Friday, December 12, 2008
Today was another good day at Red Sands Christian School. Mr. Bill has settled in to teaching the third, fifth and sixth grades. All of the classes are preparing their parts for the Christmas program next Thursday. Mr. Bill’s class is responsible for building the sets and props. Mr. Diehl’s class is reading the scripture for the program. Miss Springer’s class is acting out the manger scene. It will be a lovely program for the parents and a wonderful witness about the real reason for the Christmas season.
The school children had been collecting non-perishable food items for donation. After lunch today, we loaded up the donation items and the children into the school buses and drove to Jackrabbit. (Yes, there is a place called jackrabbit, along with Two Guns and Twin Arrows etc). We surprised the staff at the Shelter with a very good donation of food. The shelter provides a home for children who are not with their parents for various reasons. It was a nicely built place with a large play ground area. It reminded me of a college campus in some ways. There were buildings that served at dormitories or cabins. Another building seemed to be the recreation and food area. It was nice for the children to see where their donation of food was going.
After our delivery, Miss Springer told the children that we had a surprise for them. They were all excited and were guessing what the surprise could be. Some thought it might be “Hot Cheetos” (one of their favorite snacks) or Pizza. We took the kids to McDonald’s and bought them all ice cream cones. Then, they all got to play on McDonald’s play land. The kids had a great time and they were all really well behaved.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
We decided to drive to Flagstaff, Arizona today to do our Christmas shopping. We knew that the weather forecast called for some heavy wind today, so it was no surprise to hear the wind blowing when we woke up. We had a lazy morning involving pancakes and sausage for breakfast. We left for Flagstaff about 10AM. I was driving and I could immediately feel the pull of the wind. The wind gusts were forecast to be up around 45 miles per hour. On the way to Flagstaff, it was kind of fun. I would compare it to the game “Frogger” for those of you who are familiar with old Atari games. I would drive down Interstate 40 and try to avoid the tumbleweeds crossing the interstate. First, slow down and a big one glides by right in front. Next, speed up so that one doesn’t get across the median before we pass it. We got to watch other cars and trucks plow right into the tumbleweeds and splinter then into debris. We even saw a semi truck driving with a very large tumbleweed stuck to the front of his grill. We did our shopping and by the time we were done, it was snowing in Flagstaff! It was really beginning to feel like Christmas.
The ride home was not so joyful. Almost immediately, we saw an overturned Hummer H2 attached to a travel trailer. The Hummer was heavily damaged. The wind shield was busted and the travel trailer was on its side in the middle of Interstate 40. The wind had caused a terrible accident. Next, we saw a truck pulling a trailer with a car in it. It looked like one of those trailers that the racing cars are carried inside. The trailer was blown over on its side beside the Interstate. Thankfully, the truck looked okay. We could see the dust storm in the distance right away. We drove into the dust storm when we got to the Meteor City exit. The dust enveloped our vehicle. Jerry wondered aloud if this would be called a “red” out. The dust was as thick as dense fog in some spots, drastically lowering our visibility. The dust cloud lasted all the way to Winslow.
When we returned to the mission a little later, we drove in the dust the entire way. When we pulled into the driveway, Jerry noticed that the wind had broken out one of the windows in the church. He hopped out and surveyed the damage. Then, he drove us down to the trailer and returned to make the needed repairs. There was broken glass and sand all over the sanctuary floor. He single-handedly nailed a sheet of plywood over the window (pushing against the 40 mile per hour wind gusts in the process). Ironically, the plywood he used was part of the set for the Christmas program. Then, he swept up the glass and sand. I am glad that we found the problem tonight and not Sunday morning!
The wind from this storm blew from about 6AM on Saturday morning until 2AM on Sunday morning. It ended with some sleet and freezing rain that left a sheet of ice on the vehicles. Praise the Lord! The roof on the new staff house remained intact. The roofing was being pushed upward by the wind, but it held in place. It was funny this morning to see the shingles on the roof sticking up in the air. The shingles had been lifted by the fierce wind gusts and quick frozen by the sleet up in the air.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
I did not attend church today. Kelcy was up last night for six hours with another stomach virus. About two hours after Kelcy started, Abby started as well. Jerry said that everything went well without me. I missed being there, but it was better for the girls to be at home so they could recuperate and not make anyone else sick.
The girls were well recovered by the afternoon, so we drove to Dilkon Christian Church for their Sunday evening service and monthly pot-luck dinner. Dilkon actually had snow on the ground still. Mr. Bill does a really great job with the service. We sang about eight Christmas carols and then he had a short devotion about celebrating Christmas every day, not just in the month of December. The Navajo ladies had prepared mutton stew with dumplings, a lovely vegetable salad, tortillas, vegetable medley and a green pistachio-lime-pineapple salad. Miss Springer brought cake and chocolate fudge, Mr. Bill prepared Ham and baked beans, and we brought mashed potatoes. I counted sixteen in attendance at the pot-luck. I enjoyed the chance to get out and socialize. However, by the time we left, it was nineteen degrees outside! Time to get home and warm up!
As I am typing this blog update, the girls are asleep already and Jerry is working on his lesson plans for when he returns in January. This week is riddled with forecasts for winter storms. Along with the weather, I saw there is a strike that is going on at Southwest Airlines in the Phoenix airport. Please pray that the Lord’s will is done in this situation. Our tickets for Friday’s flight home are with Southwest…
Next week: Staff Christmas dinner, Christmas program and Christmas school party!
Monday, December 15, 2008
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Snow on the mountain!
Week of December 1 through December 5
This week was a week of adjustments. Mr. Bill began teaching the third, fifth and sixth grade classes at the school. Jerry & Miss Dawn began taking on extra chores to maintain the school. Some transitions went well, others didn’t go quite so smoothly. I really don’t feel the need to say anything other than we all had a week of adjustments. We all came through it and I think it has drawn us all closer together as a team, as difficult times often do.
Friday, December 5th
We said farewell to our friends Anne and Jim today. They are “snow birding” down to Phoenix for the winter. They stopped by at lunch time today and Ms. Anne took one more opportunity to provide us with her wonderful cookies! Thank you Ms. Anne and Mr. Jim, we will miss you all this winter! Oh, and speaking of winter, I have to tell the reason for the title. Anyone who has visited here probably remembers the view of the mountain peaks at Flagstaff. It is beautiful, especially set against the western sunset. Now, it is snow-covered! If possible, it looks even more majestic.
Saturday, December 6th
This Saturday dawned bright and early! Miss Dawn had organized and scheduled a “Craft Fair” at the church for today from 9AM to noon. All the parents and school children were invited, along with people from the church. We had several kids from school attend! It was so much fun! I cannot stress how much I enjoyed the crafts and the children. We all made Christmas Tree ornaments and Christmas decorations. There were ten craft projects to choose from and I know several children were able to complete them all. We had Christmas tree shaped ornaments, snow flake shaped ornaments, Christmas wreath shaped decorations, three different kinds of candy cane decorations to make. We served cookies and hot chocolate for a snack. Jerry hooked up some Christmas music to play in the background. One of the music selections was “Blue Christmas” by Elvis Presley, played in honor of both Miss Springer and Nana (Jerry’s Mom, Norma). They are both really like Elvis!
Kelcy’s favorite craft was making the candy canes out of red and white pom-poms. She made four of these, because she loved it so much. I think she enjoyed it so much because she could do it all by herself. Abby’s favorite craft was the “Snow” picture she made with a snow man and a penguin. She completed two of these projects.
While we were making crafts, Jerry and Mr. Bill were filling bags with Christmas goodies for the church folks. Miss Springer had acquired the supplies and the boys began filling the bags with oranges, apples, nuts and hard candy. Miss Springer says that that is the traditional Navajo stocking stuffers.
Sunday, December 7th
The service at Red Sands Christian Church went very well today! I had eight kids in my Sunday School class. We read about Christ’s birth in Luke. Next, we discussed what Paul says about why Jesus had to be born and to come to earth. It went well. Next, Mr. Bill brought a great lesson about “the indescribable gift” from 2nd Corinthians 9:15. The message was delivered beautifully and to a crowd of thirty people.
After the service, we had our potluck meal. Mr. Bill had provided ham for everyone. I made hashed brown casserole and a pineapple cake. Miss Springer made desserts and corn and vegetable casserole. The Navajo ladies brought fry bread, tossed salad, potato salad and some dessert. As far as I could tell, everyone stayed for the meal and we all ate hearty! There were also plenty of leftovers. It was so good, Abby and Kelcy didn’t even eat their dessert!
Monday, December 8th
After last week, I think we were all a little nervous today, but all went well. Today, all the kids had to eat in their classrooms, because we had an event scheduled at the church during the lunch period. I spent a lot of time at the school cleaning and straightening.
The school has been collecting Campbell’s soup labels for several years and this year the teachers got to purchase supplies using the points. We have begun receiving the supplies and it has been like Christmas every day! We open the boxes, not sure of what is inside. There are lots of supplies for recess games and P.E. games. There are aquariums and basketballs and science kits. Thank you to all who have collected soup labels, it has really paid off for the school kids!
Today, the church was on loan to another minister who performed a funeral service there. Afterward, the families had a fellowship meal there.
Tuesday, December 9th
And for those of you who don’t think it gets cold in the desert, I am here to tell you, it does. All day Monday, a cold wind blew. This morning, we woke up to snow on the ground! It was very pretty and the girls were very excited. We wondered if there would be school, but alas it was not canceled. Most of the snow was gone by 10AM. It was nice while it lasted! It REALLY does snow in the desert. Who knew?
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
We had such a great day today! There is a place called AICM (American Indian Christian Missions) in Show Low, Arizona. There is Christian boarding school located there for the children from the Apache reservation. Today, three of their classes came to visit us here and brought gifts for the school children here. It was so much fun! It was great to meet the four lady missionaries who came with the group. They were a mixed group geographically. One was from North Carolina, one from Massachusetts, one was from Indiana and one from this area. The kids from Show Low got here about 10:30AM and stayed until 1:30PM. The Red Sands School provided a pizza lunch for the children and adults alike. After lunch, the kids played “tug ‘o war” (thanks to the new supplies from Campbell’s soup labels) and I confess that the Show Low team won! And they won soundly! I think Jerry will have to have the kids here do double the work in P.E. After the games they all came inside and the children from Show Low handed out gifts to the kids at Red Sands. All of the children were very well behaved and it went very well. All too soon, the Apache kids were on their way back home and the Red Sands kids were back to class work.
Next week: potluck at Dilkon, staff Christmas dinner, school Christmas program!
This week was a week of adjustments. Mr. Bill began teaching the third, fifth and sixth grade classes at the school. Jerry & Miss Dawn began taking on extra chores to maintain the school. Some transitions went well, others didn’t go quite so smoothly. I really don’t feel the need to say anything other than we all had a week of adjustments. We all came through it and I think it has drawn us all closer together as a team, as difficult times often do.
Friday, December 5th
We said farewell to our friends Anne and Jim today. They are “snow birding” down to Phoenix for the winter. They stopped by at lunch time today and Ms. Anne took one more opportunity to provide us with her wonderful cookies! Thank you Ms. Anne and Mr. Jim, we will miss you all this winter! Oh, and speaking of winter, I have to tell the reason for the title. Anyone who has visited here probably remembers the view of the mountain peaks at Flagstaff. It is beautiful, especially set against the western sunset. Now, it is snow-covered! If possible, it looks even more majestic.
Saturday, December 6th
This Saturday dawned bright and early! Miss Dawn had organized and scheduled a “Craft Fair” at the church for today from 9AM to noon. All the parents and school children were invited, along with people from the church. We had several kids from school attend! It was so much fun! I cannot stress how much I enjoyed the crafts and the children. We all made Christmas Tree ornaments and Christmas decorations. There were ten craft projects to choose from and I know several children were able to complete them all. We had Christmas tree shaped ornaments, snow flake shaped ornaments, Christmas wreath shaped decorations, three different kinds of candy cane decorations to make. We served cookies and hot chocolate for a snack. Jerry hooked up some Christmas music to play in the background. One of the music selections was “Blue Christmas” by Elvis Presley, played in honor of both Miss Springer and Nana (Jerry’s Mom, Norma). They are both really like Elvis!
Kelcy’s favorite craft was making the candy canes out of red and white pom-poms. She made four of these, because she loved it so much. I think she enjoyed it so much because she could do it all by herself. Abby’s favorite craft was the “Snow” picture she made with a snow man and a penguin. She completed two of these projects.
While we were making crafts, Jerry and Mr. Bill were filling bags with Christmas goodies for the church folks. Miss Springer had acquired the supplies and the boys began filling the bags with oranges, apples, nuts and hard candy. Miss Springer says that that is the traditional Navajo stocking stuffers.
Sunday, December 7th
The service at Red Sands Christian Church went very well today! I had eight kids in my Sunday School class. We read about Christ’s birth in Luke. Next, we discussed what Paul says about why Jesus had to be born and to come to earth. It went well. Next, Mr. Bill brought a great lesson about “the indescribable gift” from 2nd Corinthians 9:15. The message was delivered beautifully and to a crowd of thirty people.
After the service, we had our potluck meal. Mr. Bill had provided ham for everyone. I made hashed brown casserole and a pineapple cake. Miss Springer made desserts and corn and vegetable casserole. The Navajo ladies brought fry bread, tossed salad, potato salad and some dessert. As far as I could tell, everyone stayed for the meal and we all ate hearty! There were also plenty of leftovers. It was so good, Abby and Kelcy didn’t even eat their dessert!
Monday, December 8th
After last week, I think we were all a little nervous today, but all went well. Today, all the kids had to eat in their classrooms, because we had an event scheduled at the church during the lunch period. I spent a lot of time at the school cleaning and straightening.
The school has been collecting Campbell’s soup labels for several years and this year the teachers got to purchase supplies using the points. We have begun receiving the supplies and it has been like Christmas every day! We open the boxes, not sure of what is inside. There are lots of supplies for recess games and P.E. games. There are aquariums and basketballs and science kits. Thank you to all who have collected soup labels, it has really paid off for the school kids!
Today, the church was on loan to another minister who performed a funeral service there. Afterward, the families had a fellowship meal there.
Tuesday, December 9th
And for those of you who don’t think it gets cold in the desert, I am here to tell you, it does. All day Monday, a cold wind blew. This morning, we woke up to snow on the ground! It was very pretty and the girls were very excited. We wondered if there would be school, but alas it was not canceled. Most of the snow was gone by 10AM. It was nice while it lasted! It REALLY does snow in the desert. Who knew?
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
We had such a great day today! There is a place called AICM (American Indian Christian Missions) in Show Low, Arizona. There is Christian boarding school located there for the children from the Apache reservation. Today, three of their classes came to visit us here and brought gifts for the school children here. It was so much fun! It was great to meet the four lady missionaries who came with the group. They were a mixed group geographically. One was from North Carolina, one from Massachusetts, one was from Indiana and one from this area. The kids from Show Low got here about 10:30AM and stayed until 1:30PM. The Red Sands School provided a pizza lunch for the children and adults alike. After lunch, the kids played “tug ‘o war” (thanks to the new supplies from Campbell’s soup labels) and I confess that the Show Low team won! And they won soundly! I think Jerry will have to have the kids here do double the work in P.E. After the games they all came inside and the children from Show Low handed out gifts to the kids at Red Sands. All of the children were very well behaved and it went very well. All too soon, the Apache kids were on their way back home and the Red Sands kids were back to class work.
Next week: potluck at Dilkon, staff Christmas dinner, school Christmas program!
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Where the buffalo roam...
I must first apologize to all of you who are anxiously awaiting news from Red Sands. I have failed to enter any new info for two weeks now and I apologize. I know it can be frustrating to check in and see no updates for so long, so please bear with me.
Friday, November 21
Tonight Miss Springer, along with the school children, presented their fall program. It was a mix of scripture memorization and songs. The program ended with Mr. Bill giving a devotion about the first Thanksgiving. The kids all looked lovely and they were so excited to be there and performing. We had a great turn out with the parents and families. Afterward, the parents and teachers had provided refreshments. Most everyone stayed around to chat and get to know each other. It was so much fun.
Saturday, November 22
Today is the Winslow city Christmas parade. We drove up to town and parked out at the Warren Avenue Christian Church. We walked around before the parade started. It was a very big event! We saw vendors with Navajo Tacos, Tamales, Navajo blankets, Turquoise jewelry, and all kinds of foods. It was centered on the "corner" in Winslow. We found a nice spot and watched the parade. Kelcy called it a "hurrah'd". Pronounced like parade, only with an "h". It was her first parade to my recollection. She really enjoyed it. We got to see some of the school kids there walking around. In the parade there were Hopi dancers and marching bands from as far away as Payson. They even had the Shriners with the small cars. Some of the floats threw out candy, to the delight of my children. Kelcy REALLY enjoyed this part of the parade. The parade ended with a fire truck that had Santa and his sleigh riding on top. It was a fun day.
