he was gone – cycling off to Indonesia.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5XfkVrm0TIirD3zPhR712-nbsyr1mT-nY2r0f4JfNAIbRL0FdPaq9HXcLISmFokbLbjOGR2NEMJLNf2G9cQagpWC9I5HehoG3dImyTjTnFJxEVvj4cNh29CDhUdG4kGbFPNsKUGfZjy3O/s1600-h/IMG_6184.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5XfkVrm0TIirD3zPhR712-nbsyr1mT-nY2r0f4JfNAIbRL0FdPaq9HXcLISmFokbLbjOGR2NEMJLNf2G9cQagpWC9I5HehoG3dImyTjTnFJxEVvj4cNh29CDhUdG4kGbFPNsKUGfZjy3O/s320/IMG_6184.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321482086976787282" border="0" /></a>One of the weekday Masses at the church we go to near our house. It’s a good example of Timorese architecture for their larger buildings. Everything is built to help deal with the heat. Significant buildings all have high ceilings and many windows. There are also fans mounted on the walls to help with the big crowds at church on Sundays and other special days.<br /><br />One thing that might be interesting to everybody at home is the “pews” and kneelers. People here don’t really have posture problems because everything is built to be functional and not for comfort. Most chairs that we’ve seen are straight-backed chairs made out of wood. The same goes for church with the seats and the boards you kneel on. When you sit you are leaning against little more than a well sanded board and unless you sit correctly it’s pretty uncomfortable. It’s funny how the situation in East Timor often forces you to do what’s good for your health (eating less and more healthy, walking a lot, having good posture, etc.). Hopefully we can develop healthy habits to keep up when we get home.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2E1fcHiiXqe87AsgOjYyaMh3wvRbbJ1ZIefg1nNE2j0VjMm06I8nT7zRWNsc3rLq77-kpM61C9v0tS2jGsHQe3ozIdMX_w_xtj7fSWggivIoIuiMom8HOss_tcI2EV9aJcuO-6hhNNv2E/s1600-h/IMG_6183.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2E1fcHiiXqe87AsgOjYyaMh3wvRbbJ1ZIefg1nNE2j0VjMm06I8nT7zRWNsc3rLq77-kpM61C9v0tS2jGsHQe3ozIdMX_w_xtj7fSWggivIoIuiMom8HOss_tcI2EV9aJcuO-6hhNNv2E/s320/IMG_6183.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321482088510627234" border="0" /></a><br />Lastly, here are the members of the English Bible study (and Brendan who was taking the picture). It really is a good time and something I look forward to every week. From left to right you have Donna, a dental assistant and PALMS volunteer from Australia who is here for two years. Next is Chinedu Iwuozo, a UN Peacekeeper from Nigeria who started the Bible study and is an amazing Catholic Christian and evangelist. Then Valery (pronounced val-air-ee), from Cameroon.<br /><br />Next is Mary, an Nigerian grandmother who works for the UN also. She also has an especially beautiful and intimate walk with Jesus. I love her reflections! And then there is Maria, a wonderful and brave Timorese girl who speaks English so well that she can handle not only the discussions in English, but all the Biblical language. She is very solid in her faith and through her we hope to give more Timorese the confidence to come to the English Bible study (many of them study the Bible, but in Tetum and Indonesian).<br /><br /><br />So those are some tidbits from March. Hope you enjoyed them and we hope that everything is going well for you. We love you guys and you are always in our prayers!<br /><br />Always,<br />Rach and BrendanUnknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-9511592705686785352009-03-29T18:46:00.000-07:002009-03-29T18:51:46.385-07:00Phil's Birthday!Phil is turning 18 on March 26th! 18 is an exciting time, not because you can legally smoke, but because its the time of the transition between high school and college. Phil will graduate in May and will be moving on to Iowa State University.<br /><br />And we know he will thrive there because not only is he intelligent, but he is also great with people, really funny, musically talented, and very athletic.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsKG64vFP_5fJuunS6Emrwfj0eq-PdH78lE1bifeYpMJ-vRqeoCx8t-XRDycQhyphenhyphenM00TC-kAvaauKncXKOA5MC5ox4Xd7B_-6vz8_3dK49aL09tn4onVocBp6NxrFSwP2F8SFD5rE4UUyDt/s1600-h/phil+wedding+2.