Back in Tennessee!

        Well, it has been awhile since I wrote last. Amos and I are now in the States and a tropical storm hit Santo Domingo. Jonathan is checking on family and church members and I feel so helpless being up here and unable to do much. But in a way it is easier as well because he does not need to worry about our safety.

            Friday is the last day for one of my grad school classes. This latest one was an English classes where we learned about the importance of writing and how to teach writing in a classroom. I really enjoyed the course and I am a bit sad to see it end. However, that means I am that much closer to completing my degree so that is an encouragement.

            I found out that I will be teaching classroom 3^rd grade (all subjects except specials and Spanish) at my new school. This is not the challenge I was expecting but I am excited about it. My new classroom is tiny (I will show pictures in a future post) but I only have 9 students so it should be fine. The school is just starting its 5^th year but is steadily growing so that is awesome.

Because I am teaching 3^rd grade, I had to decide a different classroom theme because the one I was planning on doing was middle school English oriented. So I thought I would do elephants but that was this class’ theme last year. So, I have decided on….Pineapples! With accents of purple and a touch of green. I thought that would be fun for the kids, especially since pineapples are common there and it is a sign of welcome. Since that is my theme, I have been collecting a few things for my classroom which has been fun but also required a lot of thinking outside the box. It is not a common classroom theme yet, and most stuff is like neon tropical paradise stuff. I am enjoying the creative part but trying to find stuff for limited money is a bot of a challenge….plus the fact I have a small classroom and I have to think about where everything will go. Posters are a no go due to sheer lack of wall space. But I can do little caddies and ceiling decorations. So far, so good!

Amos is enjoying the time here. He loves the attention, the toys and the shopping! There are 4 cats and a rabbit to play with plus uncles that are around. Grammie has all these cool things that he is not supposed to play with as well that he tries to sneak any way.

Well, that is all I have time to write for now. Amos needs to go down for a nap. I have another post in progress so I will try to get that up next week. Until next time, may Adonai bless you.

Summer time

Hello everyone---

I know it has been a while since my last post. This has been a rather difficult week outside of school, so I want to spend a little time talking about that.

My beloved dog died last week (run over by a car), my husband and I officially informed our school that we will not be returning next year and I missed my big brother’s graduation from the State Trooper academy. I will be heading Stateside next week for a visit, but I am upset that I was unable to make it to his graduation. He has wanted to be a lawman for so long and after extended higher education, marriage and other things, he is finally one! He is so excited and we are so proud of him!

My husband and I left our school for a variety of reasons, most of which were ethical. However, Jonathan being a Pastor, he also felt that the demands at this particular school were so heavy that ministry had to take a back seat and we are not okay with that. He is teaching at a summer camp but after that, he is officially unemployed. I left also for ethical reasons, but also for medical reasons. My medical condition worsens with stress and teaching 2 subjects and the extra requirements by the school, plus ministry, plus grad school, plus being a wife and mother was just too much. I did accept a teaching position at a different school that has less afterschool and weekend requirements, and less hours overall. It is also a Christian school so I can be open about my faith and teach from a scriptural standpoint. I am hoping all these factors will help decrease my stress so that I can focus more on other things. I am also praying my husband finds a job soon. Surly as a bilingual person with a master’s degree someone will want to hire him! I think the harder part will be finding a job with consistent hours so he can still focus on ministry.

I am really enjoying grad school. I honestly never thought I would get a masters, especially not in English, but the Lord has a sense of humor! Most of my life I was told I was stupid because my handwriting is atrocious, I cannot spell and I was home schooled. My goal is to graduate from Liberty as a member of the honor society. Even though the naysayers are no longer in my life, I carry scars from them and I want to be able to prove to myself, and students that also struggle with dyslexia that you can still achieve great things. The dyslexic brain works differently, learn how your brain works and use it to your advantage. Dyslexia doesn’t mean dumb, it means different.  

I will get off my soap box now.

I have been watching some youtube videos about bullet journaling and teacher planners trying to prepare for the upcoming school year and find a system that will allow me to keep track of personal, ministry and work life. One of the videos I watched had a suggested video about a quote journal. Out of curiosity I watched it. I really like the idea. I have several spare journals (I seem to collect them!) so I started a quote journal…which my husband’s cat promptly vomited on. Why do I like animals again? But I digress, I have found that quote journaling is actually therapeutic for me. Right up there with creative writing and crochet. So, I am going to try to institute a few minutes of quote journaling every day. I also think I found a method of planning that will work, so I am going to get me planner/teacher binder set up this summer.