Sunday, November 23
We had quite a few people at church today. I had 11 in my Sunday school class alone. Mr. Bill gave a wonderful and encouraging message about being grateful.
Tuesday, November 25th
Today, we saw the buffalo. They were right behind the school, lying down in the grass. I drove Kelcy down after lunch to look at them, but they were farther away then. It is very neat to see the buffalo roaming here. We believe that they belong to someone around here, they are not wild.
Wednesday, November 26th
We had a wonderful Thanksgiving lunch with the children today! We all pitched in to bring the various items and had a great lunch! We had Turkey and dressing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans, rolls and pumpkin pies prepared by Miss Springer's Kindergarten through second grade class. We had a great turn-out again with the parents and friends of the school. School was over after lunch and all the kids went home with their hunger fully satisfied.
And today it rained! I forgot to mention it, but God had provided someone to put the roof on the new staff house. The old roof was half removed by the fifteen hour dust storm back in October. If it had rained without a roof on the house, it oculd well have damaged the dry wall inside. Well, the gentleman who replaced the roof was finished on Tuesday and then we got rain on Wednesday! Isn't that a wonderful miracle? The Lord provided once again! And just in time!
Thursday-Thanksgiving Day!
We stayed home today and had a nice, quiet Thanksgiving day. I was up at 7AM starting the turkey and had lunch on the table before noon. We had turkey and dressing and mashed potatoes and green beans and rolls and pumpkin cake. By this time, I was little tired of pumpkin pie, so I made a pumpkin cake that turned out well. We all just played and read books and rested.
Saturday, November 29th
The Roberts family left today. The Robert's family, both of them were teachers, have decided that this is not the place for them at this time and they have left the mission. We wish them well in whatever the future holds.
Today, we went to the Winslow public library again and had a great time. The girls love the library! We read books and played and found some books to borrow. We borrowed about 10 books for the girls to read/be read to. The library is such a wonderful place. I love books and I think that the girls also love books!
Sunday, November 30th
We had quite a few people at church again today! I had 9 in Sunday school class today. I didn't get to hear Mr. Bill's sermon today, but I am sure it a great one. During the evening service, we drove to Dilkon Christian Church to hear Mr. Bill teach. His lesson there was on Romans. We all enjoyed the lesson and getting to see the Navajo members over at Dilkon again.
Friday, November 21
Tonight Miss Springer, along with the school children, presented their fall program. It was a mix of scripture memorization and songs. The program ended with Mr. Bill giving a devotion about the first Thanksgiving. The kids all looked lovely and they were so excited to be there and performing. We had a great turn out with the parents and families. Afterward, the parents and teachers had provided refreshments. Most everyone stayed around to chat and get to know each other. It was so much fun.
Saturday, November 22
Today is the Winslow city Christmas parade. We drove up to town and parked out at the Warren Avenue Christian Church. We walked around before the parade started. It was a very big event! We saw vendors with Navajo Tacos, Tamales, Navajo blankets, Turquoise jewelry, and all kinds of foods. It was centered on the "corner" in Winslow. We found a nice spot and watched the parade. Kelcy called it a "hurrah'd". Pronounced like parade, only with an "h". It was her first parade to my recollection. She really enjoyed it. We got to see some of the school kids there walking around. In the parade there were Hopi dancers and marching bands from as far away as Payson. They even had the Shriners with the small cars. Some of the floats threw out candy, to the delight of my children. Kelcy REALLY enjoyed this part of the parade. The parade ended with a fire truck that had Santa and his sleigh riding on top. It was a fun day.
Sunday, November 23
We had quite a few people at church today. I had 11 in my Sunday school class alone. Mr. Bill gave a wonderful and encouraging message about being grateful.
Tuesday, November 25th
Today, we saw the buffalo. They were right behind the school, lying down in the grass. I drove Kelcy down after lunch to look at them, but they were farther away then. It is very neat to see the buffalo roaming here. We believe that they belong to someone around here, they are not wild.
Wednesday, November 26th
We had a wonderful Thanksgiving lunch with the children today! We all pitched in to bring the various items and had a great lunch! We had Turkey and dressing, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans, rolls and pumpkin pies prepared by Miss Springer's Kindergarten through second grade class. We had a great turn-out again with the parents and friends of the school. School was over after lunch and all the kids went home with their hunger fully satisfied.
And today it rained! I forgot to mention it, but God had provided someone to put the roof on the new staff house. The old roof was half removed by the fifteen hour dust storm back in October. If it had rained without a roof on the house, it oculd well have damaged the dry wall inside. Well, the gentleman who replaced the roof was finished on Tuesday and then we got rain on Wednesday! Isn't that a wonderful miracle? The Lord provided once again! And just in time!
Thursday-Thanksgiving Day!
We stayed home today and had a nice, quiet Thanksgiving day. I was up at 7AM starting the turkey and had lunch on the table before noon. We had turkey and dressing and mashed potatoes and green beans and rolls and pumpkin cake. By this time, I was little tired of pumpkin pie, so I made a pumpkin cake that turned out well. We all just played and read books and rested.
Saturday, November 29th
The Roberts family left today. The Robert's family, both of them were teachers, have decided that this is not the place for them at this time and they have left the mission. We wish them well in whatever the future holds.
Today, we went to the Winslow public library again and had a great time. The girls love the library! We read books and played and found some books to borrow. We borrowed about 10 books for the girls to read/be read to. The library is such a wonderful place. I love books and I think that the girls also love books!
Sunday, November 30th
We had quite a few people at church again today! I had 9 in Sunday school class today. I didn't get to hear Mr. Bill's sermon today, but I am sure it a great one. During the evening service, we drove to Dilkon Christian Church to hear Mr. Bill teach. His lesson there was on Romans. We all enjoyed the lesson and getting to see the Navajo members over at Dilkon again.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
I'll be home for Christmas!
This week has flown by! I can hardly believe that it is November 16! How could this be? Could it really be just a month from the Christmas holiday already? We are going to be traveling to the East for Christmas break. Hence the title of this entry! We will be doing presentations at our home church and will be visiting with another church that has been supporting us. Abby & Kelcy will get to see their friends. Abby already wants to see if she can spend the night with Eva. Abby has been talking a lot about her “old” friends in Kentucky and her family. How much she misses them and how much fun she is going to have when she sees them.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Mr. Bill is back in the office today! We also have a new Navajo lady who is watching Kelcy and Noah for me in the morning. She arrived right on time! The kids liked her and played with her well. It was a hectic kind of day, adjusting to having two people in the office with me. Not that it is a burden by any means, but it is different. I had been alone mostly all day with the kids for about seven weeks, so it was different, like I said.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Today is the day that our nation sets aside to honor our veterans, the men and women who have served our country in the armed services. I will add my personal thanks to that of many others by saying “Thank you!” for keeping our country safe and making it a place where freedom still rings. In honor of Veterans Day, the school was closed today. We spent the day as a family at home, resting and playing together. The mission also got a new washing machine, that is located in our trailer! Thank you Community Christian Church! The old washing machine seemed to wash fine, but each time the washer hit the spin cycle, one of us would go and sit on the washer so that it would not “walk” out into the hallway and keep it from making loud banging noises. Jerry had tried a couple of times to see if the washing machine needed adjustment from the bottom to make it level and it would be a little better for a while. But now, thanks to a designated gift from our home church, there is a new washing machine here! We can wash clothes without having to constantly monitor the cycles and having to interrupt whatever else we are doing to sit on the washing machine. Yeah! We are very grateful.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Today, we are taking the 5th through the 8th grades on a field trip to the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona. There are seven children in these grades and they all were signed up to go. Six of the students stayed after school. I got to hit around some volleyball with two of the ladies. I had a lot of fun even there. At 4:30PM, we all loaded up and went to Captain Tony’s Pizza and had supper. It was an Italian buffet with spaghetti and pizza and cheese sticks and salad. It was very good. The kids all had a good time. Next, we drove the 45 minutes to Flagstaff to the Observatory. It is set upon a mountainside just west of the downtown of Flagstaff. As we drove up the mountain, we could see the lights of the city of Flagstaff below us. It was a lovely sight. It was unusual, I must admit. I hadn’t been out at night or seen city lights of that magnitude in quite awhile. We had scheduled a private program and viewing with the 24” telescope they have there. The program about the planet Mars was very educational and the kids asked some good questions, showing they were really paying attention. We all had a great time at the hands-on exhibit hall. There was a puzzle that involved putting the planets in their proper order in distance from the Sun. After this, we went to another exhibit hall and looked at three dimensional pictures of Mars with 3D glasses. It was really neat to see the craters, one as long as the United States land mass and the volcano called Olympus Mons in the three dimensional format. Even Abby and Kelcy enjoyed it. Next was the big event, looking through the 24” telescope at the moon and perhaps other heavenly bodies. Unfortunately, God had other plans. The wind was too strong to open the largest telescope and the night was cloudy, so the very reason for our evening visit not realized. We did get to see the moon through the 16 inch telescope and that was neat. The kids all had a good time and I think they will remember the visit to the Observatory for a long time. It certainly made a memory for me.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Kelcy and I went into town to run errands for work and do the weekly shopping. We went to the bank, the post office, the library, to get gas in the van and to the grocery store. It was a busy day.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
I enjoyed the service at Red Sands Christian Church. We had another wonderful lesson about thankfulness and gratefulness. I always enjoy having my life put into the proper perspective. I had four students in my Sunday school class and that went really well.
I just wanted to let you all know that all of the staff here are having a personal impact on the students and members of this community. I realize it doesn't look like that by reading this blog. These personal meetings and evangelism will never be reported here. I think that someone would be afraid to talk to me if they thought I might talk about their life situation on this blog. So, please understand there is a lot of individual evangelism that goes unreported here because of confidentiality.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Mr. Bill is back in the office today! We also have a new Navajo lady who is watching Kelcy and Noah for me in the morning. She arrived right on time! The kids liked her and played with her well. It was a hectic kind of day, adjusting to having two people in the office with me. Not that it is a burden by any means, but it is different. I had been alone mostly all day with the kids for about seven weeks, so it was different, like I said.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Today is the day that our nation sets aside to honor our veterans, the men and women who have served our country in the armed services. I will add my personal thanks to that of many others by saying “Thank you!” for keeping our country safe and making it a place where freedom still rings. In honor of Veterans Day, the school was closed today. We spent the day as a family at home, resting and playing together. The mission also got a new washing machine, that is located in our trailer! Thank you Community Christian Church! The old washing machine seemed to wash fine, but each time the washer hit the spin cycle, one of us would go and sit on the washer so that it would not “walk” out into the hallway and keep it from making loud banging noises. Jerry had tried a couple of times to see if the washing machine needed adjustment from the bottom to make it level and it would be a little better for a while. But now, thanks to a designated gift from our home church, there is a new washing machine here! We can wash clothes without having to constantly monitor the cycles and having to interrupt whatever else we are doing to sit on the washing machine. Yeah! We are very grateful.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Today, we are taking the 5th through the 8th grades on a field trip to the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona. There are seven children in these grades and they all were signed up to go. Six of the students stayed after school. I got to hit around some volleyball with two of the ladies. I had a lot of fun even there. At 4:30PM, we all loaded up and went to Captain Tony’s Pizza and had supper. It was an Italian buffet with spaghetti and pizza and cheese sticks and salad. It was very good. The kids all had a good time. Next, we drove the 45 minutes to Flagstaff to the Observatory. It is set upon a mountainside just west of the downtown of Flagstaff. As we drove up the mountain, we could see the lights of the city of Flagstaff below us. It was a lovely sight. It was unusual, I must admit. I hadn’t been out at night or seen city lights of that magnitude in quite awhile. We had scheduled a private program and viewing with the 24” telescope they have there. The program about the planet Mars was very educational and the kids asked some good questions, showing they were really paying attention. We all had a great time at the hands-on exhibit hall. There was a puzzle that involved putting the planets in their proper order in distance from the Sun. After this, we went to another exhibit hall and looked at three dimensional pictures of Mars with 3D glasses. It was really neat to see the craters, one as long as the United States land mass and the volcano called Olympus Mons in the three dimensional format. Even Abby and Kelcy enjoyed it. Next was the big event, looking through the 24” telescope at the moon and perhaps other heavenly bodies. Unfortunately, God had other plans. The wind was too strong to open the largest telescope and the night was cloudy, so the very reason for our evening visit not realized. We did get to see the moon through the 16 inch telescope and that was neat. The kids all had a good time and I think they will remember the visit to the Observatory for a long time. It certainly made a memory for me.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Kelcy and I went into town to run errands for work and do the weekly shopping. We went to the bank, the post office, the library, to get gas in the van and to the grocery store. It was a busy day.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
I enjoyed the service at Red Sands Christian Church. We had another wonderful lesson about thankfulness and gratefulness. I always enjoy having my life put into the proper perspective. I had four students in my Sunday school class and that went really well.
I just wanted to let you all know that all of the staff here are having a personal impact on the students and members of this community. I realize it doesn't look like that by reading this blog. These personal meetings and evangelism will never be reported here. I think that someone would be afraid to talk to me if they thought I might talk about their life situation on this blog. So, please understand there is a lot of individual evangelism that goes unreported here because of confidentiality.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Happy Birthday!
Monday, November 3, 2008
I don’t remember much about this day. I was in bed with a stomach virus from 7AM till 5PM. Yucky!
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Kelcy’s Birthday! Today, Kelcy turns three years old! Kelcy woke up happy on her birthday and was happy all day long! It was Tuesday, so we had chapel in the morning. All the school kids sang “Happy Birthday” to her. She smiled shyly during the entire event. Abby & Kelcy & I made birthday cookies to share with all the school kids. We passed those out after chapel service. After school, Jerry worked on the new staff house until 6:30, then came home so Kelcy could open her presents. Thanks to all of you for the cards, gifts and letters! Kelcy had a wonderful time opening the presents. She gets so excited and she really enjoyed hearing the cards and their sentiments! Afterward, we went up to the church and had cake and ice cream with the Roberts family. Kelcy wanted strawberry cake and strawberry ice cream. Imagine! Kelcy picking a pink cake with pink icing! I even got pink ice cream, it was strawberry cheesecake. Both Abby & Kelcy thoroughly enjoyed the cake and ice cream. Thanks to a lot of people, Kelcy had a lovely birthday and felt really special on her special day!
I also forgot to mention that a dream of mine came true recently! I found out that Ms. Anne who does the library for the school was going to be out of town for a few weeks and I offered to perform the library duties. I was able to do story time with the kids and shared some of my favorite poetry and some pictures of works of art. It was a lot of fun for me and I hope for all the school kids.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
After school today, I gave Leah a bath. Leah is Mr. Bill’s dog, who had been staying at the mission while he was traveling in the Northwest to promote mission work. Needless to say, I was afraid that Mr. Bill would not recognize Leah after her seven weeks of running around in the red sand, so I decided to wash her. Boy, was that dog dirty. Abby and Kelcy watched the entire show. They were helping and working to keep Leah in the tub where she was supposed to stay. I think she felt much better afterward and I know that she felt better afterward.
Lights Out! Sometime between 10PM and 11PM, the lights in the hogans went out, with the Roberts inside. The power failed and no one here knew how to fix it. So, the Roberts spent a night without electric, meaning no clocks, no lights and no heat. Yikes! Did I mention we need some help to finish the staff house so that they Roberts can move in there?
Friday, November 7th, 2008
The electricity in the hogans was fixed about 4:30PM today. Yeah! Thank you Mr. Jim for helping us with the electricity! Mr. Bill was expected to return before school was out, but he did not arrive until much later. He did finally arrive and we were very happy to see him! Leah was very happy to see him as well! He stopped in for a chat at the trailer and then he went on to Dilkon to rest.
Saturday, November 8th, 2008
Parent teacher conference was this Saturday from 8AM until Noon. Two of Jerry’s parents came to the school at their appointed time to visit and see their child’s work. Jerry’s first parent teacher conference day went well. He enjoyed getting to know the families a little better. All of his students are doing well, so it was a pleasant experience. We also got to hear from Miss Springer how Abby is doing in school. It was a nice opportunity to look at Abby’s first report card and to talk about areas where she was doing well and where she could use improvement.
Ms. Tami wins the prize for attendance. She was able to meet with 100% of the parents of her classroom. Miss Springer had 60% parental attendance, which is good. All in all, it went well and the teachers enjoyed getting to meet and talk to the parents of the students.
Later that day, Abby & I had a special afternoon! I took her into town and we ate at Pizza Hut. We redeemed her “Book It” coupon for a free personal pan pizza. Abby earned the certificate by reading. Abby and Kelcy and Jerry and I all read seven books to reach the goal for her Kindergarten class to get her certificate. She ordered a cheese pizza. We sat in the restaurant and she ate her “special pizza” as she called it. I believe that is the third time that we have sat in a restaurant to eat since we have been in Arizona. Abby really had a good time and so did I. While we waited for the pizza, we colored on the place mats. After she was finished eating, we went on to get her hair cut. We waited an hour and a half for the hair cut! I was ready to give up, but she was determined to get her hair cut that day, so we waited. It turned out very cute!