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 96px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsKG64vFP_5fJuunS6Emrwfj0eq-PdH78lE1bifeYpMJ-vRqeoCx8t-XRDycQhyphenhyphenM00TC-kAvaauKncXKOA5MC5ox4Xd7B_-6vz8_3dK49aL09tn4onVocBp6NxrFSwP2F8SFD5rE4UUyDt/s320/phil+wedding+2.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318792241136379154" border="0" /></a>And did I mention hes a snappy dresser? Where he got his fashion sense I dont know I was the kid who insisted on wearing purple converse, pale green knee high socks, a white t- shirt, and black and white polka-dotted overall shorts to my 8th birthday party. Well just say its obvious that Phil is at the other end of the spectrum.<br /><br />We know hes going to dominate ISU intramurals because hes good at all sports. As far as school sports goes he has played football, run cross country, and he is the goalie for the soccer team. But he also excels in tennis, ultimate Frisbee, and basketball. Once he tries it, I think we will have to add broomball to the list of sports he excels at. I think within 4 years he will have many of the treasured Intramural Championship t-shirts.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggLzBaUbVUzOHD_09nbkOUR7C1Af_qI94bLvbK7VdvZ7gO_NXbaPIk14M6GSE8w_6gw02QKzOqhi_MtvaU1cDePs3KmnfwBm3EwWFAYFC2DfcF4yIqil0r9OEllpsT0SyQnHA4k3fs5KnF/s1600-h/phil+senior+picture.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 233px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggLzBaUbVUzOHD_09nbkOUR7C1Af_qI94bLvbK7VdvZ7gO_NXbaPIk14M6GSE8w_6gw02QKzOqhi_MtvaU1cDePs3KmnfwBm3EwWFAYFC2DfcF4yIqil0r9OEllpsT0SyQnHA4k3fs5KnF/s320/phil+senior+picture.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318792236557611378" border="0" /></a>Hes also a little bit of a heartbreaker and the girls are always after him. One of my favorite stories about Phil in recent years is about how Phil caused an accident with his good looks. So Phil and my brother James and some of their friends were going for a run and it was burning hot so Phil had taken his t-shirt off. Their group was jogging quickly up a hill while a high school girl was driving in the same direction. She couldnt help but shoot a quick glance at Phil, which might have been ok .except for the line of cars stopped at the red light in front of her. She slammed on the brakes, but skidded with a crunch into a minivans fender while the boys kept running. Poor girl, how do you explain that to your parents?<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMCzPSYw4-NCIDC3OVLpAY8aeukpjEA293TvO2IU5UrnZdsaFRRbHPLlTKc7GWYAcLnQ9k40Vne_TYcEkiaSWiHRmbK_NxgNVIUdI3csPQQF7t67qzm8Po5YOYWYhIQjrFapImWIOCzMaR/s1600-h/coloradophil.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMCzPSYw4-NCIDC3OVLpAY8aeukpjEA293TvO2IU5UrnZdsaFRRbHPLlTKc7GWYAcLnQ9k40Vne_TYcEkiaSWiHRmbK_NxgNVIUdI3csPQQF7t67qzm8Po5YOYWYhIQjrFapImWIOCzMaR/s320/coloradophil.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318792236211432850" border="0" /></a><br />While these are some of Phils characteristics, Im most proud of him because he is a genuinely good guy. Hes a hard worker, helpful and friendly, and respectful of others. Hes chosen good friends who like to have a ton of the right kind of fun. I know his life will be exciting and that God will use him to do many good things.<br /><br />So happy 18th birthday Phil! Wishing you all the best during this exciting time!<br /><br />Love always,<br />Rach and BrendanUnknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8510783305123222329.post-28524079743984972502009-03-19T19:17:00.000-07:002009-03-19T19:41:07.356-07:00March MadnessThe first weekend in March we took a trip to Baucau because Brendan’s basketball team was playing in a tournament there. Brendan plays basketball regularly at a court near our house and some of the guys he plays with asked him to join their team. The trip also gave us a chance to visit Chris, Sali, and Dogmara, the other VOICA volunteers, who we hadn’t seen since Christmas.