This is level one of the rooftop where we hang our clothes and have Bible study on Tuesday afternoons with Melanie, April and Emily. . . today was what I call a perfect day!

A few weeks ago I moved in with Micki, another teacher from Doulos, who happens to love to sing!  We live in the upper apartment of a two story house with an amazing rooftop view.  Micki and I have shared lots of family stories and dreams and songs and she really makes me laugh–in lots of ways she reminds me of Krissy.  She’s getting ready for a wedding in April, so I will stay with her until then and probably move back with my Domincan familia.  Meanwhile, we’ll enjoy this great place.  Micki is to my right–you can tell she is lot of fun;  Daniel, her fiancee is to her right–not the best pic, sorry!:

Saturday was Grandmother’s birthday, so I was missing her more than usual, as I’m sure was everyone in the family.  After a weekend of homesickness, I was trying to change my attitude on the way to school, especially since we were going to talk about thankfulness and having a good attitude today in class. . . so I asked God to help me be thankful.  Moments later, I passed an older woman on the street who smiled at me and handed me a small bouquet.  There is no way she could have known that these flowers smelled just like the lillies of the valley that Grandmother always pointed out in her yard on Oakleigh Road when we were little, or how much that little bouquet would mean to me today, but God knew.  I told the story to all of my classes today.  One student, Darolyn, said, “God gave you those flowers!” Sometimes the beauty of God’s personalness is overwhelming, and I’m very grateful.  He sure did give me a wonderful Grandmother.

So I didn’t think I could stand saying goodbye to Ben, especially. . .he grows and changes so much every week, every day!  Sometimes I trust God to take care of material things and health things but forget that He can ake care of heart things too.  And so when the moment came at Aunt Joyce and Uncle Frank’s, I couldn’t bear it too well.  I got in the car and they were holding Ben and everyone started to point at something:

I got out of the car, teary-eyed and heavy-hearted to see what it was, and sure enough, God gave me a rainbow at that very moment.

It’s a little hard to see, but I know it was a gift, and was reminded that everything is going to be okay.  There was another time when God gave me a rainbow like this, when I was broken-hearted over Grandmother when she was suffering from a broken hip.  This was another beautiful present like the flowers in the flower story (above).  It’s amazing how personal God is, and amazing that I can forget so easily.

This has been a week where my thoughts have turned to home more often than before.  Maybe after being here a month, the reality is setting in that I am really here, and though I do love it, missing friends and family has grown deeper.  So I thought I’d put some pictures of the people I love at home so much too. . . there were lots of wonderful goodbye parties and get-togethers that I would like to remember! A special dinner at the Perring Place (boy a crab cake would taste good right now!) A get together at the Nichols’ new place:)

Spaghetti Thursday. . .

A small group cookout:)

    

A surprise get-together with the Century girls:)

Time with friends and family. . .

  

A concert that was a blessing!

 

These pics of Ben make my heart hurt because I want to give him a hug so bad, but when he’s on my computer screen it almost seems like he’s here!

 

 

So the point is, even though I am here in the DR, my heart is still with everyone at home, too!  Don’t be hurt if your picture is not here. . . it doesn’t mean I’m not thinking of you!  I love you my friends and family!!!  Come visit soooon!

This morning we had a special time of worship as a staff to thank God for all He has done in this first week of school.  I have been bursting at the seams to sing and then it occured to me that I could ask God for opportunities to worship Him in that way, and then we sang this morning and I was blessed.  Mickey, the new 4th grade teacher that God brought here, has a beautiful voice and it was wonderful to sing together.  At La Vid, a church I have visited, God has confirmed through worship that I am in the right place. . . we sang songs that I learned at Urbana, the missions conference, where I also learned of Doulos (our campus pictured at the top of this blog).  Also, the first week I was here, I saw a young couple on tv who I met at the conference where I spoke in January, and I was reminded of all of the specific prayers that were prayed for me that have been answered–that God will lead me to speak for Him in new places, that He will take care of my family at home, and that I am precious to Him and He will protect me.  I am very grateful that God speaks in such personal ways, and grateful to be part of a staff that looks together to God each morning for wisdom and direction and seeks to lift up Jesus in our lives together.  Please pray that I will hear His voice more and more clearly and most of all, obey it so He may have His way in my life–our lives.