Sunday, November 9th, 2008
We had twenty people in attendance at the Sunday morning service today. Mr. Bill was preaching again and that was nice. Daron did a wonderful job preaching while Mr. Bill was gone! Thank you, Daron, for being willing to step in where you were needed! Miss Springer was at First Christian Church in Winslow, Arizona speaking for the mission and the school. I know that she did a great job.
Sunday night, we all loaded up in the van and drove to Dilkon for the pot luck. Well, not all of us. Miss Springer drove from Winslow by herself. Danny Roberts provided the devotional for the night and then we ate! Mr. Bill had prepared Turkey and gravy! We all provided the rest and it was quite a feast! We had twenty people at the pot-luck at Dilkon. I got the chance to talk to some of the Navajo ladies that attend at Dilkon. It was nice to get to know them a little better and to share a meal with them.
Next week: Some of the classes get another field trip!
I don’t remember much about this day. I was in bed with a stomach virus from 7AM till 5PM. Yucky!
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Kelcy’s Birthday! Today, Kelcy turns three years old! Kelcy woke up happy on her birthday and was happy all day long! It was Tuesday, so we had chapel in the morning. All the school kids sang “Happy Birthday” to her. She smiled shyly during the entire event. Abby & Kelcy & I made birthday cookies to share with all the school kids. We passed those out after chapel service. After school, Jerry worked on the new staff house until 6:30, then came home so Kelcy could open her presents. Thanks to all of you for the cards, gifts and letters! Kelcy had a wonderful time opening the presents. She gets so excited and she really enjoyed hearing the cards and their sentiments! Afterward, we went up to the church and had cake and ice cream with the Roberts family. Kelcy wanted strawberry cake and strawberry ice cream. Imagine! Kelcy picking a pink cake with pink icing! I even got pink ice cream, it was strawberry cheesecake. Both Abby & Kelcy thoroughly enjoyed the cake and ice cream. Thanks to a lot of people, Kelcy had a lovely birthday and felt really special on her special day!
I also forgot to mention that a dream of mine came true recently! I found out that Ms. Anne who does the library for the school was going to be out of town for a few weeks and I offered to perform the library duties. I was able to do story time with the kids and shared some of my favorite poetry and some pictures of works of art. It was a lot of fun for me and I hope for all the school kids.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
After school today, I gave Leah a bath. Leah is Mr. Bill’s dog, who had been staying at the mission while he was traveling in the Northwest to promote mission work. Needless to say, I was afraid that Mr. Bill would not recognize Leah after her seven weeks of running around in the red sand, so I decided to wash her. Boy, was that dog dirty. Abby and Kelcy watched the entire show. They were helping and working to keep Leah in the tub where she was supposed to stay. I think she felt much better afterward and I know that she felt better afterward.
Lights Out! Sometime between 10PM and 11PM, the lights in the hogans went out, with the Roberts inside. The power failed and no one here knew how to fix it. So, the Roberts spent a night without electric, meaning no clocks, no lights and no heat. Yikes! Did I mention we need some help to finish the staff house so that they Roberts can move in there?
Friday, November 7th, 2008
The electricity in the hogans was fixed about 4:30PM today. Yeah! Thank you Mr. Jim for helping us with the electricity! Mr. Bill was expected to return before school was out, but he did not arrive until much later. He did finally arrive and we were very happy to see him! Leah was very happy to see him as well! He stopped in for a chat at the trailer and then he went on to Dilkon to rest.
Saturday, November 8th, 2008
Parent teacher conference was this Saturday from 8AM until Noon. Two of Jerry’s parents came to the school at their appointed time to visit and see their child’s work. Jerry’s first parent teacher conference day went well. He enjoyed getting to know the families a little better. All of his students are doing well, so it was a pleasant experience. We also got to hear from Miss Springer how Abby is doing in school. It was a nice opportunity to look at Abby’s first report card and to talk about areas where she was doing well and where she could use improvement.
Ms. Tami wins the prize for attendance. She was able to meet with 100% of the parents of her classroom. Miss Springer had 60% parental attendance, which is good. All in all, it went well and the teachers enjoyed getting to meet and talk to the parents of the students.
Later that day, Abby & I had a special afternoon! I took her into town and we ate at Pizza Hut. We redeemed her “Book It” coupon for a free personal pan pizza. Abby earned the certificate by reading. Abby and Kelcy and Jerry and I all read seven books to reach the goal for her Kindergarten class to get her certificate. She ordered a cheese pizza. We sat in the restaurant and she ate her “special pizza” as she called it. I believe that is the third time that we have sat in a restaurant to eat since we have been in Arizona. Abby really had a good time and so did I. While we waited for the pizza, we colored on the place mats. After she was finished eating, we went on to get her hair cut. We waited an hour and a half for the hair cut! I was ready to give up, but she was determined to get her hair cut that day, so we waited. It turned out very cute!
Sunday, November 9th, 2008
We had twenty people in attendance at the Sunday morning service today. Mr. Bill was preaching again and that was nice. Daron did a wonderful job preaching while Mr. Bill was gone! Thank you, Daron, for being willing to step in where you were needed! Miss Springer was at First Christian Church in Winslow, Arizona speaking for the mission and the school. I know that she did a great job.
Sunday night, we all loaded up in the van and drove to Dilkon for the pot luck. Well, not all of us. Miss Springer drove from Winslow by herself. Danny Roberts provided the devotional for the night and then we ate! Mr. Bill had prepared Turkey and gravy! We all provided the rest and it was quite a feast! We had twenty people at the pot-luck at Dilkon. I got the chance to talk to some of the Navajo ladies that attend at Dilkon. It was nice to get to know them a little better and to share a meal with them.
Next week: Some of the classes get another field trip!
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Oct 26 through Oct 31
The school registered two new students recently, one in the fifth grade and one in the seventh grade. Unfortunately, the seventh grader was a transfer student, but has not returned to school since the first day. We are praying for the child, but have now heard that the student will be registering at yet another school. The total students at this point are 23, including Kelcy & Noah in preschool.
Thursday
Today, we went as a school to the Winslow first station and visited. The trip to the fire station was so great! We got to meet two fireman, who showed us some of the tools that firefighters use to combat fires. We saw an ax, a hammer and a hook. Dylan got to demonstrate the "Stop, Drop and Roll" technique. They also informed us about fire safety and the proper installation of smoke detectors. After their demonstration, one of the firefighters put on his jacket, neckguard, helmet, oxygen tank and mask and all his fire protectant clothing. I thought that this was a brilliant idea. Afterward, he went around and shook hands with the kids. It was quite an intimidating sight. The firefighters want to make sure that kids will recognize them in an emergency and not hide from them. Abby and Kelcy reacted strongly to seeing the firefighter with his uniform. I think the picture of the firefighter in uniform brought back the memory of the past. Our neighbor in Kentucky had their house burn in November of 2006. Abby and Kelcy were right across the street with their babysitter Lindsey and they witnessed most of the scene. The neighbors called the emergency department from our house and they saw the firefighters and the fire truck and everything. Abby has talked about what happened for a long time. They witnessed the devastation of the fire and Abby will remember that forever. It is coming up on the second anniversary of the fire. Beth Ann and Wayne, if you are reading this, our thoughts and prayers are with you and your family! We love you and miss you all!
The school kids got to try on the fire fighter's jacket and even the oxygen tank and hat. One of the kids in Jerry's class got to try on the uniform and I really think she could see herself in the job of firefighter. We all also got to hold the fire hose and shoot some water! Even Kelcy and Noah got to hold the hose and spray some water. The kids also managed to get very wet in the process. Thank you, Winslow Fire Department, it was enjoyable and educational!
After the fire station, we went to a local playground and ate our lunch, then played for a half an hour. It was a nice change of pace for everyone. On the way back to school on the bus, the kids sang songs and had a good time.
Friday night (WARNING: Sensitive Health Information)
Kelcy woke up about 1AM vomiting. She has been sick with the stomach virus since then (it is Tuesday). Same night at 3AM Abby woke up vomiting. Abby woke up Kelcy and she had to vomit again, so, we had one in each bathroom! Abby was fine the next morning.
Saturday night
Jerry & I made Navajo tacos tonight. I mixed and rolled out the fry bread and Jerry fried them in the iron skillet. Then, Jerry made the ground beef with onions and taco seasoning and the beans. We chopped up lettuce and tomato. Then we added cheese and sour cream and had a feast. I confess that I cannot make the fry bread like the Navajo ladies. I do not have the ability to pull it out flat enough to fry it, without getting holes in it. So, I cheated and used my rolling pin and it seemed to work fine to roll it out.
Sunday
Sunday service at Red Sands was not so well attended as usual. Daron brought a great message about the Superheroes of the Bible and how we can all be Superheroes if we trust God. It was pot luck Sunday and some of the members had prepared lots of food to help feed the multitudes we were hoping for. So, we had lots of leftovers!
The Roberts left to go to Phoenix right after service. They were picking up two men who have come here to help finish the staff house under construction. Please pray for the safety of the workers and for success in their efforts
Next week: Kelcy turns 3! Mr Bill Returns!
The school registered two new students recently, one in the fifth grade and one in the seventh grade. Unfortunately, the seventh grader was a transfer student, but has not returned to school since the first day. We are praying for the child, but have now heard that the student will be registering at yet another school. The total students at this point are 23, including Kelcy & Noah in preschool.
Thursday
Today, we went as a school to the Winslow first station and visited. The trip to the fire station was so great! We got to meet two fireman, who showed us some of the tools that firefighters use to combat fires. We saw an ax, a hammer and a hook. Dylan got to demonstrate the "Stop, Drop and Roll" technique. They also informed us about fire safety and the proper installation of smoke detectors. After their demonstration, one of the firefighters put on his jacket, neckguard, helmet, oxygen tank and mask and all his fire protectant clothing. I thought that this was a brilliant idea. Afterward, he went around and shook hands with the kids. It was quite an intimidating sight. The firefighters want to make sure that kids will recognize them in an emergency and not hide from them. Abby and Kelcy reacted strongly to seeing the firefighter with his uniform. I think the picture of the firefighter in uniform brought back the memory of the past. Our neighbor in Kentucky had their house burn in November of 2006. Abby and Kelcy were right across the street with their babysitter Lindsey and they witnessed most of the scene. The neighbors called the emergency department from our house and they saw the firefighters and the fire truck and everything. Abby has talked about what happened for a long time. They witnessed the devastation of the fire and Abby will remember that forever. It is coming up on the second anniversary of the fire. Beth Ann and Wayne, if you are reading this, our thoughts and prayers are with you and your family! We love you and miss you all!
The school kids got to try on the fire fighter's jacket and even the oxygen tank and hat. One of the kids in Jerry's class got to try on the uniform and I really think she could see herself in the job of firefighter. We all also got to hold the fire hose and shoot some water! Even Kelcy and Noah got to hold the hose and spray some water. The kids also managed to get very wet in the process. Thank you, Winslow Fire Department, it was enjoyable and educational!
After the fire station, we went to a local playground and ate our lunch, then played for a half an hour. It was a nice change of pace for everyone. On the way back to school on the bus, the kids sang songs and had a good time.
Friday night (WARNING: Sensitive Health Information)
Kelcy woke up about 1AM vomiting. She has been sick with the stomach virus since then (it is Tuesday). Same night at 3AM Abby woke up vomiting. Abby woke up Kelcy and she had to vomit again, so, we had one in each bathroom! Abby was fine the next morning.
Saturday night
Jerry & I made Navajo tacos tonight. I mixed and rolled out the fry bread and Jerry fried them in the iron skillet. Then, Jerry made the ground beef with onions and taco seasoning and the beans. We chopped up lettuce and tomato. Then we added cheese and sour cream and had a feast. I confess that I cannot make the fry bread like the Navajo ladies. I do not have the ability to pull it out flat enough to fry it, without getting holes in it. So, I cheated and used my rolling pin and it seemed to work fine to roll it out.
Sunday
Sunday service at Red Sands was not so well attended as usual. Daron brought a great message about the Superheroes of the Bible and how we can all be Superheroes if we trust God. It was pot luck Sunday and some of the members had prepared lots of food to help feed the multitudes we were hoping for. So, we had lots of leftovers!
The Roberts left to go to Phoenix right after service. They were picking up two men who have come here to help finish the staff house under construction. Please pray for the safety of the workers and for success in their efforts
Next week: Kelcy turns 3! Mr Bill Returns!
Monday, October 27, 2008
Coyote waiting...
October 13, 2008
Monday- The school celebrates Columbus Day, so school was out today. Our family spent the day bonding and playing. We spent a lot of time playing games with the girls and teasing each other. It was a very nice day. Tonight, the Roberts and Miss Springer came over and we watched Monday night football. Miss Springer always says it, but it is funny to watch. The kids all think it is so exciting to see their teacher outside of the classroom. Miss Springer teaches Abby, Ian & Dylan, so they were all very excited to have her there. I enjoyed getting to know her better as well. It isn't easy with our conflicting jobs and time schedules to get together and just talk about general things. It was nice.
Tuesday
Jerry killed another rattlesnake today. The kids went down after lunch to the playground. When any child has to sit out of recess for some time, they have to sit on the picnic table. Well, this day there was five boys sitting on the table, when Jerry notices the snake, right underneath the table. The snake was all sprawled out, not coiled up. It didn't seem to even notice that it was surrounded. Jerry softly instructed everyone to back away and then dealt with the imminent threat.
Wednesday
We got another new student! The child enrolled this morning, just in time for the Navajo lessons in the morning. This time, the teacher gave us sheets to study the Navajo language. I am working on it! It seems much more complicated than Latin and Russian that I have studied in the past.
Thursday
I went to the library this evening and picked up some books by the author Hillerman. He writes mystery novels, a lot of them based on the Navajo reservation. I have heard that his depiction is very accurate. The girls are in bed asleep. It is about 10 o'clock at night and I hear one of the girls crying out. I rush back to their room, thinking they must be having a nightmare. They are both sound asleep and the sound continues. I then realize what the scream really is. Coyotes. They are right outside our back door, it sound like at least three of them. I wonder if they are killing the rabbits that I see playing out there sometimes. When I turn on the porch light on the back of the trailer, I can't seem them. And, they don't stop bawling. Jerry and I hear them a couple of more times that night. It is a scary sound to hear, right outside your window where your children sometimes play.
Sunday
Today, Daron & Tami & Noah are driving to the Dilkon Christian Church and Daron is preaching the lesson at 9AM. Then, they turn around and drive back here so that Daron can preach the message at Red Sands Christian Church at 11AM. Dilkon Christian Church is around 50 miles away, so their traveling starts at 7:30 AM. Dylan and Ian are staying with us while their parents travel to Dilkon. The kids play well together this morning. Abby and Dylan walked up the hill to the church arm in arm, stopping every now and then to pick flowers. Unfortunately, the flowers are on cactus and Kelcy gets stuck by the cactus trying to pick flowers, too. However, she did pick her own splinters out of her hand today.
We had 30 people in the church service today here at Red Sands. I had lots of kids in my class. It was really great. We are averaging 28 people at the church services here in October.
I received some packages from my Ladies Bible Study group back home! Thank you all for your gifts! We have all enjoyed them and we all appreciate your thinking of us!
Next Week--Another new student for the school!
Monday- The school celebrates Columbus Day, so school was out today. Our family spent the day bonding and playing. We spent a lot of time playing games with the girls and teasing each other. It was a very nice day. Tonight, the Roberts and Miss Springer came over and we watched Monday night football. Miss Springer always says it, but it is funny to watch. The kids all think it is so exciting to see their teacher outside of the classroom. Miss Springer teaches Abby, Ian & Dylan, so they were all very excited to have her there. I enjoyed getting to know her better as well. It isn't easy with our conflicting jobs and time schedules to get together and just talk about general things. It was nice.
Tuesday
Jerry killed another rattlesnake today. The kids went down after lunch to the playground. When any child has to sit out of recess for some time, they have to sit on the picnic table. Well, this day there was five boys sitting on the table, when Jerry notices the snake, right underneath the table. The snake was all sprawled out, not coiled up. It didn't seem to even notice that it was surrounded. Jerry softly instructed everyone to back away and then dealt with the imminent threat.
Wednesday
We got another new student! The child enrolled this morning, just in time for the Navajo lessons in the morning. This time, the teacher gave us sheets to study the Navajo language. I am working on it! It seems much more complicated than Latin and Russian that I have studied in the past.