<br /><br />So we were trying to figure out if we could make it up to Baucau. We knew our car isn’t reliable enough and the team only had one car for the drive the next day. So it was up in the air if we would be able to go because if there wasn’t room for both of us, Brendan wouldn’t go because he didn’t want to leave me in Dili alone.<br /><br />We decided that we would rent motorcycles and drive them to Baucau ourselves, because we’d been thinking about renting them for a couple of weeks and this was the perfect opportunity.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv3WsdyTSOuTzzH6bvLl-ab2rwRmZY1GeAnroLkwxoM_EBubbf5VfDeuDKP5dSWO_QeEe89olwgQqMKt73B6vwzsVmrImcXkmr39DTLdMkEu-1CQNBsYyHh4xAB9mFUo_oUFgiwDLj4kze/s1600-h/IMG_6042+2.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv3WsdyTSOuTzzH6bvLl-ab2rwRmZY1GeAnroLkwxoM_EBubbf5VfDeuDKP5dSWO_QeEe89olwgQqMKt73B6vwzsVmrImcXkmr39DTLdMkEu-1CQNBsYyHh4xAB9mFUo_oUFgiwDLj4kze/s320/IMG_6042+2.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5315093032773655058" border="0" /></a>Here’s Brendan waiting patiently for the rental man to come.<br /><br />While we waited some of the technicians let us have a look at the bikes available and we picked out these two.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqwVa1w9QtCMEnutSaV-RSOATpAyIKhWvlAS5m_1Xgobs46S5R-nGMiZyDfavbezxyQ7BVFjdv9q0ZFqySwVXRk7NsPPzQKM22kS-jUzERITgxjQQb9lsrDRnhphP_EhoWP2OMtVbXnLnO/s1600-h/IMG_6041+2.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqwVa1w9QtCMEnutSaV-RSOATpAyIKhWvlAS5m_1Xgobs46S5R-nGMiZyDfavbezxyQ7BVFjdv9q0ZFqySwVXRk7NsPPzQKM22kS-jUzERITgxjQQb9lsrDRnhphP_EhoWP2OMtVbXnLnO/s320/IMG_6041+2.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5315093030135932434" border="0" /></a><br />I got the pink Vario on the left, a motor scooter, since it’s easier to handle and I had never been on a motorcycle or scooter up until that morning. Brendan had the motorcycle on the right because he already knew what he was doing. <br /><br />The rental process was shockingly easy. They got copies of our driver’s licenses and payment, they gave us helmets, and we were ready. Brendan briefed me on how to work my motor scooter, I practiced for five minutes in the parking lot, we said a quick prayer, and we headed out.<br /><br />Going through Dili was the scariest part, but God blessed us with surprisingly light traffic to navigate through. Brendan led and we hugged the left side of the road (they drive on the left side of the road here) and went slow until we were out of town. <br /><br />But once we were out of town it was glorious! The road between Dili and Baucau is pretty good and there isn’t much traffic, just a few motorcycles and buses. So for a lot of the way it was just Brendan and I, a cool breeze, and incredibly beautiful scenery.<br /><br />To get out of Dili, the road takes you up to the top of a small mountain and down the other side. On the way down you’re looking out over a valley of vivid green and the road as it closes in on the shoreline. We climbed and descended hills next to the shore for the next hour.<br /><br />I can’t explain how exciting this experience was. The view from our motorbikes was amazing! The colors of the hills and ocean were colors I felt I’d never seen before – it was like the colors had been digitally enhanced, but NO this was real life! In awe of this stretch I broke into song. I know many songs by heart, but the only songs that seemed appropriate were worship songs to God. And I sang/shouted into the face shield of my helmet I saw Brendan driving up in front of me…I love that man! There are sometimes in life when it’s all laid out in front of you – everything you’ve been blessed with. This was one of those times…<br /><br />I saw this beautiful country where God led us to do service and help people grow in relationship with Him and I saw my loving husband. Right now we’re doing something I never thought possible and enjoying a great young marriage and growing together while having amazing experiences we’ll hopefully be able to tell our grandkids about. I tried to take a mental video of the view from my motor scooter so I could recall it when life inevitably has a few dips. It was one of those moments where you think: Life doesn’t get any better than this! <span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz-wTJiQQtfcoZ0rMqfoAkWoNt36-Xqnja6Z4vnd4eIL2ivDc8VeMJjB1NbxuNQ9qEe0QwakDkLtbrTVHn1dp7WwnWHwZa0bkMj01fatrf5jxvc5I-9QQ2_6nv-Csj3C-3eSXdA2D7jRzL/s1600-h/IMG_6045+2.