The church Jonathan is currently the interim pastor at (he is training the new pastor) is in a rural area. It is a very poor area that has unreliable water and sanitation. One of the women living near the church has requested I teach a crochet program so that the women can make things to bring in more money. The average income there is only minimum wage which is about $200 us dollars a month. Considering that I spend that on groceries for 2 weeks, I have no idea how they make it stretch for a month. And we do not live a rich or fancy lifestyle at all, a very modest one in fact. So, I have agreed to teach the class when I return form the States at the end of July. So now I need to create a crochet class, for Spanish speakers, and I speak very limited Spanish. My Husband will translate but this is a challenge for sure. Ministry life does not leave time for boredom that is for sure!

I will end this lengthy post. Until next time, may Adonai bless you and your homes.

A Healthy Dose of Perspective

           I have been having a pity partly lately. My pain is higher than normal due to the increased stress of being this close to the end of the school year. In addition, I have come to accept that we cannot afford for me to fly to the States this summer. Our moved that happened over Easter, completely drained our savings. I knew it would be either the more or going to the States, but I thought we could tighten our belts and do both. However, since there is a payment issue from our employer, and several other factors, it just is not possible. As a result, I have been feeling sorry for myself because I really wanted to see my Mom and watch my brother graduate from the police academy. But the Lord has said no, so I need to accept that.

            Yesterday, I was thinking about how sad I was to not go back over the summer and went with Jonathan to Cancela for Bible study. I do not normally do that because that is my scheduled grad school time. But, I only have some simple things to do so I felt like I could afford the time to go this week (Cancela is a church outside of town that is in a really poor area). As we pulled up to the church we noticed that a house next to the church was undergoing major construction. Concerned, because we know the residents, Jonathan inquired. Turns out that wife delivered their firstborn this morning (a boy!) but the doctor’s diagnosis was correct. The baby has fluid on his brain and needs surgery. While dealing with this, the husband was in the home when some police showed up by the Landlord’s order and bulldozed the house. So the man now has a very sick baby, no money for surgery, no home, a broken motorcycle thanks to the bulldozer, and it appeared that his source of income (raising fish and chickens) was also destroyed.

            The church is going to do what it can to help, but obviously, this man is devastated. As of when we left yesterday evening, he had not yet seen his baby because he and some kind-hearted neighbors were rebuilding the home. His wife was also unaware of the demolition so he was going to have to tell her at some point. The house itself was/is made of sheets of tin metal. Not sturdy at all and they are preparing to bring a sick baby into it. It really made me step back and realize that my not going Stateside is not a big deal. We are strong and healthy, we have a sturdy, clean house and although money is tight right now, we can make ends meet and make it through the summer with no payment (gotta love being a teacher!).

            Sometimes the lord gives us a new perspective when we start to lose focus on what is really important. I had to eat some humble pie last night but I am grateful for the lesson, especially since I was holding my healthy and strong son’s hand as he fell asleep on the way home.  

      Until next time, may Adoani bless you and your homes

Thoughts on the Diary of Anne Frank

Hello everyone!

Recently, I read the “Diary of a Young Girl” by Anne Frank. Yes, I just now read it for the first time. I was not so struck by the diary itself, as I was visualizing where the family was and what they were going through; as a Mother. I tried to imagine what Mrs. Frank was feeling during that time and how I would feel in her shoes. I then began to think about the Holocaust and how all those mothers felt as they were being shipped there, their families being split and sorted, trying to figure out how to keep your precious child(ren) alive, etc. I had been wondering how parents could willingly give up their children to strangers to keep, or sneak them away, but now that I have Amos, I get it.