Thursday
I went to the library this evening and picked up some books by the author Hillerman. He writes mystery novels, a lot of them based on the Navajo reservation. I have heard that his depiction is very accurate. The girls are in bed asleep. It is about 10 o'clock at night and I hear one of the girls crying out. I rush back to their room, thinking they must be having a nightmare. They are both sound asleep and the sound continues. I then realize what the scream really is. Coyotes. They are right outside our back door, it sound like at least three of them. I wonder if they are killing the rabbits that I see playing out there sometimes. When I turn on the porch light on the back of the trailer, I can't seem them. And, they don't stop bawling. Jerry and I hear them a couple of more times that night. It is a scary sound to hear, right outside your window where your children sometimes play.
Sunday
Today, Daron & Tami & Noah are driving to the Dilkon Christian Church and Daron is preaching the lesson at 9AM. Then, they turn around and drive back here so that Daron can preach the message at Red Sands Christian Church at 11AM. Dilkon Christian Church is around 50 miles away, so their traveling starts at 7:30 AM. Dylan and Ian are staying with us while their parents travel to Dilkon. The kids play well together this morning. Abby and Dylan walked up the hill to the church arm in arm, stopping every now and then to pick flowers. Unfortunately, the flowers are on cactus and Kelcy gets stuck by the cactus trying to pick flowers, too. However, she did pick her own splinters out of her hand today.
We had 30 people in the church service today here at Red Sands. I had lots of kids in my class. It was really great. We are averaging 28 people at the church services here in October.
I received some packages from my Ladies Bible Study group back home! Thank you all for your gifts! We have all enjoyed them and we all appreciate your thinking of us!
Next Week--Another new student for the school!
Monday, October 13, 2008
Rattlesnake, Tumbleweed, Dust Storm.
Tuesday October 7th, 2008
This was a busy week! We had school every day as usual. I was busy getting things prepared for the board meeting. On Tuesday, we took school pictures and class pictures. For those of you who are familiar with the campus, we took the school pictures outside, by fence on the horse corral. It was a beautiful, cloudless day. Jerry took the pictures with our film camera and Miss Dawn took pictures with the digital camera, just in case. We took individual shots, then all of the kids in one family, then the individual classes and their teachers, then the staff all together. I hope to post some of these soon. We also had music with the Sprinkles on that day AND library with Ms. Anne. It was a busy day for the kids. The kids all got very rambunctious when their routine was messed up like that. It was a rough, loud ride home of the school bus that day.
Wednesday, October 8th, 2008
On Wednesday afternoon, Mr. Roberts parents and his middle brother arrived for a surprise visit. And I do mean surprise! No one knew they were coming. They arrived at about 2:30PM, when the guys were outside teaching P.E. They are a lovely and loving family. I must confess, I was glad for Daron, but seeing his family here, also made me more home sick. I wished that my family and Jerry’s family might be the ones visiting here some day. Wednesday evening, Mr. Rich and Mr. Mark from Miamisburg Christian Church in Ohio arrived to visit with the school children prior to the board meeting. We had been expecting them. They were both very kind and I enjoyed getting to know them. They stayed at the church building in the Sunday school room with the couch. They both have an obvious love for Red Sands and the Navajo people.
Thursday, October 9th, 2008
This morning, I ran into town to the bank and the post office. While driving from the mission to the interstate, I saw my first TUMBLEWEED. I don’t know why I was so excited (and still am excited) to see tumbleweed. Maybe it is because I love western movies and I have seen many scenes where the tumbleweed rolled across the dirt road and it was exciting to see one in person. It was initially a small one. The tumbleweed was a little piece of brush that had dried up, turned white and been broken free from its fragile hold in the sandy soil by the wind. It rolled right across the road, just like in the movies. I have since seen several more tumbleweeds cross the road. Some are green, some are brown and some are white.
After lunch, the school children have P.E. One of the kids came inside the school and said there was a snake. Jerry, thinking it was a joke, went outside to check. Sure enough, there was a rattlesnake just outside the school door. It was curled up under a rock, so I don’t think it was being aggressive at the time, but Jerry got to kill his first rattlesnake that day. All the men who were on the premises at the time, Daron, Rich, Mark, Daron’s Dad and brother were there to witness the killing. Jerry said it was probably an unfair battle, having seven men again one little rattlesnake, but the snake needed to be disposed of and Jerry was the man to do it.
Saturday, October 11, 2008
At 3AM, I am awakened from sleep by the sound of the wind. The wind hits the trailer and I can hear the roof roll and something that is loose on the outside slams open and shut. I can never quite see what it making the noise when I look outside. A wind/dust storm at night is not unusual, so I prepare to wait it out. An hour later, Abby and Kelcy are awakened by the ferocity of the storm. I send Abby to our bed with Jerry and I take Kelcy back to her room and lie down with her, again figuring to wait out the storm and hoping to return to sleep. Unfortunately, it is hope that does not play out. The storm continues. I take Kelcy back to our room, hoping she will sleep in there. She keeps asking “What is trying to get in here?” and “Why is our house shaking?” Then she starte telling me there are bugs in my hair? I am not sure about that one, but I assume it is a manifestation of her fear of the storm. By now, we can feel and see the wind shaking and moving the house. Abby keeps saying, “I’m not afraid anymore”, probably trying to convince both me and Jerry and herself that it was true. I must confess, I was getting a little nervous. I know that this trailer has stood for 30 years, but I wonder if the roof is capable of withstanding the battering it is taking. Time moves on: 5AM, 6AM, 7AM. By this time, Kelcy and I are in the living room. I was hoping the wind would not be so loud out here and I began making dessert for the board meeting today. Abby finally goes back to sleep about 7AM. Kelcy never goes back to sleep. When it is light outside, I can see the dust. It is like fog, only not just close to the ground. It swallows up the landscape and envelopes everything around us. It insidiously makes its way inside our house through any opening. At the windows, the front door, an electric outlet, sand piles up in our house. The wind is blowing from 30-40 miles per hour, with reported gusts up to 70 miles per hour. We have to leave the house to go to the board meeting. We have to plan to load up the car. We look like Western bandits, with handkerchiefs over our mouths and noses and our sunglasses on to keep the sand out of our mouths and nose and eyes. We wait for a brief break in the sandblasting force of the wind and make a break for the truck. The wind makes it difficult to get the door to the house shut, as it is blowing directly into the door. We wrap the girls’ heads in towels to protect them and carry them out to the truck. When we get to the church up the hill, the process is repeated. The storm lasted for roughly fifteen hours, from 3AM to 6PM that day. The end result is that the roof on the new staff house and the old school building has been destroyed beyond repair, there is insulation from the house all over our fence and yard. The ground no longer has that soft layer of sand, it was all blown away. What remains is the small rocks on top of the bedrock. I am told that the length and intensity of this storm is unusual, even here. I sincerely hope that is true!
The board meeting went well. Both the board members and the staff met from 9AM till Noon and then we had lunch. Afterward, Keith came down to the trailer and we got to talk to him about everything going on at home and how we were all doing here. It was nice to get a chance to see and talk to him. We did miss Ms. Aleta. I know that she wasn’t able to attend the meeting this time and I just want her to know how much she was missed. Ms. Aleta always brings life and sparkle to a room!
Sunday, October 12, 2008
I was wondering if the storm would affect attendance. It was down today, we only had 21. I did have four of my regular class members present, so that was nice. One of the Navajo ladies, Miss Sonja, led the singing today for the first time, while Miss Anne played the piano. It brought a big smile to my face to see her up there leading us. We also got to sing “Jesus Love Me” in Navajo. That was really neat. Mr. Keith preached the sermon on Jonah and his experience. The message being it took being swallowed by a fish to get Jonah to be obedient, but “what’s it going to take to get your attention?” It was great! Afterward, we went out to eat at Denny’s with Mr. Keith and the Roberts family. It was nice to not be cooking and cleaning up for the meal. Abby and Kelcy were very well behaved, so it was an enjoyable meal all around. After lunch, we drove over to the Little Painted Desert that I described before. Abby called it a big slide. She was not even a little afraid to get near the edge and she wanted to slide down the smooth rock to the bottom. She was running around the edges of the canyon and making me terribly nervous. I think it looks like a large cemented skateboard park. It has natural ramps and curves like that. I did take some pictures of the LPD to share.
This was a busy week! We had school every day as usual. I was busy getting things prepared for the board meeting. On Tuesday, we took school pictures and class pictures. For those of you who are familiar with the campus, we took the school pictures outside, by fence on the horse corral. It was a beautiful, cloudless day. Jerry took the pictures with our film camera and Miss Dawn took pictures with the digital camera, just in case. We took individual shots, then all of the kids in one family, then the individual classes and their teachers, then the staff all together. I hope to post some of these soon. We also had music with the Sprinkles on that day AND library with Ms. Anne. It was a busy day for the kids. The kids all got very rambunctious when their routine was messed up like that. It was a rough, loud ride home of the school bus that day.
Wednesday, October 8th, 2008
On Wednesday afternoon, Mr. Roberts parents and his middle brother arrived for a surprise visit. And I do mean surprise! No one knew they were coming. They arrived at about 2:30PM, when the guys were outside teaching P.E. They are a lovely and loving family. I must confess, I was glad for Daron, but seeing his family here, also made me more home sick. I wished that my family and Jerry’s family might be the ones visiting here some day. Wednesday evening, Mr. Rich and Mr. Mark from Miamisburg Christian Church in Ohio arrived to visit with the school children prior to the board meeting. We had been expecting them. They were both very kind and I enjoyed getting to know them. They stayed at the church building in the Sunday school room with the couch. They both have an obvious love for Red Sands and the Navajo people.
Thursday, October 9th, 2008
This morning, I ran into town to the bank and the post office. While driving from the mission to the interstate, I saw my first TUMBLEWEED. I don’t know why I was so excited (and still am excited) to see tumbleweed. Maybe it is because I love western movies and I have seen many scenes where the tumbleweed rolled across the dirt road and it was exciting to see one in person. It was initially a small one. The tumbleweed was a little piece of brush that had dried up, turned white and been broken free from its fragile hold in the sandy soil by the wind. It rolled right across the road, just like in the movies. I have since seen several more tumbleweeds cross the road. Some are green, some are brown and some are white.
After lunch, the school children have P.E. One of the kids came inside the school and said there was a snake. Jerry, thinking it was a joke, went outside to check. Sure enough, there was a rattlesnake just outside the school door. It was curled up under a rock, so I don’t think it was being aggressive at the time, but Jerry got to kill his first rattlesnake that day. All the men who were on the premises at the time, Daron, Rich, Mark, Daron’s Dad and brother were there to witness the killing. Jerry said it was probably an unfair battle, having seven men again one little rattlesnake, but the snake needed to be disposed of and Jerry was the man to do it.
Saturday, October 11, 2008
At 3AM, I am awakened from sleep by the sound of the wind. The wind hits the trailer and I can hear the roof roll and something that is loose on the outside slams open and shut. I can never quite see what it making the noise when I look outside. A wind/dust storm at night is not unusual, so I prepare to wait it out. An hour later, Abby and Kelcy are awakened by the ferocity of the storm. I send Abby to our bed with Jerry and I take Kelcy back to her room and lie down with her, again figuring to wait out the storm and hoping to return to sleep. Unfortunately, it is hope that does not play out. The storm continues. I take Kelcy back to our room, hoping she will sleep in there. She keeps asking “What is trying to get in here?” and “Why is our house shaking?” Then she starte telling me there are bugs in my hair? I am not sure about that one, but I assume it is a manifestation of her fear of the storm. By now, we can feel and see the wind shaking and moving the house. Abby keeps saying, “I’m not afraid anymore”, probably trying to convince both me and Jerry and herself that it was true. I must confess, I was getting a little nervous. I know that this trailer has stood for 30 years, but I wonder if the roof is capable of withstanding the battering it is taking. Time moves on: 5AM, 6AM, 7AM. By this time, Kelcy and I are in the living room. I was hoping the wind would not be so loud out here and I began making dessert for the board meeting today. Abby finally goes back to sleep about 7AM. Kelcy never goes back to sleep. When it is light outside, I can see the dust. It is like fog, only not just close to the ground. It swallows up the landscape and envelopes everything around us. It insidiously makes its way inside our house through any opening. At the windows, the front door, an electric outlet, sand piles up in our house. The wind is blowing from 30-40 miles per hour, with reported gusts up to 70 miles per hour. We have to leave the house to go to the board meeting. We have to plan to load up the car. We look like Western bandits, with handkerchiefs over our mouths and noses and our sunglasses on to keep the sand out of our mouths and nose and eyes. We wait for a brief break in the sandblasting force of the wind and make a break for the truck. The wind makes it difficult to get the door to the house shut, as it is blowing directly into the door. We wrap the girls’ heads in towels to protect them and carry them out to the truck. When we get to the church up the hill, the process is repeated. The storm lasted for roughly fifteen hours, from 3AM to 6PM that day. The end result is that the roof on the new staff house and the old school building has been destroyed beyond repair, there is insulation from the house all over our fence and yard. The ground no longer has that soft layer of sand, it was all blown away. What remains is the small rocks on top of the bedrock. I am told that the length and intensity of this storm is unusual, even here. I sincerely hope that is true!
The board meeting went well. Both the board members and the staff met from 9AM till Noon and then we had lunch. Afterward, Keith came down to the trailer and we got to talk to him about everything going on at home and how we were all doing here. It was nice to get a chance to see and talk to him. We did miss Ms. Aleta. I know that she wasn’t able to attend the meeting this time and I just want her to know how much she was missed. Ms. Aleta always brings life and sparkle to a room!
Sunday, October 12, 2008
I was wondering if the storm would affect attendance. It was down today, we only had 21. I did have four of my regular class members present, so that was nice. One of the Navajo ladies, Miss Sonja, led the singing today for the first time, while Miss Anne played the piano. It brought a big smile to my face to see her up there leading us. We also got to sing “Jesus Love Me” in Navajo. That was really neat. Mr. Keith preached the sermon on Jonah and his experience. The message being it took being swallowed by a fish to get Jonah to be obedient, but “what’s it going to take to get your attention?” It was great! Afterward, we went out to eat at Denny’s with Mr. Keith and the Roberts family. It was nice to not be cooking and cleaning up for the meal. Abby and Kelcy were very well behaved, so it was an enjoyable meal all around. After lunch, we drove over to the Little Painted Desert that I described before. Abby called it a big slide. She was not even a little afraid to get near the edge and she wanted to slide down the smooth rock to the bottom. She was running around the edges of the canyon and making me terribly nervous. I think it looks like a large cemented skateboard park. It has natural ramps and curves like that. I did take some pictures of the LPD to share.
I've seen how the joy outweighs the pain...
This week was a pretty normal week. We had the Indian Health Center come and checked the kids teeth and sealed them. I am not sure what this entails, but Abby is now super excited about brushing her teeth. Kelcy has picked up on this and they both brush their teeth morning and night now. Of course, the “brushing the teeth” emphasis in on bed time, when they are both trying to avoid going to sleep. They have to brush their teeth again. I am really excited about this because the water here is well water and it does not contain fluoride. At home, we mostly drank distilled water, but the kids were also exposed to fluoride in their bath tub and shower water and I would fix them water from the sink occasionally, to keep some fluoride on their teeth. Abby, along with her whole class, brushes her teeth at school. That is really great!
The Red Sands Christian School sent out report cards on September 30th. Some were really good, others needed some improvement. The school uses a system with three periods of six weeks, instead of 2 periods of nine weeks. Some of the kids confessed that they were worried what their parents would say when their parents saw their report card. However, progress is being made with all of the students. You may wonder about Abby? Kindergarteners do not get a report card the first six weeks, so we don’t have anything to report yet. Although, Miss Dawn says that Abby can read several words, like “pot” and “cat”. Very exciting stuff!
Mr. Mark came to visit on Friday, October 3rd. He was on his way to a business meeting in Las Vegas, so he said he wanted to stop by since he was in the neighborhood. He arrived here at Red Sands on Friday evening, about 9:30PM Arizona time (that is after midnight Eastern Daylight Time). We were all so happy to see him. Abby & Kelcy has been anxiously awaiting his arrival. Abby even agreed to take a bath that night so she would smell good when Mark got here. Mark brought a drawing from Alex and Jason for the girls to have. We have it posted on the refrigerator here. Abby & Kelcy both wanted to send something back, so they drew some pictures to send back with Mr. Mark. On Saturday morning we got up and had breakfast and it was pretty cold outside here. I don’t remember the temperature reading, but it was colder than it had been here in the morning. And it rained almost the whole day on Saturday! Mark came to the desert and it was cold and rainy all day! I don’t know if he was laughing or disappointed. Mark had rented a sweet ride for his trip here from the Phoenix airport. The girls and I loaded up in our pick-up and Mark & Jerry road in the rental car and we headed into “town”. We drove downtown to get some building supplies for the staff house under construction. We drove right by “the corner” from the Eagles song, “Standin’ on the corner in Winslow, AZ such a fine sight to see.” Mark & Jerry turned around and headed back that way. I thought maybe Mark wanted a picture of the “corner”, but they said there was a car show back there and they drove through it. The hardware store is right across from the Post Office, so the girls and I crossed the street to check the mail. By the time we made it back to the hardware store, the boys were there. We picked up the supplies and then Mark & Jerry drove on from Winslow to Dilkon to see Mr. Bill’s church.