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz-wTJiQQtfcoZ0rMqfoAkWoNt36-Xqnja6Z4vnd4eIL2ivDc8VeMJjB1NbxuNQ9qEe0QwakDkLtbrTVHn1dp7WwnWHwZa0bkMj01fatrf5jxvc5I-9QQ2_6nv-Csj3C-3eSXdA2D7jRzL/s320/IMG_6045+2.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5315093023475689714" border="0" /></a><br />We stopped after an hour to take a five minute break on the side of the road and Brendan caught this picture.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglTCzIm08j8VSqUdVlpRJxxbDVpn8mwxzk_o_w1eTzuKyScH6U6HZyo__IrPvO9F3etKVfi-Bv9ezqBJCIKfTcFbx8WlRlHfZSfSwgxwJ67ueUCaIQ2iqz6vihqwPL7UXTZIY1JUDHTVec/s1600-h/IMG_6047+2.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglTCzIm08j8VSqUdVlpRJxxbDVpn8mwxzk_o_w1eTzuKyScH6U6HZyo__IrPvO9F3etKVfi-Bv9ezqBJCIKfTcFbx8WlRlHfZSfSwgxwJ67ueUCaIQ2iqz6vihqwPL7UXTZIY1JUDHTVec/s320/IMG_6047+2.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5315093020937335074" border="0" /></a><br />And here’s Brendan, the master motorcyclist. Like a scout he led the way, making sure to double honk going around the mountain curves. With him up front I felt totally comfortable.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdvhZrv4GDxAbV8fWq7FbJkZoam1UbZ2Q4r8javOGsrSED6Wf_kuytGk0Bh8Q5kMDevBZWFe_sLKdEcr7X_nff1xDQfOc3TpHR8kGTWPMdQPAIGHfTeG62Q5ooLnzsoQxPZ2HCwU8vqwd1/s1600-h/IMG_6050+2.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdvhZrv4GDxAbV8fWq7FbJkZoam1UbZ2Q4r8javOGsrSED6Wf_kuytGk0Bh8Q5kMDevBZWFe_sLKdEcr7X_nff1xDQfOc3TpHR8kGTWPMdQPAIGHfTeG62Q5ooLnzsoQxPZ2HCwU8vqwd1/s320/IMG_6050+2.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5315090175548008978" border="0" /></a><br />Things were going great, but when we were an hour and a half outside of Dili we came across an accident. There were a lot of people crowded around, and we decided to stop and make sure everything was ok just in case. It’s lucky that we did.<br /><br />There were about twenty Timorese in a big truck that had stopped and someone had called the police so they all left, but after all the people cleared we realized that the injured motorcyclist had been moved under a tree by the side of the road and left. We recognized him as a nice guy who had honked and waved as he passed us on the road earlier.<br /><br />He had a big open gash in his right leg along with scrapes. We gave him some water and tried to find out what happened. We were going to rip up one of our extra t-shirts to make a bandage for his leg, but luckily some other malae (foreigners) came along going to the same b-ball tournament as Brendan, and they had a first aid kit. The man wasn’t bleeding too badly from the gash, so they let me wrap it and pretty much cover his right leg in Neosporin. Our new friends offered to take him to a clinic in Baucau. Just as they were ready to leave the man said he thought his wrist was broken. They sped away and got him to the clinic as fast as they could.<br /><br />Having done everything we could, we got back on our bikes and rode on. It was a little sobering to realize that you really never know when something like that could happen to you or someone you know. For the next hour I was kicking myself that I should have done more – I could have used some tape to close the gash since it wasn’t bleeding badly and I could have splinted his wrist to avoid further damage. But next time I will be more ready. Real life is a little different from first aid classes, and to be prepared to help effectively under pressure is something I want to learn.