Let me introduce you to my host family. . . . here is Amarillis, the mom, with her niece.  To the right is Estefany, the eldest daughter, who is a star student in my 10th grade class and has helped me feel very comfortable here.

 

This is mi casa.  It’s very close to school–maybe a 15 minute walk, which kind of wakes me up.  I’m also thankful to still be walking without any pain!  Yahoo!

I have my own room with this great big pink bed and a great big closet too–

This is the view from both of my windows. . .I’m trying to fight the culture a  little and hang my . . .delicates. . . on a rack in my room. . .

 Some things to get used to. . . the mosqitoes.  I must be very sweet! I looked like I had the measles at first but it has gotten better and switched to my legs. . . to the right is Pachi with her doggy Rita;  she is one of my new neighbors who is also a Harry Potter fan and she and her husband Ricky have a little baby Pricilla. . . they are very nice!  So is everyone here.  I have other neighbors who are close and also work here, so it’s nice to feel part of the group!

 

 My host family is building a new house next door so I guess we will be making the big move soon!  This picture includes the dad, Adriano, who is working hard to supervise the construction.  They are looking forward to being in the new house!

Let me show you around a little bit.  If you want to see my classes, go to the entry called “The first day of school.”  This will just be a tour of the campus.  Here is the whole picture that I used part of above–I get to walk to school (or catch a ride if I’m lucky) with these mountains in view.  It hasn’t been too hot–a little rainy sometimes, but very temperate.  Isn’t it beautiful??

 This is where I might be e-mailing you or giving you a call. . . in our computer lab.  Below is a picture of our library which is in the same building as the computer lab, and to the right of that is Adriano, my new “little brother.”  He’s in fifth grade.

 Let’s see. . . .this is where I eat lunch.  Isn’t that cool?  We even have 40 minutes which makes the day feel more relaxed.  I like that!  We also have recess for 20 minutes in the morning–even the high school kids, to get a snack and take a little break.  It makes the whole day more manageable.  Plus, the food is really good!

 This is the big mango tree in the middle of the campus where we start the day and some students pray.  A lot of people have been sick with Dengue, so please pray for everyone to be protected from that!

This is where the kids eat–in the comedor.  To the right is the “before” picture of my classroom.  It was the first grade room last year–it’s really like two connected rooms.  It’s cool, but also warm:)

 

This is what the building looks like that has the library and primary school rooms in it. . . it has our mission statement painted on it.

 

Here are some of my favorite murals–they make the school feel so warm and cheery–I love that!  On the left is a picture of Freilandia, our receptionist, who is also one of my new friends. . . we like to talk about Beth Moore–who doesn’t?

Now that I know how to put pictures on here, I need to go back and tell you about some of the things that happened the very first weeks I was here before school started.  They may not be in chronological order, but you’ll get the general idea!  We had a staff retreat the first week we were all here at Krista, the director’s house.  It was so nice to worship together, share testimonies and goals, pray for each other, and just enjoy each other’s company without the pressures of school. .. it sent a good tone for the beginning of the year.   Here is some team-building and some worship:)

We took a staff trip to the 27 waterfalls–I’m sorry I don’t have any pictures of them!  You would have been proud of me climbing up (or being pulled up!) those rocks!  This is the lunch we had together afterwards. . . and to the left, Patrick and Emily, two of the other new teachers enjoying some ice cream:)

        

 Here is a picture of all of the new staff–we spent some time together here before the rest of the staff joined us and had some time to look around town and find out a little about the culture. . .

Krista and Chad let us stay in their beautiful home before we made our way to our new living arrangements. . . doesn’t this look like a nice place to relax?  And to the right is the view behind their house. . .