Mark & Jerry drove up highway 87, headed toward the Dilkon turn off. The road toward Dilkon begins with what I call “scrub”. It is miles and miles of sandy soil with short bushes and rocks. It appears relatively flat and the road is certainly straight. Soon, you begin to see the Buttes (no pun intended) at Dilkon. They appear like giant, rounded rock formations in the distance. Jerry stopped at “The Little Painted Desert” on the Navajo reservation. The LPD (for short) is just a barely marked turn off on the road. There is a rusty, difficult to read historical marker. You drive up a little dirt (read sandy) road up a little bit of a hill, and then you get to the top. AWESOME! You are looking down on the LPD, which consists of a canyon with mounds of rock formations that have been “painted” by the hand of God beautifully. They are gently rolling rock formations that are orange and black and yellow in color. When I say you are looking down, you are looking DOWN. You stand on the edge of a precipice, with a radical vertical drop below it. It is so much like all the land around here. You are driving along looking at what is straight and boring and just off the road “surprise!” Some of the most beautiful country is hidden so much that you would not even know it was there and certainly not expect it to look like the LPD. We have since been to the LPD as a family, which is how I can describe it.
Mark and Jerry then continued on to Dilkon to see the church and Mr. Bills hooghan, then back to Leupp. They stopped at the flea market and saw one of the kids from school and their parents. They spent a little time walking around the market and then bought some Navajo tacos for their lunch. They returned back to the trailer, where it was raining. It was a drizzly, fall rain that soaked into the ground and made it harden back up. When we got here in August, the ground was hard and rocky. After the kids returned and the buses were driving up and down the road and the kids were playing on the playground, the soil softened up and became more like Sand than rock. After this rain, the ground hardened back up a little.
Mark stayed for church on Sunday, Oct 5th. He rode with Jerry on the bus run to Tolani Lake to pick up the Navajo church-goers from that area. After making the trip, Jerry said that Mark asked if he ever got scared when he was driving the church bus out to the reservation alone. Jerry replied that he had not, at least not since the first trip he made out there by himself. Jerry figures that God can protect him. It was another great day at the Red Sands Christian Church. We had 34 people in attendance at the church service, and I counted at least six regular attendees that we were missing. I taught my Sunday School class and I had ELEVEN kids, ranging from second grade through eighth grade. It was very (what’s the word?) hectic, maybe. Some of the kids were a little rowdy and laughing, but it was exciting to see them all there. All of the new people at church were from different families and it was exciting to meet them. Jerry asked Mark to do the communion mediation and he did a great job! After the service, we had the monthly scheduled potluck.
We were a little panicked that we might not have enough food for everyone, because the new people didn’t know it was pot-luck Sunday. But again, the Lord provided. The Lord was at work, because Miss Dawn’s Sunday school lesson was about the feeding of the five thousand! She was a little concerned because we had one meatloaf, one crock pot of sloppy joe, one casserole dish of corn pudding and a single dessert. To our other offerings, the Roberts added hot dogs, macaroni and cheese and Ramen noodle soup. In the end, everyone was fed and again we had leftovers. Thank you, Lord! Mark left and we were sad to see him go. We love you, man! And, it was very nice to see a familiar face.
Next entry is titled Rattlesnake, Tumbleweed, Dust Storm... Very Exciting!
The Red Sands Christian School sent out report cards on September 30th. Some were really good, others needed some improvement. The school uses a system with three periods of six weeks, instead of 2 periods of nine weeks. Some of the kids confessed that they were worried what their parents would say when their parents saw their report card. However, progress is being made with all of the students. You may wonder about Abby? Kindergarteners do not get a report card the first six weeks, so we don’t have anything to report yet. Although, Miss Dawn says that Abby can read several words, like “pot” and “cat”. Very exciting stuff!
Mr. Mark came to visit on Friday, October 3rd. He was on his way to a business meeting in Las Vegas, so he said he wanted to stop by since he was in the neighborhood. He arrived here at Red Sands on Friday evening, about 9:30PM Arizona time (that is after midnight Eastern Daylight Time). We were all so happy to see him. Abby & Kelcy has been anxiously awaiting his arrival. Abby even agreed to take a bath that night so she would smell good when Mark got here. Mark brought a drawing from Alex and Jason for the girls to have. We have it posted on the refrigerator here. Abby & Kelcy both wanted to send something back, so they drew some pictures to send back with Mr. Mark. On Saturday morning we got up and had breakfast and it was pretty cold outside here. I don’t remember the temperature reading, but it was colder than it had been here in the morning. And it rained almost the whole day on Saturday! Mark came to the desert and it was cold and rainy all day! I don’t know if he was laughing or disappointed. Mark had rented a sweet ride for his trip here from the Phoenix airport. The girls and I loaded up in our pick-up and Mark & Jerry road in the rental car and we headed into “town”. We drove downtown to get some building supplies for the staff house under construction. We drove right by “the corner” from the Eagles song, “Standin’ on the corner in Winslow, AZ such a fine sight to see.” Mark & Jerry turned around and headed back that way. I thought maybe Mark wanted a picture of the “corner”, but they said there was a car show back there and they drove through it. The hardware store is right across from the Post Office, so the girls and I crossed the street to check the mail. By the time we made it back to the hardware store, the boys were there. We picked up the supplies and then Mark & Jerry drove on from Winslow to Dilkon to see Mr. Bill’s church.
Mark & Jerry drove up highway 87, headed toward the Dilkon turn off. The road toward Dilkon begins with what I call “scrub”. It is miles and miles of sandy soil with short bushes and rocks. It appears relatively flat and the road is certainly straight. Soon, you begin to see the Buttes (no pun intended) at Dilkon. They appear like giant, rounded rock formations in the distance. Jerry stopped at “The Little Painted Desert” on the Navajo reservation. The LPD (for short) is just a barely marked turn off on the road. There is a rusty, difficult to read historical marker. You drive up a little dirt (read sandy) road up a little bit of a hill, and then you get to the top. AWESOME! You are looking down on the LPD, which consists of a canyon with mounds of rock formations that have been “painted” by the hand of God beautifully. They are gently rolling rock formations that are orange and black and yellow in color. When I say you are looking down, you are looking DOWN. You stand on the edge of a precipice, with a radical vertical drop below it. It is so much like all the land around here. You are driving along looking at what is straight and boring and just off the road “surprise!” Some of the most beautiful country is hidden so much that you would not even know it was there and certainly not expect it to look like the LPD. We have since been to the LPD as a family, which is how I can describe it.
Mark and Jerry then continued on to Dilkon to see the church and Mr. Bills hooghan, then back to Leupp. They stopped at the flea market and saw one of the kids from school and their parents. They spent a little time walking around the market and then bought some Navajo tacos for their lunch. They returned back to the trailer, where it was raining. It was a drizzly, fall rain that soaked into the ground and made it harden back up. When we got here in August, the ground was hard and rocky. After the kids returned and the buses were driving up and down the road and the kids were playing on the playground, the soil softened up and became more like Sand than rock. After this rain, the ground hardened back up a little.
Mark stayed for church on Sunday, Oct 5th. He rode with Jerry on the bus run to Tolani Lake to pick up the Navajo church-goers from that area. After making the trip, Jerry said that Mark asked if he ever got scared when he was driving the church bus out to the reservation alone. Jerry replied that he had not, at least not since the first trip he made out there by himself. Jerry figures that God can protect him. It was another great day at the Red Sands Christian Church. We had 34 people in attendance at the church service, and I counted at least six regular attendees that we were missing. I taught my Sunday School class and I had ELEVEN kids, ranging from second grade through eighth grade. It was very (what’s the word?) hectic, maybe. Some of the kids were a little rowdy and laughing, but it was exciting to see them all there. All of the new people at church were from different families and it was exciting to meet them. Jerry asked Mark to do the communion mediation and he did a great job! After the service, we had the monthly scheduled potluck.
We were a little panicked that we might not have enough food for everyone, because the new people didn’t know it was pot-luck Sunday. But again, the Lord provided. The Lord was at work, because Miss Dawn’s Sunday school lesson was about the feeding of the five thousand! She was a little concerned because we had one meatloaf, one crock pot of sloppy joe, one casserole dish of corn pudding and a single dessert. To our other offerings, the Roberts added hot dogs, macaroni and cheese and Ramen noodle soup. In the end, everyone was fed and again we had leftovers. Thank you, Lord! Mark left and we were sad to see him go. We love you, man! And, it was very nice to see a familiar face.
Next entry is titled Rattlesnake, Tumbleweed, Dust Storm... Very Exciting!
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Great is thy reward!
I can't believe that it is October already! These last two months have flown by! The school kids are doing great! We have a total of twenty kids from Kindergarten through eighth grade now. I am getting to know them a lot better now. I had the opportunity to give the Chapel lesson this week. My verse focus was Jeremiah 29:11. God led me to focus on this verse to help the children see how important they each are to God. And they He has plans for their future!
I thought this would be a good time to show a little about the school schedule, so listed below is a typical week at school:
Monday
8AM School Opening program
11:30AM Lunch at Church (kids walk from the school to the church)
12-12:30 Playground
12:30 Music with the Sprinkles
3PM Bus departs for home
Tuesday
8AM School Opening program at Church
8:15AM Chapel
11:30AM Lunch at Church
12-12:30 Playground
2:15PM Story hour and Library book check-out
3PM Bus departs for home
Wednesday
8AM School Opening program
11:30AM Lunch at Church
12-12:30 Playground
2:15PM P.E.
3PM Bus departs for home
Thursday
8AM School opening program
11:30AM Lunch at Church
12-12:30 Playground
2:15PM Music with Miss Springer
3PM Bus departs for home
Friday is a duplicate of Wednesday
I cannot remember if I have mentioned about the Sprinkles. They are a husband and wife team who travel around and teach music to the kids on the reservation. They live on the Apache reservation currently. They bring with them keyboards, electric guitars, acoustic guitars, drums and sometimes other instruments. They teach the kids to read music and how to play the instruments. At the end of the lesson time, the children get to practice and play music on whichever instruments they choose. The Sprinkles do a great job relating to the children. They are good at keeping them focused and disciplined. The school kids all LOVE this time. All of the kids seem to be very musically inclined. I believe music class is their favorite extracurricular activity. The Sprinkles do a great job and we all really appreciate their dedication and initiative!
Miss Anne does the story hour and library time. She also does a wonderful job. She organizes the library and records the books that are checked out. She insures that books are returned. She also gives the chapel lesson. She is an inspiration of service and dedication. Miss Anne also plans the music and plays the piano at the church service on Sunday mornings. Thank you Miss Anne!
Mr. Jim is also dedicated in service and love. He works at the mission almost every day somewhere. He is currently working on the new staff house during the day. He serves communion and takes up offering most Sundays. He just generally does an awesome job and is also an inspiration in the area of service. Thank you Mr. Jim!
Mr. Bill is also an inspiration in service. He does so many things, I am afraid that I will forget something. He is currently traveling in the Northwest and promoting missions to Christian congregations all over Oregon and Washington and Montana and places in Northern California. While here he ran the school bus route to the reservation some mornings, especially until Jerry was familiar enough to do it by himself. He also made sure the van was serviced and full of gasoline when needed. He is the preacher at Dilkon Christian Church on the Navajo reservation, about 50 miles from here. So, he preaches there on Sunday morning at 9AM, Sunday evening at 6PM and Wednesday evening at 6PM. While serving the congregation there and maintaining their property, he also drove 50 miles over to Red Sands each day since I have been here. He would obtain the construction materials for the new house and the trailer. He also helped in the construction work. He would babysit the children when needed. He mopped the floors in the church, taught P.E. twice a week and preached at the Red Sands Christian Church on Sunday mornings (after having already preached at Dilkon). And, I am quite sure I am leaving things out. He does an amazing job. Thank you Mr. Bill! We miss you and pray for your safe travel!
Miss Dawn Springer is another amazing person here. She has been ministering here for fifteen years. She currently teaches the Kindergarten through Second grade AND functions as the School Principal. She does an amazing job. She submits monthly reports to the board. She teaches her class of 10 students five days a week. She provides the students with snacks and drinks and inspiration. She also performs her public ministry for the "Least of these", providing meals, clothing and emotional support for homeless people here in Winslow, Arizona. Miss Springer also alternates teaching the preschool through first grade Sunday School class and the Service time Wee Worship at Red Sands Church on Sunday. I am sure that I will forget lots of things that Miss Springer does. She is a bundle of energy and efficiency. The children all love her and so do adults! Thank you Miss Springer!
I apologize if the following thank yous are not as specific, but I do not observe all of these people in their jobs, as I have the others.
Ms. Tami is also a bundle of efficiency and love. She teaches the third and fourth grade class at the school. She works had to show them love and have them love and respect one another. She also motivates her kids and provides them with occassional snacks. She teachs the chapel lesson and, on Sunday, she alternates teaching the preschool-first grade Sunday School class or the Wee Worship during the Sunday Service with Miss Dawn. All this, and she cares for her husband and three children after hours, providing food and love.
Mr. Daron teaches the fifth and sixth grades at the school. He does a great job and is being motivational for the children. He is good at relating to them and sharing fun time and serious work time with them. While Mr. Bill is gone, he is helping to teach the P.E. classes. Mr. Daron also does maintenance around the church and generally does what needs to be done. He is also working on the new staff house in his spare time. He is also preaching at Red Sands Christian Church while Mr. Bill is absent.
Mr. Jerry teaches the seventh and eighth grades. He drives the school bus each morning to pick up the kids on the reservation and returns them home each evening. He works individually with the children in his class to makes sure that they stay on task and learn as much as possible. The curriculum is tough and the kids are doing great! He also spends a lot of time outside of class preparing his Lesson plans and reading through the material so that he knows it well enough to teach it. He is also teaching P.E. while Mr. Bill is gone. Jerry is also teaching the Adult Sunday School class at Red Sands Christian Church on Sundays and driving the church bus route to pick up the church-goers.
In addition to their regular duties, the teachers also are responsible for one of the following each week. They alternate weeks:
1. Cleaning and mopping the school and the bathrooms when the kids are not there.
2. Leading the morning opening program
3. Leading prayer at lunch time and cleaning up the lunchroom after lunch each day.
4. Playground duty-observing the children after lunch while they play on the playground.
I hope that you all have enjoyed this entry. I wanted to let you know about all the people serving here and what a great job they are all doing! Continue to pray for all of us and I will get back to my regular personal post next week.
On Saturday, October 11th, we will welcome the NTM board members for their semi annual board meeting.
I thought this would be a good time to show a little about the school schedule, so listed below is a typical week at school:
Monday
8AM School Opening program
11:30AM Lunch at Church (kids walk from the school to the church)
12-12:30 Playground
12:30 Music with the Sprinkles
3PM Bus departs for home
Tuesday
8AM School Opening program at Church
8:15AM Chapel
11:30AM Lunch at Church
12-12:30 Playground
2:15PM Story hour and Library book check-out
3PM Bus departs for home
Wednesday
8AM School Opening program
11:30AM Lunch at Church
12-12:30 Playground
2:15PM P.E.
3PM Bus departs for home
Thursday
8AM School opening program
11:30AM Lunch at Church
12-12:30 Playground
2:15PM Music with Miss Springer
3PM Bus departs for home
Friday is a duplicate of Wednesday
I cannot remember if I have mentioned about the Sprinkles. They are a husband and wife team who travel around and teach music to the kids on the reservation. They live on the Apache reservation currently. They bring with them keyboards, electric guitars, acoustic guitars, drums and sometimes other instruments. They teach the kids to read music and how to play the instruments. At the end of the lesson time, the children get to practice and play music on whichever instruments they choose. The Sprinkles do a great job relating to the children. They are good at keeping them focused and disciplined. The school kids all LOVE this time. All of the kids seem to be very musically inclined. I believe music class is their favorite extracurricular activity. The Sprinkles do a great job and we all really appreciate their dedication and initiative!
Miss Anne does the story hour and library time. She also does a wonderful job. She organizes the library and records the books that are checked out. She insures that books are returned. She also gives the chapel lesson. She is an inspiration of service and dedication. Miss Anne also plans the music and plays the piano at the church service on Sunday mornings. Thank you Miss Anne!
Mr. Jim is also dedicated in service and love. He works at the mission almost every day somewhere. He is currently working on the new staff house during the day. He serves communion and takes up offering most Sundays. He just generally does an awesome job and is also an inspiration in the area of service. Thank you Mr. Jim!