<br /><br />We continued on to Baucau and made it there safely, a few hours before Brendan’s first game that was supposed to be at 3:00. We drove up outside the volunteer house in Baucau and called to see if anyone was home. Then we dropped off our stuff and they fed us lunch. We rested for awhile before we walked up to the school where the Don Bosco Basketball Tournament was being held.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_hZRC4Bc9kMVSpZ0jx21eCEe9zYsvVzZ1ajm13-PoBWqQzCSbeoEVHjriZc5cb8unGFJzMLBr4wGnNVRjbtyozoR2ddBlTvW6KhNh-JNWuZCmHFQtnYqlcdio-JnmMr39tZt8ZuDQP9rY/s1600-h/IMG_6053+2.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_hZRC4Bc9kMVSpZ0jx21eCEe9zYsvVzZ1ajm13-PoBWqQzCSbeoEVHjriZc5cb8unGFJzMLBr4wGnNVRjbtyozoR2ddBlTvW6KhNh-JNWuZCmHFQtnYqlcdio-JnmMr39tZt8ZuDQP9rY/s320/IMG_6053+2.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5315090175233026962" border="0" /></a><br />On the way we admired the wicked sunburns we had gotten from our spontaneous journey. Not until we were an hour out of Dili did we realize we had forgotten our sunscreen and we paid for it for a few days. We were red for awhile, and then looked Timorese from our t-shirt sleeve line down, and finally the peeling began. But now our arms are almost back to normal and I’ve been wearing sunscreen everyday since that experience. Sometimes it’s still hard to remember that we’re in the tropics and the rules of the game are different here, but we’re learning.<br /><br />We made it to the tournament around 3:00 for the game, but, it being Timor, Brendan’s game didn’t start until around 4:00. But it gave them ample time to warm up and get used to their awesome, white and gold, Tracy McGrady uniforms that had come in that morning.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHOv-REixy3HoC1bOGLBOirjawW-SAScamrlWrxNQ4Zy5qd10d9N91zmiy2UBIb5AqX5ihtisCVEeu_AYc61RwaB5UUptu7Hvpu78hqg6tAUHnwFS2iJXfYyThC_FvDqtawdQMvzA9UpX5/s1600-h/IMG_6072+2.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHOv-REixy3HoC1bOGLBOirjawW-SAScamrlWrxNQ4Zy5qd10d9N91zmiy2UBIb5AqX5ihtisCVEeu_AYc61RwaB5UUptu7Hvpu78hqg6tAUHnwFS2iJXfYyThC_FvDqtawdQMvzA9UpX5/s320/IMG_6072+2.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5315090164385510178" border="0" /></a><br />Here is Brendan before the game talking with one of his teammates. In fact this is the only Timorese guy we have seen that is just as tall as Brendan, and luckily enough they are both on the same team!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCbabry4s7a2V7rziNbtBMKCpp40wjD1DNVRUtaTT0TwFJOnpdhLiwP35kZb9k3MkAVaP6Bb7rWz5LUntl7ADe2OZb_vQUBUezx6M3AecgPwCVcyw3DmvYZEwivyZCFMrY0HoSrnbFcsJq/s1600-h/IMG_6096+2.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCbabry4s7a2V7rziNbtBMKCpp40wjD1DNVRUtaTT0TwFJOnpdhLiwP35kZb9k3MkAVaP6Bb7rWz5LUntl7ADe2OZb_vQUBUezx6M3AecgPwCVcyw3DmvYZEwivyZCFMrY0HoSrnbFcsJq/s320/IMG_6096+2.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5315090165460822930" border="0" /></a><br />Here Brendan (the only really tall, white one on the court) sinks a shot during warm ups.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcrRwJhDrHMJQlitLCqiavILmLkYK7JizkMz1OyHkxPjQDaDLaH2_1mtpTnBvbon93s6NgT0ARaSgMDWYbPy8r8jXktUPtLewZm2TVZ7pLF9IsT_5RuW-p4F7HDs8-umZMKywYzjo9ix-5/s1600-h/IMG_6099+2.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcrRwJhDrHMJQlitLCqiavILmLkYK7JizkMz1OyHkxPjQDaDLaH2_1mtpTnBvbon93s6NgT0ARaSgMDWYbPy8r8jXktUPtLewZm2TVZ7pLF9IsT_5RuW-p4F7HDs8-umZMKywYzjo9ix-5/s320/IMG_6099+2.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5315090160856631842" border="0" /></a><br />When they were finally ready to begin, they got set for the tip off. Brendan started the game and you can see him on the bottom right, paired off for the tip off. And right as the game began, the camera battery died (as it usually does when it would be nice to have some pictures : )<br /><br />They’re first game didn’t go as well as hoped, but Brendan played very well and scored most of the points for their team in the first half. In the second half he chose to sit for awhile so that the other players could get in. So the game didn’t go so hot, but all of us spectators agreed that Brendan had done a great job.