I have also wondered how come so few people would stand up for or protect/hide the Jews from the Nazis. I know they were protecting themselves and their families but what about their moral obligation? This is still a very difficult question for me to grapple. Again, having Amos has put a whole new spin on it for me. If I were in a place to shelter people being rounded up to be sent to extermination camps, would I hide them? Knowing that if I do, Amos would be hurt if we were found out, would I still do it? It brings a level of understanding of other peoples actions during that time. It was a risk, often a life or death risk. However, we also have to remember that the full extent of what happened in those camps was not fully known to the public until after they were liberated. So some of the people’s refusal to help was out of their own ignorance. I am sure if the full brutality and inhumanity that was endured in the camps was known, there would have been more of an uprising. But that is all speculation and “what ifs”

   One thing I can say for sure though. The reading of the diary and my renewed interest and research in WW2 has taught me some extremely beneficial lessons for being here on the mission field. It is easy to look the other way when uncomfortable situations occur. It is easy to justify not helping someone whom we think is fully capable of holding a job, etc. However, here in the Dominican, some of these homeless, dirty, beggars are victims of the government or unethical employers who did not pay the wages due to them and they are now out on the streets. I am not saying this is the case with all or even most of the people we meet, but if we pass by one, are we any better than those who turned a blind eye and/or deaf ear in WW2? How hard is it to offer food or a blanket instead of money? How about paying for a hotel room for a night so they can have a shower and a warm bed to sleep in? Just one night might make all the difference in the world to that one person. What about going without that coffee this one morning so that man sleeping under the overpass can have a warm breakfast? A $4 Starbucks coffee could buy a couple of egg sandwiches at McDonalds.

There are so many people in need. Everyone can do something, even if it is nothing more than smiling and waving at them so they know that someone noticed and cared that they exist. When someone feels invisible and worthless, then a stranger smiles and waves at them, for no reason, just because they are there, it can completely change that person’s day. Someone noticed, someone cared, and they are not alone in this world.

 You don’t have to hide Jews or spend your life on the mission field to make a difference. You can do that in small, unique ways. Don’t be in a personal bubble all the time. Believe me, as an introvert, I know that is a very hard thing to do! I like my little bubble! But sometimes, that bubble must be popped or put aside in order for others to know that you care about them. Not because they are in need, but because they are creatures that were created by the Almighty and they are loved by him, so are loved by you.

Until next time. May Adonai bless you and your homes.  

Finally! Another post!

Hello again! Sorry for the long time between posts. I am ½ way through with my last grad school class for this semester so I hopefully my posts will become more regular after that!

There has been a lot going on that I cannot discuss just yet, but the Lord has answered several prayers. I am now at a place where the future is a lot closer than I realize and some very serious and life changing choices must be made. The same with Jonathan as well. Ministry is still our mine focus but we cannot dedicate as much time as we want or need too and we are seeking ways to resolve this. We have bills to pay and family to feed so we have to work, but the jobs that pay what is needed to live, are very demanding of our time. It leaves us in a difficult place so prayers for wisdom would be appreciated.

On the same note, I am considering trying to get some more medical training. I am only first aid certified, but have knowledge for other injuries thanks to my parents….and my brothers. There is a great need for medical here. In the last month there have been 3 different significant injuries I have witnessed and 2 of which I helped with. There were several others that I did not get up close with due to people already being there, but it has caused me to start assembling a large, heavily stocked first aid kit to keep in the car(s). I cannot take medical classes here due to my Spanish still not being very good, but once grad school stops I am hoping to find some videos or books or something. I am being drawn back to my original dream of being a nurse. I know I cannot ever be one, but at least some basic EMT training would be beneficial here. Especially out at the rural church we are temporarily caring for. The sanitation is bad, medical supplies and care limited at best, and no money for people that do need the local hospital/clinic. It is a difficult mental place to be, wanting to help but having limited supplies and knowledge. So please pray the Lord gives me wisdom about how to gain more medical knowledge, with the little time and money we have.

Jonathan is keeping very busy. Between his teaching, husband/father responsibilities and ministry duties, he hardly has any time to sleep. I have also had a flare up medically this week and has had to pull a lot of extra weight as a result. Poor guy is running on empty. Please pray for him.

We did get our inverter fixed so we can at least have lights and fans 24/7. None of the appliances run on the inverter, but I can work around that. It is just nice to have 24/7 light and fans! We have our normal issues with cars and car repairs, but both are running for now so Praise the Lord for that! One car is for ministry either us or others and then we have our personal car that is used when needed.