Mr. Bill is also an inspiration in service. He does so many things, I am afraid that I will forget something. He is currently traveling in the Northwest and promoting missions to Christian congregations all over Oregon and Washington and Montana and places in Northern California. While here he ran the school bus route to the reservation some mornings, especially until Jerry was familiar enough to do it by himself. He also made sure the van was serviced and full of gasoline when needed. He is the preacher at Dilkon Christian Church on the Navajo reservation, about 50 miles from here. So, he preaches there on Sunday morning at 9AM, Sunday evening at 6PM and Wednesday evening at 6PM. While serving the congregation there and maintaining their property, he also drove 50 miles over to Red Sands each day since I have been here. He would obtain the construction materials for the new house and the trailer. He also helped in the construction work. He would babysit the children when needed. He mopped the floors in the church, taught P.E. twice a week and preached at the Red Sands Christian Church on Sunday mornings (after having already preached at Dilkon). And, I am quite sure I am leaving things out. He does an amazing job. Thank you Mr. Bill! We miss you and pray for your safe travel!
Miss Dawn Springer is another amazing person here. She has been ministering here for fifteen years. She currently teaches the Kindergarten through Second grade AND functions as the School Principal. She does an amazing job. She submits monthly reports to the board. She teaches her class of 10 students five days a week. She provides the students with snacks and drinks and inspiration. She also performs her public ministry for the "Least of these", providing meals, clothing and emotional support for homeless people here in Winslow, Arizona. Miss Springer also alternates teaching the preschool through first grade Sunday School class and the Service time Wee Worship at Red Sands Church on Sunday. I am sure that I will forget lots of things that Miss Springer does. She is a bundle of energy and efficiency. The children all love her and so do adults! Thank you Miss Springer!
I apologize if the following thank yous are not as specific, but I do not observe all of these people in their jobs, as I have the others.
Ms. Tami is also a bundle of efficiency and love. She teaches the third and fourth grade class at the school. She works had to show them love and have them love and respect one another. She also motivates her kids and provides them with occassional snacks. She teachs the chapel lesson and, on Sunday, she alternates teaching the preschool-first grade Sunday School class or the Wee Worship during the Sunday Service with Miss Dawn. All this, and she cares for her husband and three children after hours, providing food and love.
Mr. Daron teaches the fifth and sixth grades at the school. He does a great job and is being motivational for the children. He is good at relating to them and sharing fun time and serious work time with them. While Mr. Bill is gone, he is helping to teach the P.E. classes. Mr. Daron also does maintenance around the church and generally does what needs to be done. He is also working on the new staff house in his spare time. He is also preaching at Red Sands Christian Church while Mr. Bill is absent.
Mr. Jerry teaches the seventh and eighth grades. He drives the school bus each morning to pick up the kids on the reservation and returns them home each evening. He works individually with the children in his class to makes sure that they stay on task and learn as much as possible. The curriculum is tough and the kids are doing great! He also spends a lot of time outside of class preparing his Lesson plans and reading through the material so that he knows it well enough to teach it. He is also teaching P.E. while Mr. Bill is gone. Jerry is also teaching the Adult Sunday School class at Red Sands Christian Church on Sundays and driving the church bus route to pick up the church-goers.
In addition to their regular duties, the teachers also are responsible for one of the following each week. They alternate weeks:
1. Cleaning and mopping the school and the bathrooms when the kids are not there.
2. Leading the morning opening program
3. Leading prayer at lunch time and cleaning up the lunchroom after lunch each day.
4. Playground duty-observing the children after lunch while they play on the playground.
I hope that you all have enjoyed this entry. I wanted to let you know about all the people serving here and what a great job they are all doing! Continue to pray for all of us and I will get back to my regular personal post next week.
On Saturday, October 11th, we will welcome the NTM board members for their semi annual board meeting.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Why we do what we do...
Imagine you are a child of any nationality. At age six, you are the youngest of six brothers and sisters. You and your family live in a small home with no running water and no electricity. Therefore, you go to bed when the sun goes down. What else would there be to do? You have to have your homework done before the sun goes down because there is not enough light from the oil lamp to see. You go outside to use the restroom, alone in the dark. No porch light provides light nor do you have toilet to flush. You wake up when the sun does. For breakfast, you eat whatever food can be prepared without using electricity. A breakfast bar or snack cake or fruit. You have to be driven half an hour to catch the school bus. One parent works to support your family and the other is "away." They are both rarely at home with you.
After school, you stay with an "auntie" or "uncle" or "grandparent" that will provide food and shelter for you. You get off the school bus one day at one house, the next day somewhere else. Often times you are dropped off at a different house each day of the week. It is scary to leave school and not be sure where you will end up. No one is home where you were told to go and the doors and windows are locked. Your parent is at work and cannot receive calls there. You are scared-home is far away and even if you were there, no one is home to be with you until well after night fall. You have homework to do and need food and shelter. The bus driver drops you at a friend's house until your parents can pick you up. They weren't expecting you. Will they have enough food for their children and you? You won't return to your own bed until after midnight when your parent can take you there.
How important would it be for you (as this child) to have a safe, constant, caring environment to visit and feel secure? How important would it be for you (at this child) to know that God loves you, that you are important to him and that He has a plan for your life?
That's how important the work at the Red Sands Christian School and church is to all the Navajo children here. And how important this type of work is in all the missions like ours around the world. This story could be common here on the Navajo reservation, in the mountains of Eastern Kentucky or in areas of South America, Africa, and all around the world. Pray for the families and children and workers all around the world. Pray that more children will find their way here and to places like this. And remember how blessed you and your family are daily.
After school, you stay with an "auntie" or "uncle" or "grandparent" that will provide food and shelter for you. You get off the school bus one day at one house, the next day somewhere else. Often times you are dropped off at a different house each day of the week. It is scary to leave school and not be sure where you will end up. No one is home where you were told to go and the doors and windows are locked. Your parent is at work and cannot receive calls there. You are scared-home is far away and even if you were there, no one is home to be with you until well after night fall. You have homework to do and need food and shelter. The bus driver drops you at a friend's house until your parents can pick you up. They weren't expecting you. Will they have enough food for their children and you? You won't return to your own bed until after midnight when your parent can take you there.
How important would it be for you (as this child) to have a safe, constant, caring environment to visit and feel secure? How important would it be for you (at this child) to know that God loves you, that you are important to him and that He has a plan for your life?
That's how important the work at the Red Sands Christian School and church is to all the Navajo children here. And how important this type of work is in all the missions like ours around the world. This story could be common here on the Navajo reservation, in the mountains of Eastern Kentucky or in areas of South America, Africa, and all around the world. Pray for the families and children and workers all around the world. Pray that more children will find their way here and to places like this. And remember how blessed you and your family are daily.
"I know the plans I have for you..."
Monday, September 22, 2008
We got a new student today! The Mom called here and wanted to know if we offered the eighth grade this year. I confirmed that we do indeed! She came by an hour later and enrolled her child. Jerry had been expecting God to send more students and he received another one today! It is so exciting! This student was just moving back to the area, had attended school at Red Sands previously and God sent her here again! It is so encouraging.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
I heard from Mr. Bill today. He is doing well and thus far all is going well with his trip to the Northwest. He is speaking at various churches. Generally, the churches provide his housing for the evening and he said this arrangement had serves him well. I won't include too much of his information because I am sure he will let everyone know the details.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
The students are all so excited! Today, we are hosting "The Lost Dogs", a musical group at the school. The group has been traveling along Route 66, beginning in Chicago, IL and performing concerts. They offered to come here and do a free concert for the children and we agreed! The children really enjoyed the concert. Abby looked like a 1950s surfer queen. She sat with a deadpan serious look on her face and body stock still in her seat, save for her hands. Using both of her hands she was snapping to the beat of the music. It was very amusing. Most of the children were afraid to move and sat very still during the performance. At one point, Jerry walked around and got everyone to stand up and clap. However, as soon as the music stopped, we all sat back down. Afterward, the group gave out pictures and autographs to the kids. "The Lost Dogs" also allowed the children to play the musical instruments with which they had performed. The kids REALLY enjoyed this and had a great time. It was hard to get them to leave to go home on the bus on that day.
Thursday evening we drove into Winslow as a family and had dinner. It was our first family meal eaten out together since we had gotten here. We first went to the public library. Jerry had checked out "Where the Red Fern Grows" to show his class and it had to be returned today. We also returned some books and checked out some more books. There was a group there doing a craft and Abby and Kelcy got to make bead necklaces, too. The people at the library have been very nice. Then went to the restaurant and had some nice Chinese food. The girls loved the egg drop soup (except Jerry and I had to pick out the celery). Abby & Kelcy also got a package at the post office today. Miss Joyce sent the girls some books to read. Thank you Joyce! We got home and promptly read all of the books you sent, plus the ones we borrowed from the library. It was a lovely evening.
This was Jerry's week to monitor the playground after lunch. All week he gets to spend half an hour with the kids. He pushes them on the swings and generally has fun.
While you in London, Kentucky were having the World Famous Chicken Festival, we also had a Festival in Winslow. The "Standing on the Corner" music festival was Friday and Saturday this weekend. We were told there was music and food there but, alas, we did not attend. It was geared toward a more adult audience than our two and four year old.
Saturday Abby got the change out her earrings for the first time. I can't believe it has been six weeks since she had her ears pierced. She had been counting down the weeks and now she exchanged her pink flower earrings for a pair of pink stoned stud earrings that Tammy sent for her, which she calls her diamonds. She was very excited and promptly asked for a jewelry box to contain her "jewels." Kelcy is very interested in Abby's ears and sees that it is a big thing to Abby, but has never even mentioned wanting to have it done herself. I guess that is a product of her witnessing the process when Abby had it done.
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Jerry did the usual bus run to Tolani Lake and back, but this time he came with an extra child! And the child was in my Sunday School class! It was so exciting! I am enjoying teaching the class. Jerry taught his Sunday School lesson on "Prepare for Rain". Mr. Roberts continued his sermon series on Super Heroes of the Bible. This one was about Abel and Enoch. I am really enjoying the series. The attendance was twenty-eight people for church here. We again had some new faces in church.
Dilkon Christian Church, where Mr. Bill preaches, has had a fall in attendance since he has been gone. A member of the board of directors of Navajo Trails Mission has been there both Sundays to preach. We hope to be encouraged next week by some new faces there. I am afraid people see that there is no car at Bill's Hooghan and assume that means no church service.
Next week... The school kids meet the dentist and we get a visitor from "home".
We got a new student today! The Mom called here and wanted to know if we offered the eighth grade this year. I confirmed that we do indeed! She came by an hour later and enrolled her child. Jerry had been expecting God to send more students and he received another one today! It is so exciting! This student was just moving back to the area, had attended school at Red Sands previously and God sent her here again! It is so encouraging.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
I heard from Mr. Bill today. He is doing well and thus far all is going well with his trip to the Northwest. He is speaking at various churches. Generally, the churches provide his housing for the evening and he said this arrangement had serves him well. I won't include too much of his information because I am sure he will let everyone know the details.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
The students are all so excited! Today, we are hosting "The Lost Dogs", a musical group at the school. The group has been traveling along Route 66, beginning in Chicago, IL and performing concerts. They offered to come here and do a free concert for the children and we agreed! The children really enjoyed the concert. Abby looked like a 1950s surfer queen. She sat with a deadpan serious look on her face and body stock still in her seat, save for her hands. Using both of her hands she was snapping to the beat of the music. It was very amusing. Most of the children were afraid to move and sat very still during the performance. At one point, Jerry walked around and got everyone to stand up and clap. However, as soon as the music stopped, we all sat back down. Afterward, the group gave out pictures and autographs to the kids. "The Lost Dogs" also allowed the children to play the musical instruments with which they had performed. The kids REALLY enjoyed this and had a great time. It was hard to get them to leave to go home on the bus on that day.
Thursday evening we drove into Winslow as a family and had dinner. It was our first family meal eaten out together since we had gotten here. We first went to the public library. Jerry had checked out "Where the Red Fern Grows" to show his class and it had to be returned today. We also returned some books and checked out some more books. There was a group there doing a craft and Abby and Kelcy got to make bead necklaces, too. The people at the library have been very nice. Then went to the restaurant and had some nice Chinese food. The girls loved the egg drop soup (except Jerry and I had to pick out the celery). Abby & Kelcy also got a package at the post office today. Miss Joyce sent the girls some books to read. Thank you Joyce! We got home and promptly read all of the books you sent, plus the ones we borrowed from the library. It was a lovely evening.
This was Jerry's week to monitor the playground after lunch. All week he gets to spend half an hour with the kids. He pushes them on the swings and generally has fun.
While you in London, Kentucky were having the World Famous Chicken Festival, we also had a Festival in Winslow. The "Standing on the Corner" music festival was Friday and Saturday this weekend. We were told there was music and food there but, alas, we did not attend. It was geared toward a more adult audience than our two and four year old.
Saturday Abby got the change out her earrings for the first time. I can't believe it has been six weeks since she had her ears pierced. She had been counting down the weeks and now she exchanged her pink flower earrings for a pair of pink stoned stud earrings that Tammy sent for her, which she calls her diamonds. She was very excited and promptly asked for a jewelry box to contain her "jewels." Kelcy is very interested in Abby's ears and sees that it is a big thing to Abby, but has never even mentioned wanting to have it done herself. I guess that is a product of her witnessing the process when Abby had it done.
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Jerry did the usual bus run to Tolani Lake and back, but this time he came with an extra child! And the child was in my Sunday School class! It was so exciting! I am enjoying teaching the class. Jerry taught his Sunday School lesson on "Prepare for Rain". Mr. Roberts continued his sermon series on Super Heroes of the Bible. This one was about Abel and Enoch. I am really enjoying the series. The attendance was twenty-eight people for church here. We again had some new faces in church.
Dilkon Christian Church, where Mr. Bill preaches, has had a fall in attendance since he has been gone. A member of the board of directors of Navajo Trails Mission has been there both Sundays to preach. We hope to be encouraged next week by some new faces there. I am afraid people see that there is no car at Bill's Hooghan and assume that means no church service.
Next week... The school kids meet the dentist and we get a visitor from "home".
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Now, that's something you don't see everyday...
Greetings! We are here in the desert, continuing to work and receive the Lord's love.
Monday, September 15, 1008
We celebrated two birthdays today! Noah turned two and Mr. Roberts turned a number that is monumental, but cannot be mentioned here because of my discretion (30). We laughed, we celebrated, we ate cake. It was very nice. We also got to see the Dallas Cowboys win on Monday night football! Very exciting. How 'bout them Cowboys? But enough of that.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
We had a student withdraw from our school today. It was quite heart-wrenching. It was so sad to see him go. He rode the bus to the reservation and was always well-behaved when I saw him. I just hate that he withdrew to attend a different school, because I know that he is going to miss out on so much! He is going to miss out on the great educational material and the caring of the teachers. I can't imagine his receiving that kind of love at the reservation boarding school. The child has lost a great opportunity by leaving. Mr. Bill and Miss Dawn asked him to think it over and at the end of the day, he still left. We will miss him! It is just very disappointing to lose a student, any student.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Mr. Bill left today for the Northwest to teach about missions and the importance of supporting missions in the world. He also is presenting information about the Navajo Trails Mission, its history and current situation. His leaving has left an empty place here. I began to miss him about an hour after he left. He is such an active part of the School planning and the Mission here that it is strange for him to be away. We are all praying for him. I don't know if he has mentioned this, but Bill also got a new granddaughter last week. Congratulations Mr. Bill! And Roy and Monica, of course!
I did something for the first time today. Well, our whole family did. We went out after it was dark and watched the Moon rise. We went outside about 8:30PM and watched something that we could never see in the Kentucky mountains. We watched the full moon come up over the horizon. We could begin to see the sky lighten right where the moon was going to rise. The stars in that area began to dim. Then a little piece of the moon appeared over the horizon. It continued to rise until it was full and clear. That is certainly something you don't see every day... I asked Jerry if he loved it here and his response was that he is enjoying its beauty. The visibility of the stars is amazing on clear nights. I can literally see thousands of stars. We are going to use Jerry's star chart from his science book to identify some of the constellations. So far, we can only see Ursa Major and Ursa Minor (the Big and Little Dipper). Right now, the star chart in Jerry's science book shows the night sky in the northern hemisphere at 11PM. We haven't been out THAT late yet to watch the stars.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Sunday was a beautiful day! Jerry ran the bus to Tolani Lake. The girls and I rode up to the church in our truck. Jerry taught the Sunday school lesson about being "Wholehearted." Mr. Roberts started a sermon series about "Super Heroes of the Bible". We had an attendance of 23 people at the church service, and we had several out sick with a stomach virus. We had some visitors that I had not met before, which was really nice!