<br /><br />The other team was very good and happened to be coached by one of the malae who had stopped at the scene of the accident. Brendan was able to talk with him after the game and found out the injured man had made it to the clinic and was doing ok.<br /><br />After the game we relaxed, ate really good homemade pizza, and were able to catch up with Chris, Sali, and Dogmara. A lot had happened since Christmas so there were a lot of stories to hear and pictures to see. But after awhile the tiredness from the ride and the pain of the sunburn got to us and we went to sleep.<br /><br />We woke up early to go to Sunday Mass with everyone else and then come back for breakfast. We had been invited to join C, S, & D for a trip to the beach at Los Palos with the Sisters and boarding school students, but Brendan would have had to miss his basketball game so we opted to hang out around the house until his game. So they left and had a good trip to the beach, while we had a relaxing Sunday at their house, periodically applying aloe vera to our sunburn.<br /><br />We made some Supermi for lunch too. Supermi is Brendan’s new favorite food. It’s the equivalent to Ramen noodles here, but they have incredible spice packets with them that make them incredible. So instead of being chicken-, beef-, or shrimp-flavored, they are flavored with chilies, a brown powder, and a brown sauce like spicy soy sauce. (Our Baucau friend Chris also loves them too ? )When we don’t use everything, we save the spice packets and use them to spice up rice. Most importantly, Brendan has discovered and patented the best way to cook them and has taught some of our friends.<br /><br />After lunch and some more relaxing we went up to the court so Brendan could get ready for his game. There was a light rain that went on all afternoon, but they kept playing. When the game finally got started, it went really well. Brendan’s team played against the team from Los Palos.<br /><br />This game went much better. Brendan’s coach actually coached instead of playing the whole game and it made an obvious difference. All the players got in, including the players who weren’t as tall, and they picked a new strategy which helped them dominate the game. And Brendan did great again : )<br /><br />After the game we went back to the volunteer house, but Chris, Sali, and Dogmara weren’t home yet so we bought some things for dinner and started making it to surprise them. They got home late because rain had made the journey back difficult and much slower, but it sounded like they had a good time at the beach. So we all ate and they showed us pictures and we were able to talk some more before turning in.<br /><br />The plan was to get up and be on the road by 6:30am so we could be back in Dili by late morning, but it didn’t exactly work out that way. We had almost made it out of Baucau when we stopped to figure out why my scooter felt wobbly going around curves. It turned out we had a flat tire!<br /><br />The morning was a little stressful, but we met many very nice people: people at the nearby service station who excitedly patched the three holes in the tube so we could get the motor scooter to Star Motor on the other side of town, people who texted us the phone number for rental place, and the people at the rental place who were very understanding.<br /><br />Brendan, Dogmara, and Salvador, one of the men who help the Canossian Sisters in Baucau, worked some magic and the tire was fixed by the early afternoon. We ate a quick lunch and left to make it home before dark. The trip home was uneventful except for a light rainstorm and we eventually made it home around dinner time. We dropped off the motor bikes at Tiger Fuel and the owner, who we had talked to on the phone, was so nice about us being late and didn’t ask us pay for the extra day. We took a taxi home, dried off, and to end our March Madness weekend we splurged and went out to get a pizza. Finally home, full, and dry we collapsed into bed after an unforgettable weekend.<br /><br />Hope all is well with you guys!<br /><br />Love always,<br />Rachel and BrendanUnknownnoreply@blogger.com4