We fixed our inverter because over the Easter break we moved. We plan on returning to Isabelita, but the mold and mildew was causing health issues with Amos and me. Plus, we just needed more space. We moved to the north side of town, and live in a 3 bedroom, 2 bath home. It is in a secluded area and is very quiet (thank you Lord!) and we have nice and respectful neighbors. Amos loves having a room and I am enjoying having space to put things! Bembito and Bunt were not happy at first, but they have adjusted and like the new house and neighborhood. Bunt is the king cat and Bembito is trying to be alpha dog, but enjoys being inside so it is not progressing well!  

    Well, that is all for now. Until next time, may Adonai bless you and your homes.

The significance of Passover

It is Good Friday and Passover begins at sundown tonight. As I searched the city of Santo Domingo for lamb to cook for dinner tonight (I was unsuccessful by the way) I began to think about the significance of these two days and that are more intertwined then I believe people realize.

In mainstream Christianity, Good Friday marks the day that Christ was crucified. Easter Sunday is when he was resurrected/the tomb was discovered empty. (For the sake of unity and conciseness, I will leave it at that and discuss the whole timing debate in another post.)

For Jews, Messianic Jews, and Messianic Israelites, (yes, they are different. Again, a subject for a different post) Passover is remembering the events leading up to the Exodus from Egypt.

But are these two events really that different?  Let us look more in depth at each of these, starting with the Christian side of things.

On the Sunday before he was crucified, Christ entered Jerusalem riding a donkey. People through down their cloaks and palm branches in the road for the donkey to walk on. People heralded the arrival of Christ with “Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!” A few days later he partook of a meal with his disciples which we call the Lord’s super, but since Christ was Jewish, was actually a Passover Seder. After the meal he left to pray, was betrayed, and tried. He was beaten and mocked and then lead out to be crucified. The moment Christ died, the curtain in the Temple dividing the holy place from the holy of holies was torn in two, from top to bottom. Impossible to be done by man. There was also an earthquake and darkness... at 3:00 in the afternoon. He was buried in a hurry because the Sabbath was quickly approaching and on the third day he arose/his tomb was found empty.  

Now, the Jewish side.

In the book of Exodus we find the story of Moses leading the Hebrews/Israelites out of Egypt. Before they were allowed to leave there were 10 plagues in the land. The last was the worst one; death of the firstborn. The only way to avoid this plague was to sacrifice a perfect lamb, put the blood on the doorframe of your house and then roast and eat the lamb. The blood was a mark and protection from the angel of death, and it would “Passover” the house….hence the name “Passover”. The Israelites were commanded to remember this day forever, which they do, right around Easter with Passover and the feast of unleavened bread.

Now, these 2 events still do not seem related, but just stay with me.

During the Passover Seder, there are specific elements used that point to Christ. The first is the Matzah. It is like a big cracker with holes in it like a cracker but also has brown lines from where it was baked. You could say it was “pierced and striped” like Christ was. In addition, part of the Seder is the hiding of and searching for the Afikomen. This is a partial piece of matzah that has been blessed, wrapped in a white cloth and hidden. Later in the evening, the children will search for it and the person that finds it usually gets a prize of some kind. Blessed, wrapped in a white cloth and hidden sounds a lot like the burial of Christ. There is also the normal “communion” of partaking of wine and matzah which Messianic believers equate to remembering Christ but Jews do not…obviously. The Seder plate itself is also full of significance. Lamb is served for Jews this is in remembrance of the lamb sacrificed to protect the firstborn, and for Christians/Messianics, this is representative of Christ as our lamb. There are of course traditions and other aspects of the meal that are significant, but I want to really focus on the lamb and matzah.

Beginning with the matzah. As stated above, this is basically a giant cracker. It is unleavened because when the Israelites fled Egypt, they did not have time to let their bread rise and so made this unleavened baked bread called matzah. Now, Matzah is pierced and stripped as I said earlier but think about it being unleavened. Leaven is an agent that helps things rise. Yeast, baking powder, baking soda, etc. In Scripture leaven is used to describe sin. “A little leaven leavens the whole loaf…” So, the matzah being unleavened represents perfection. Guess who was called perfect, without blemish? Christ!

The lamb is a lot more obvious in its significance and link with Good Friday. Christ is often described as the “Lamb of God” and is perfect and without blemish. Just like the Israelites were required to sacrifice back in the book of Exodus. The blood of Christ is the atonement for our sins, the protection from eternal death, the payment for our debt. When the lamb was sacrificed in Exodus, the blood of that perfect lamb was not only a symbol of being in obedience to the commands of Adonai, but also a protection from death. By putting the blood on the door, the Hebrews were claiming that protection, and heralding the future Messiah.