Abby, I might mention, missed the whole event of the moon rising. She is afraid of the snakes in the dark outside and wouldn't come off of the porch. She wouldn't even let me hold her and stand in the yard. I have to admit she gets that fear honestly. I am always warning her to pay attention at dusk and watch out for snakes when we are outside. Abby is doing well in the school. She is learning a lot and behaving well for a Kindergartner. She doesn't eat much of her lunch most days, but I know that they have snacks in the classroom, so I don't worry too much. She is a little upset about being smaller that everyone and younger. She asks when she will begin to lose her baby teeth like her friends. And she asks when we are going back to Kentucky. She still misses Eva and Margo and Ivy and Alex and Jason and all her friends. Just this morning, she told me "The house is different, huh?" I asked her what she meant and she said "It's different from our house in Kentucky." She is also picking up the speech patterns of the Navajo children, such as adding and interrogative "huh?" after every sentence. For instance, Abby will say "I'm coloring with red, huh?" Or "That was fun, huh?" It is very cute. She is excited to visit "home" at Christmas. She wants to spend the night with Eva and visit her Nana.
Kelcy is doing fine. She does not mention home nearly so much as Abby. She just goes along with whatever we are doing. She does seem to be arguing a lot with Noah lately. She wants to be the "mommy" to him and keep him from getting hurt or doing something he shouldn't be (at least, that's the way she sees it). It is very frustrating for Noah to have her taking things away from him that she deems dangerous or, more probably, something she wants for herself. There has been a Navajo lady who came by three days last week to watch Noah and Kelcy. They really like her and were doing very well. It has been a great help to me. It was also very nice to get to know her. I am still learning about the culture and the people of the Navajo Nation. Being able to spend time with the Navajo people really helps me. Also, while I am riding the bus in the afternoons with Jerry, I get to know the kids a little better. I get to hear their conversations and ask them questions. It is nice to get some interaction.
My office is located at the Red Sands Christian Church and the kids classes are down at the Red Sands Christian School building, so I don't get a whole lot of chances to speak to the children. I do get to see them everyday at lunch, as all of the school kids walk up to the Church to eat their lunch. I also get to see them each morning at the opening program and on Tuesday mornings when we have chapel at the Church. I will get several opportunities to teach the Chapel lesson to the children throughout the year. I also get to lead the children in songs every third week during chapel. If anyone has suggestions for some rousing church songs, complete with hand motions, just email me or leave a comment with the suggestions.
A sneak peak for next week, Jerry's class gets another new student and the school is having a concert group perform!
Monday, September 15, 1008
We celebrated two birthdays today! Noah turned two and Mr. Roberts turned a number that is monumental, but cannot be mentioned here because of my discretion (30). We laughed, we celebrated, we ate cake. It was very nice. We also got to see the Dallas Cowboys win on Monday night football! Very exciting. How 'bout them Cowboys? But enough of that.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
We had a student withdraw from our school today. It was quite heart-wrenching. It was so sad to see him go. He rode the bus to the reservation and was always well-behaved when I saw him. I just hate that he withdrew to attend a different school, because I know that he is going to miss out on so much! He is going to miss out on the great educational material and the caring of the teachers. I can't imagine his receiving that kind of love at the reservation boarding school. The child has lost a great opportunity by leaving. Mr. Bill and Miss Dawn asked him to think it over and at the end of the day, he still left. We will miss him! It is just very disappointing to lose a student, any student.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Mr. Bill left today for the Northwest to teach about missions and the importance of supporting missions in the world. He also is presenting information about the Navajo Trails Mission, its history and current situation. His leaving has left an empty place here. I began to miss him about an hour after he left. He is such an active part of the School planning and the Mission here that it is strange for him to be away. We are all praying for him. I don't know if he has mentioned this, but Bill also got a new granddaughter last week. Congratulations Mr. Bill! And Roy and Monica, of course!
I did something for the first time today. Well, our whole family did. We went out after it was dark and watched the Moon rise. We went outside about 8:30PM and watched something that we could never see in the Kentucky mountains. We watched the full moon come up over the horizon. We could begin to see the sky lighten right where the moon was going to rise. The stars in that area began to dim. Then a little piece of the moon appeared over the horizon. It continued to rise until it was full and clear. That is certainly something you don't see every day... I asked Jerry if he loved it here and his response was that he is enjoying its beauty. The visibility of the stars is amazing on clear nights. I can literally see thousands of stars. We are going to use Jerry's star chart from his science book to identify some of the constellations. So far, we can only see Ursa Major and Ursa Minor (the Big and Little Dipper). Right now, the star chart in Jerry's science book shows the night sky in the northern hemisphere at 11PM. We haven't been out THAT late yet to watch the stars.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Sunday was a beautiful day! Jerry ran the bus to Tolani Lake. The girls and I rode up to the church in our truck. Jerry taught the Sunday school lesson about being "Wholehearted." Mr. Roberts started a sermon series about "Super Heroes of the Bible". We had an attendance of 23 people at the church service, and we had several out sick with a stomach virus. We had some visitors that I had not met before, which was really nice!
Abby, I might mention, missed the whole event of the moon rising. She is afraid of the snakes in the dark outside and wouldn't come off of the porch. She wouldn't even let me hold her and stand in the yard. I have to admit she gets that fear honestly. I am always warning her to pay attention at dusk and watch out for snakes when we are outside. Abby is doing well in the school. She is learning a lot and behaving well for a Kindergartner. She doesn't eat much of her lunch most days, but I know that they have snacks in the classroom, so I don't worry too much. She is a little upset about being smaller that everyone and younger. She asks when she will begin to lose her baby teeth like her friends. And she asks when we are going back to Kentucky. She still misses Eva and Margo and Ivy and Alex and Jason and all her friends. Just this morning, she told me "The house is different, huh?" I asked her what she meant and she said "It's different from our house in Kentucky." She is also picking up the speech patterns of the Navajo children, such as adding and interrogative "huh?" after every sentence. For instance, Abby will say "I'm coloring with red, huh?" Or "That was fun, huh?" It is very cute. She is excited to visit "home" at Christmas. She wants to spend the night with Eva and visit her Nana.
Kelcy is doing fine. She does not mention home nearly so much as Abby. She just goes along with whatever we are doing. She does seem to be arguing a lot with Noah lately. She wants to be the "mommy" to him and keep him from getting hurt or doing something he shouldn't be (at least, that's the way she sees it). It is very frustrating for Noah to have her taking things away from him that she deems dangerous or, more probably, something she wants for herself. There has been a Navajo lady who came by three days last week to watch Noah and Kelcy. They really like her and were doing very well. It has been a great help to me. It was also very nice to get to know her. I am still learning about the culture and the people of the Navajo Nation. Being able to spend time with the Navajo people really helps me. Also, while I am riding the bus in the afternoons with Jerry, I get to know the kids a little better. I get to hear their conversations and ask them questions. It is nice to get some interaction.
My office is located at the Red Sands Christian Church and the kids classes are down at the Red Sands Christian School building, so I don't get a whole lot of chances to speak to the children. I do get to see them everyday at lunch, as all of the school kids walk up to the Church to eat their lunch. I also get to see them each morning at the opening program and on Tuesday mornings when we have chapel at the Church. I will get several opportunities to teach the Chapel lesson to the children throughout the year. I also get to lead the children in songs every third week during chapel. If anyone has suggestions for some rousing church songs, complete with hand motions, just email me or leave a comment with the suggestions.
A sneak peak for next week, Jerry's class gets another new student and the school is having a concert group perform!
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Witnessing a miracle!
Well, here I am again! I was trying to get this published on Sunday evening, but I am late, but for a good reason. I am so happy to hear that people are monitoring our little blog. I also have a correction to make. It is actually bright outside during the full moon here. I guess I just had not been here long enough to know that yet.
Jerry isn't able to add much to the blog information, so I am going to update you on a few things about him. He told me this past week that he had never had a job that was so rewarding every single day. He said that he enjoyed working at SBS and that it was his most rewarding and enjoyable previous place of employment. However, here at Red Sands Christian School he has a rewarding experience every day. Every day he gets to see his class children learn and put things together AND (because of the Christian curriculum offered here) he gets to teach Science and History and all subjects from a Christian perspective. Even in the English curriculum capitalization and punctuation are taught using scripture. World history teaches about the Egyptians, along with the Hebrews and their history. He gets to see the children learn Bible verses and Bible history. He is also pleasantly surprised by some of their existing knowledge. The first six week grading period is up soon and he is excited to see how their grades will finish out.
This week and last week, Jerry and Daron spent most afternoon/evenings working on the Roberts house. The Mr. & Mrs. Roberts and their three children ages 7, 4 and 1 are still living in one of the Hogans here on the property. While it is comfortable enough to sleep, they have been here over a month and still have to go outside to take a shower at the shower house and to go to the restroom or get a snack. It is also getting cold here at night so we really need to speed up the completion of their home. They have been hanging insulation, dry wall and interior doors. The house has a way to go before it will be completed, so please pray for that! After completion of the Roberts house, the construction will begin on the second staff house, which is slotted for our family.
We also have a new staff member that is preparing to enter the mission field here at Red Sands! Please pray for her and her family as she builds support at her home church and prepares her children for the move. When she gets here, the plan is for her to live in the "Old School" building, which is now the current library. After completion of the second staff house, she would then move into the trailer.
On Thursday, September 11th, we all prayed during opening program for the survivors and the family that lost loved ones in the terrorist attack on 2001.
Friday morning, the school took park in a community activity. The local Indian Health Center sponsored a 4 direction walk for Diabetes. Our whole school participated. We started out headed on Leupp Road North at mile marker 69 and walked into the town of Leupp. Our group was the first group to arrive at the destination point. All walkers received bottled water and a piece of fruit. The walk was to raise community awareness about the prevalence of Diabetes among the Navajo population. I think that this was a great chance for our children to be a part of the community activities and that next year and maybe all of their lives they will be encouraged to join in on activities like this. Also, the community got to see our children walking and representing our school very well. They walked about 2 1/2 miles. The kindergarten class did very well to complete this exercise! We are all very proud, as should the children be and their parents!
On Saturday, the Diehls went to town. That's what we call it here. We all loaded up into the pick-up truck and drove into Winslow to do various tasks. Kelcy got a hair cut (this time from a hair stylist and not from Abby). We went to the Library and checked out some books. We did our weekly grocery shopping and looked at some used furniture stores in Winslow. This day, we also spotted a Navajo Taco stand. We had to whip the vehicle back around and park and get a taco. The Navajo Taco is the traditional fry bread, covered with beans and beef mixture, then lettuce, tomato, onion and cheese. Delicious!
On Sunday at Red Sands Christian Church Jerry started teaching Sunday school. He is teaching the "Facing the Giants" small group Bible study series to the adults here. The total attendance here was 28 on Sunday morning. This Sunday was the monthly pot-luck at Dilkon, so we all loaded up and drove over to Dilkon to enjoy the service and take part in the fellowship meal. The Roberts also went as a family. While we were in the building, it just kept filling up. We ended up with 31 adults and children in attendance at Dilkon church that Sunday evening service. We heard a wonderful lesson from Mr. Bill about serving the Lord in your mission field at home and in places like Red Sands. How we should always be about "The King's business." Excellent!
This is the miracle. I promise you I am not exaggerating, but we fed all 31 people with Mr. Bill's roast, one bowl of salad, one bowl of fry bread and one 9 x 13 cake for dessert. AND I saw at least two plates go home with one of the Navajo ladies. It certainly wasn't five thousand people like in the Bible, but I was still amazed and then there were some leftovers for the people to take home. God is so good!
Jerry isn't able to add much to the blog information, so I am going to update you on a few things about him. He told me this past week that he had never had a job that was so rewarding every single day. He said that he enjoyed working at SBS and that it was his most rewarding and enjoyable previous place of employment. However, here at Red Sands Christian School he has a rewarding experience every day. Every day he gets to see his class children learn and put things together AND (because of the Christian curriculum offered here) he gets to teach Science and History and all subjects from a Christian perspective. Even in the English curriculum capitalization and punctuation are taught using scripture. World history teaches about the Egyptians, along with the Hebrews and their history. He gets to see the children learn Bible verses and Bible history. He is also pleasantly surprised by some of their existing knowledge. The first six week grading period is up soon and he is excited to see how their grades will finish out.
This week and last week, Jerry and Daron spent most afternoon/evenings working on the Roberts house. The Mr. & Mrs. Roberts and their three children ages 7, 4 and 1 are still living in one of the Hogans here on the property. While it is comfortable enough to sleep, they have been here over a month and still have to go outside to take a shower at the shower house and to go to the restroom or get a snack. It is also getting cold here at night so we really need to speed up the completion of their home. They have been hanging insulation, dry wall and interior doors. The house has a way to go before it will be completed, so please pray for that! After completion of the Roberts house, the construction will begin on the second staff house, which is slotted for our family.
We also have a new staff member that is preparing to enter the mission field here at Red Sands! Please pray for her and her family as she builds support at her home church and prepares her children for the move. When she gets here, the plan is for her to live in the "Old School" building, which is now the current library. After completion of the second staff house, she would then move into the trailer.
On Thursday, September 11th, we all prayed during opening program for the survivors and the family that lost loved ones in the terrorist attack on 2001.
Friday morning, the school took park in a community activity. The local Indian Health Center sponsored a 4 direction walk for Diabetes. Our whole school participated. We started out headed on Leupp Road North at mile marker 69 and walked into the town of Leupp. Our group was the first group to arrive at the destination point. All walkers received bottled water and a piece of fruit. The walk was to raise community awareness about the prevalence of Diabetes among the Navajo population. I think that this was a great chance for our children to be a part of the community activities and that next year and maybe all of their lives they will be encouraged to join in on activities like this. Also, the community got to see our children walking and representing our school very well. They walked about 2 1/2 miles. The kindergarten class did very well to complete this exercise! We are all very proud, as should the children be and their parents!
On Saturday, the Diehls went to town. That's what we call it here. We all loaded up into the pick-up truck and drove into Winslow to do various tasks. Kelcy got a hair cut (this time from a hair stylist and not from Abby). We went to the Library and checked out some books. We did our weekly grocery shopping and looked at some used furniture stores in Winslow. This day, we also spotted a Navajo Taco stand. We had to whip the vehicle back around and park and get a taco. The Navajo Taco is the traditional fry bread, covered with beans and beef mixture, then lettuce, tomato, onion and cheese. Delicious!
On Sunday at Red Sands Christian Church Jerry started teaching Sunday school. He is teaching the "Facing the Giants" small group Bible study series to the adults here. The total attendance here was 28 on Sunday morning. This Sunday was the monthly pot-luck at Dilkon, so we all loaded up and drove over to Dilkon to enjoy the service and take part in the fellowship meal. The Roberts also went as a family. While we were in the building, it just kept filling up. We ended up with 31 adults and children in attendance at Dilkon church that Sunday evening service. We heard a wonderful lesson from Mr. Bill about serving the Lord in your mission field at home and in places like Red Sands. How we should always be about "The King's business." Excellent!
This is the miracle. I promise you I am not exaggerating, but we fed all 31 people with Mr. Bill's roast, one bowl of salad, one bowl of fry bread and one 9 x 13 cake for dessert. AND I saw at least two plates go home with one of the Navajo ladies. It certainly wasn't five thousand people like in the Bible, but I was still amazed and then there were some leftovers for the people to take home. God is so good!
Monday, September 8, 2008
Where he leads me, I will follow...
Sunday, August 31st,
Jerry began the bus route that runs out to Tolani Lake. He left our house at 8:15AM and headed out to the furthest stop, where a grandmother and her granddaughter and grandson awaited his arrival. These were the only passengers on the bus today. It was gratifying however, because they have no other way to get to church to worship and God is providing that through Jerry, who is driving, and the supporters of the mission who provided the van and the gas to make it go. While the van ministry seemed disappointing that morning, we had an attendance of 36 people at the Red Sands Christian Church that day. Of course, eleven of the people were the staff and our children. The other 25 people were Navajo adults and children and we were very encouraged to see them here. Jerry returned the passenger on the bus route and got home about 1PM. The rest of Sunday was a simple night. We ate supper here and played with the girls.
Monday, September 1st
Labor Day! We explained that today is a holiday and Abby asked, “Where is the holiday?” Of course, we would have been sharing it with family and friends back in Kentucky. It is truly the first time I have really been “home sick.” I was home sick for our friends and would have liked to have been with them. I called and talked to my cousin Tammy. She said that “everyone” was gathering at one of the church members house for Labor Day. I guess it just hit me that we were missing another gathering and that Abby and Kelcy were missing playing with their friends in Kentucky.
We did end up getting to “celebrate” Labor Day in the traditional way. We were invited up to the church building for a cookout with the Roberts. We drove up there about 5:30 or so. I made macaroni salad and the Roberts made hamburgers and baked beans and corn. The corn was a surprise. Daron had bought the corn on the cob at the flea market on Saturday. When they shucked the corn, it was Indian corn! It cooked fine tasted great. Jerry ate a piece that was dark purple. Abby and Kelcy both enjoyed it as well. After dinner, the kids played on the playground behind the church till it was dark. We all watched another beautiful Arizona sunset and then returned home to rest and prepare for another week. The sunsets here are truly spectacular. Looking directly west from our home, you can see the mountains around Flagstaff, Arizona, roughly 50 miles west of here.