Hopefully, this post makes sense. There is so much more I want to say and point out, but it is already quite lengthy so I will stop here. I will continue this topic in the next couple of posts. Until next time, may Adoani bless your homes.    

           

A change in perspective

I had a completely different blog post in mind but as I was trying to finish typing it, I just could not get the incidents of yesterday out of my head. So I decided to write about that and finish my post up for (hopefully) next week.

Have you ever had those “woe is me” type days…or weeks? It has been one of those for me the past few days. I have been under a lot of stress this last week and as a result, in a lot of pain. In addition, on Sunday, I was bitten by some mosquitoes and had an abnormal reaction to it which I am still getting over. My ankle became very red, hot, swollen and painful and if I rested it for a period of time, it would hurt to walk on it. Because of this and some other things, Monday was a pity party day. Jonathan was at a pastors meeting and I was alone with a painful ankle, chasing a baby who would not nap around our small, moldy, crowded house. Can you hear the pitiful violin playing in the background?

Jonathan called me on his way home saying that he was going to stop at the hospital to visit his brother who had been there all day, (2^nd time in 24 hours) because of a bad asthma attack. I told him I wanted to come so he came and picked me, Amos and Grecia up first. It was almost 9pm by the time we made it to the hospital but we did see Jovanny and he was released while we were there. Since no one in the group (Jovanny’s wife and sister were there too) had eaten, we then did an impromptu dinner at a Chinese place. Those of you who know me, know how thrilling that was for me! (yes, sarcasm). But it was good to visit and watch Jovanny’s color return to his face. We said our good-byes and started our journey home at about 10:15. We are almost never out this late as both Amos and I like to be in bed by 10, but it was an exception that I was happy to make.

On the way home, we took a route we take on a daily basis. However, we could not figure out where this cloud of dust was coming from. Jonathan was focusing on driving (as he should) and his science teacher brain was trying to come up with some logical explanation. All of a sudden I see a wrecked car and tell Jonathan. He had not seen it and so immediately reversed to check. The same time we arrived another man was running up to the car to check on the driver. Within about 45 seconds there were six adults trying to help. I was the only one with any first aid training so through Jonathan’s translation we were finally able to convince the victim (and the helpers) to stop moving. The first reaction is to remove the person from the accident, which I get, except there was a strong chance of neck and back injuries and little chance of danger. But it got sorted out and 911 called…which took a while to arrive (I tell you, speed is not something Dominicans will ever master I think). EMS assessed the driver and moved her to the ambulance. Jonathan gave a statement to the police and we went on our way. (Amos was fantastic and well behaved the whole time, bless his heart!)

Although I will most likely never know the outcome, I have good reason to believe the driver will be okay (she was the only one in the car). It really got me thinking about my pity party over the last few days. Yes, my stomach hurts…a lot, yes my ankle hurts but I can still accomplish what I need too. I have a functioning car, a job, a healthy and happy family, and a husband who usually drives very carefully. We were going down the same road as this driver, passed the same car that blinded her causing the wreck, and we were fine. Does a swollen ankle compare with a car wreck or all day hospitalization for asthma? Uh, no. Not even close. Although I do have a lot of things to be stressed about, we have a lot of blessings that I forget about and take for granted.  

I hear stories from neighbors and neighbors of church members regularly that make me realize just how blessed I am. I still struggle with entitlement, I was raised in a more affluent culture. Even though I was raised poor, I was still better off than the poor people I live among. Yes, I would like 24 hour power, but if it is between that and having a healthy family, I will take the healthy family.

I remember telling someone once; happiness is not promised. Not being hungry is not promised. The only thing promised, is Adonai’s unconditional love and salvation to those who ask.  

After seeing Jovanny and helping with the wreck, I realize more now than ever that life is precious, and we do not know how long we have. It is a miracle that the driver did not have serious injuries when we found her. It is a miracle that medicine has advanced as much as it has, and now, bad asthma attacks are not nearly as fatal.  

Sometimes it takes these drastic events to change my perspective. At the end of the day as I fell into bed nursing my sore and swollen ankle, I just told myself to “suck it up buttercup”. I have it pretty good and a few irritations should not cause me to forget about my enormous blessings.

Until next time, may Adonai bless your homes.