Each night we watch the sun dip below the mountains and flood the sky with beautiful pinks, purples, yellows, blues and oranges. On some evenings, the color arrangement travels the entire 50 miles across the sky from Flagstaff and flows over our heads on to Winslow. The nights here are amazing as well. Without all of the ambient light that is abundant in Kentucky and most places, the stars just pop out. On a cloudless night I can see thousands of stars very clearly just looking up with my eyes. Along with the beautiful sky at sunset, it is dark at night, even on a full moon. I don’t mean a little dark; I mean very inky dark, like not seeing your hand in front of your face, dark. When I am using a flashlight to walk at night, the only area I can see is the area directly in front of the beam of light. It can be very disconcerting to have no peripheral vision when I am frightened of running into a rattlesnake. I frequently think of what it must have been like for the settlers, travelers and cowboys who traveled these areas by wagon and on horseback. I just can not fathom being alone on horseback in this country, with just a fire for company. Nor can I imagine traveling by wagon over the sand dunes, rocks and buttes. How did they survive? I guess the promise of a new life was enough to keep them going. Is it enough for us?
Thursday, September 4th
Today, we had five more kids enroll in school! I am so excited! Jerry has said all along that he knew he would get more kids in his class and today he got one more, an eighth grader. Jerry believes that God will send more children to our school and so do I. The mother of the five children came by to enroll them. She was very nice and very organized. She had all of their records in clear sleeves and folders. I believe the mom looked at me funny because I told her “We’re so excited that your kids are coming to our school!” Perhaps she thought I was a little over zealous. There is God again, working behind the scenes and filling up the space in the school.
One of the school children that enrolled was a fifth grader. However, this child did not know how to multiply numbers. Miss Springer estimates that the reservation schools are at least one year behind “public” or non-reservation school systems in their curriculum. That situation has been my first hint that the work here is important not just to spread the gospel of Christ, but also to teach the basics of education to these children. I just assumed that any school system would be the same in America and that all children, even the Navajo, are given equal access to education and higher learning. This situation reinforces what the creators of this school knew: the Navajo people need this school to teach their children about God and His son AND to provide them with the education that can make them powerful leaders and help them to be the best people in their communities that they can be. Whether that is being a physician or banker or a mother, being the best person they can be and applying Christian principles to their everyday lives. I feel our duty here is not to take the Navajo people off the reservation, but to help them be the best person that they can be, wherever they live. Okay. (Sally is stepping down from her soap box)
Saturday, September 6th
Today we drove into Flagstaff to do some shopping. There is a used furniture store there that I wanted to check out and I wanted to check out the Sam’s warehouse there. The used furniture store was very neat. It had a very eclectic collection of furniture, but nothing that we could buy today. It was neat to be on Route 66. I guess I haven’t mentioned it yet, but most people probably know. Route 66 runs through Winslow, AZ and Flagstaff, AZ. It is funny to see the antiquated neon road signs advertising diners and bowling alleys along Route 66. I imagine it looks somewhat like it did years ago, before Interstate 40 came along and altered the travelers route along Route 66.
At any rate, we discovered Sam’s Club and we were in luck! The store was giving away lots of free food samples. Between the free food booths and the Halloween aisle filled with candy and gory creatures, Abby and Kelcy were very entertained. I purchased lots of juice boxes and snacks to go in lunch boxes, along with stapes that we use a lot like Pancake mix and bottled water. We hurried home to watch the West Virginia football game. I guess “game” might be overstating it. It was not a pretty sight.
Sunday, September 7th
Today the church at Red Sands had its monthly pot luck dinner after the service. We were told to expect lots of attendees, but the numbers of people were down from last week. It was a little disappointing, but we all still ate and had a good time. Mr. Bill made his famous chicken and dumplings. Abby had at least four helpings of them. It was a good day. The whole family took a nap today after the potluck. There was a dust storm while we were napping. It was nice to be inside and safe. Now it is ten o’clock in the evening. I am typing this entry, while Jerry works on his lesson plans for the eighth grade. He is trying to figure out how to catch up the new student with the three weeks worth of material he has already covered. Now Jerry understands a little of Lindsey was talking about when she had to do ALL of those lesson plans during her teacher training. It seems to be a lot of work, but Jerry really seems to enjoy it.
The Lord has done His work and added five new students to our school. Please keep praying that He will continue to add others. We still have some room left!
Jerry began the bus route that runs out to Tolani Lake. He left our house at 8:15AM and headed out to the furthest stop, where a grandmother and her granddaughter and grandson awaited his arrival. These were the only passengers on the bus today. It was gratifying however, because they have no other way to get to church to worship and God is providing that through Jerry, who is driving, and the supporters of the mission who provided the van and the gas to make it go. While the van ministry seemed disappointing that morning, we had an attendance of 36 people at the Red Sands Christian Church that day. Of course, eleven of the people were the staff and our children. The other 25 people were Navajo adults and children and we were very encouraged to see them here. Jerry returned the passenger on the bus route and got home about 1PM. The rest of Sunday was a simple night. We ate supper here and played with the girls.
Monday, September 1st
Labor Day! We explained that today is a holiday and Abby asked, “Where is the holiday?” Of course, we would have been sharing it with family and friends back in Kentucky. It is truly the first time I have really been “home sick.” I was home sick for our friends and would have liked to have been with them. I called and talked to my cousin Tammy. She said that “everyone” was gathering at one of the church members house for Labor Day. I guess it just hit me that we were missing another gathering and that Abby and Kelcy were missing playing with their friends in Kentucky.
We did end up getting to “celebrate” Labor Day in the traditional way. We were invited up to the church building for a cookout with the Roberts. We drove up there about 5:30 or so. I made macaroni salad and the Roberts made hamburgers and baked beans and corn. The corn was a surprise. Daron had bought the corn on the cob at the flea market on Saturday. When they shucked the corn, it was Indian corn! It cooked fine tasted great. Jerry ate a piece that was dark purple. Abby and Kelcy both enjoyed it as well. After dinner, the kids played on the playground behind the church till it was dark. We all watched another beautiful Arizona sunset and then returned home to rest and prepare for another week. The sunsets here are truly spectacular. Looking directly west from our home, you can see the mountains around Flagstaff, Arizona, roughly 50 miles west of here.
Each night we watch the sun dip below the mountains and flood the sky with beautiful pinks, purples, yellows, blues and oranges. On some evenings, the color arrangement travels the entire 50 miles across the sky from Flagstaff and flows over our heads on to Winslow. The nights here are amazing as well. Without all of the ambient light that is abundant in Kentucky and most places, the stars just pop out. On a cloudless night I can see thousands of stars very clearly just looking up with my eyes. Along with the beautiful sky at sunset, it is dark at night, even on a full moon. I don’t mean a little dark; I mean very inky dark, like not seeing your hand in front of your face, dark. When I am using a flashlight to walk at night, the only area I can see is the area directly in front of the beam of light. It can be very disconcerting to have no peripheral vision when I am frightened of running into a rattlesnake. I frequently think of what it must have been like for the settlers, travelers and cowboys who traveled these areas by wagon and on horseback. I just can not fathom being alone on horseback in this country, with just a fire for company. Nor can I imagine traveling by wagon over the sand dunes, rocks and buttes. How did they survive? I guess the promise of a new life was enough to keep them going. Is it enough for us?
Thursday, September 4th
Today, we had five more kids enroll in school! I am so excited! Jerry has said all along that he knew he would get more kids in his class and today he got one more, an eighth grader. Jerry believes that God will send more children to our school and so do I. The mother of the five children came by to enroll them. She was very nice and very organized. She had all of their records in clear sleeves and folders. I believe the mom looked at me funny because I told her “We’re so excited that your kids are coming to our school!” Perhaps she thought I was a little over zealous. There is God again, working behind the scenes and filling up the space in the school.
One of the school children that enrolled was a fifth grader. However, this child did not know how to multiply numbers. Miss Springer estimates that the reservation schools are at least one year behind “public” or non-reservation school systems in their curriculum. That situation has been my first hint that the work here is important not just to spread the gospel of Christ, but also to teach the basics of education to these children. I just assumed that any school system would be the same in America and that all children, even the Navajo, are given equal access to education and higher learning. This situation reinforces what the creators of this school knew: the Navajo people need this school to teach their children about God and His son AND to provide them with the education that can make them powerful leaders and help them to be the best people in their communities that they can be. Whether that is being a physician or banker or a mother, being the best person they can be and applying Christian principles to their everyday lives. I feel our duty here is not to take the Navajo people off the reservation, but to help them be the best person that they can be, wherever they live. Okay. (Sally is stepping down from her soap box)
Saturday, September 6th
Today we drove into Flagstaff to do some shopping. There is a used furniture store there that I wanted to check out and I wanted to check out the Sam’s warehouse there. The used furniture store was very neat. It had a very eclectic collection of furniture, but nothing that we could buy today. It was neat to be on Route 66. I guess I haven’t mentioned it yet, but most people probably know. Route 66 runs through Winslow, AZ and Flagstaff, AZ. It is funny to see the antiquated neon road signs advertising diners and bowling alleys along Route 66. I imagine it looks somewhat like it did years ago, before Interstate 40 came along and altered the travelers route along Route 66.
At any rate, we discovered Sam’s Club and we were in luck! The store was giving away lots of free food samples. Between the free food booths and the Halloween aisle filled with candy and gory creatures, Abby and Kelcy were very entertained. I purchased lots of juice boxes and snacks to go in lunch boxes, along with stapes that we use a lot like Pancake mix and bottled water. We hurried home to watch the West Virginia football game. I guess “game” might be overstating it. It was not a pretty sight.
Sunday, September 7th
Today the church at Red Sands had its monthly pot luck dinner after the service. We were told to expect lots of attendees, but the numbers of people were down from last week. It was a little disappointing, but we all still ate and had a good time. Mr. Bill made his famous chicken and dumplings. Abby had at least four helpings of them. It was a good day. The whole family took a nap today after the potluck. There was a dust storm while we were napping. It was nice to be inside and safe. Now it is ten o’clock in the evening. I am typing this entry, while Jerry works on his lesson plans for the eighth grade. He is trying to figure out how to catch up the new student with the three weeks worth of material he has already covered. Now Jerry understands a little of Lindsey was talking about when she had to do ALL of those lesson plans during her teacher training. It seems to be a lot of work, but Jerry really seems to enjoy it.
The Lord has done His work and added five new students to our school. Please keep praying that He will continue to add others. We still have some room left!
Monday, September 1, 2008
This is the day that the Lord hath made!
What a great day! Today is Saturday, August 30th. The whole family got up this morning and had breakfast. Then we and the Roberts family loaded up into the van and drove down to Leupp to visit the local open air Flea Market. Leupp is the town where most of the school children and most of the church attendees live. Leupp is located about 20 minutes from the mission on the Navajo Reservation. There is an empty spot in the rode as you enter the town of Leupp and people pull up with their vehicles and sell their wares to the public. We all thought it would be a good place to get to know some local people. We piled out of the van and perused the offerings of the day. There was a lady selling family heirloom jewelry, with real turquoise and sterling silver. Another lady was selling beautifully hand made purses, fanny packs and backpacks. We also found clothes and toys, of course. Abby ended up purchasing a baby stroller for $2, replacing the ones we had left in Kentucky. We got to become acquainted with several new Navajo people: the purse maker, the jewelry seller, and a champion bull rider (retired).
The flea market also has its share of food vendors. There was the tamales booth (that was sold out by the time we got there to sample them), the mutton stew and mutton sandwich booth, the ice cold drinks vendor complete with Arizona Tea for sale and the snow cone sales booth. Four of the kids got a snow cone and they all shared with Noah and they all sampled each others flavor. Abby & Ian got orange, Kelcy got bubble gum and Dylan got green (not sure what flavor that one was). We were told there was a trail ride going on, so the attendance at the flea market was low. We plan to make a habit of going out on Saturdays and getting to know the local people more.
We returned to the mission for lunch and a nap, then began our next journey of the day. We left at 2:50PM to head to a town called Dilkon. This is where the other mission church is located. Mr. Bill is the minister at the Christian Church at Dilkon, so we were going to visit Mr. Bill and have a cookout at his Hooghan. Hooghan is the term for a Navajo roundhouse. The roundhouse is a building style that is very common here and it is very wind resistant. It appears as it sounds, a small veritably round house with a center pointed roof. Navajo Trails Missions also maintains a ministry to build houses like these on the reservation for families. It is similar to Habitat for Humanity, as the Navajo people have to apply for the Hooghan and are also asked to help in the building project.
The drive to Dilkon is another surprise. The scenery is constantly changing here in Arizona. We left our area of Winslow and headed down to Leupp again, this time turning right to head toward Dilkon. The mission area here is very hard rock and red sand. As we passed through Bird Springs, the scenery changes to more pure desert. There is less foliage and more white sand. It is almost impossible to see where a road turns off the road until you get right to it because the roads are mostly sand and dirt. We look out the window soon and there are mountains! They appear from nowhere and are just beautiful. Jerry mentioned the word “majestic” and all I could hear and sing was the song “Majesty.” The mountains were truly majestic. And, the closer we got to Dilkon, the higher in elevation we went. So that, by the time we arrived in Dilkon there was grass on the desert ground, with horses and sheep and cattle lounging on the free range that is the reservation. The Dilkon church building was nice and they even had a fellowship hall in back. Mr. Bill’s hooghan was nicely appointed inside with everything he appeared to need. He had made a lovely meal of chicken and steak, potato salad and baked beans and rolls and brownies. It was delicious. Afterward, all the kids played outside and found lots of “treasures” on the ground. Here there were shrubs growing in the ground that had mean briars in them all over the place. This reminded me of my childhood in Eastern Kentucky and visiting my grandmother in Manchester. We would play out in the mountains and woods for hours and find lots of “treasures” there too. When it was getting close to dark, we began the drive back home. It was an even more beautiful return drive through the “Little Painted Desert.” This is a very beautiful spot in the world to see. It seemed to me like New Zealand, like the scenery from the movie “The Man from Snowy River” just beautiful plains surrounded by beautiful mountains and cliffs. I also thought of Cade’s Cove located near Gatlinburg in Tennessee. If you have ever been there, where the settlement has the yellow grasses on flat land, surrounded by the Smoky Mountains, it was a lot like that.
Then we returned home to the mission and Abby and Kelcy had a great time playing pretend. Abby was pushing around her “new” baby stroller with her naked baby in it. Some day, my girls will learn to put clothes on their baby dolls. At one point, Abby was watching Kelcy’s baby while Kelcy was at work. Here came Kelcy, carrying a Bible, a purse with a cat in it (the one Eva got Abby for her first birthday) and a DVD and asked me which way it was to church, because she needed to get to work. As I type, they are settled down and watching the “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer” DVD.
Abby still asks about Kentucky and when we get to go back to our home. She misses her family and friends, but she is doing very well otherwise. She is making friends at school and at church. After her second week of school, her handwriting has improved dramatically. Kelcy is getting used to being with me at the office, but she loves going to Sunday school class by herself. She misses her friends too, but she has Noah with her all day, every day to play with and fight with, so she is adjusting too.
I am looking forward to Sunday school class tomorrow. I am teaching 2nd grade through high school and it is great. This will be my second week teaching, but I already get some challenging questions and I am just getting to know my class. I had five students last week. I am anxious to see who shows up this week.
The flea market also has its share of food vendors. There was the tamales booth (that was sold out by the time we got there to sample them), the mutton stew and mutton sandwich booth, the ice cold drinks vendor complete with Arizona Tea for sale and the snow cone sales booth. Four of the kids got a snow cone and they all shared with Noah and they all sampled each others flavor. Abby & Ian got orange, Kelcy got bubble gum and Dylan got green (not sure what flavor that one was). We were told there was a trail ride going on, so the attendance at the flea market was low. We plan to make a habit of going out on Saturdays and getting to know the local people more.
We returned to the mission for lunch and a nap, then began our next journey of the day. We left at 2:50PM to head to a town called Dilkon. This is where the other mission church is located. Mr. Bill is the minister at the Christian Church at Dilkon, so we were going to visit Mr. Bill and have a cookout at his Hooghan. Hooghan is the term for a Navajo roundhouse. The roundhouse is a building style that is very common here and it is very wind resistant. It appears as it sounds, a small veritably round house with a center pointed roof. Navajo Trails Missions also maintains a ministry to build houses like these on the reservation for families. It is similar to Habitat for Humanity, as the Navajo people have to apply for the Hooghan and are also asked to help in the building project.
The drive to Dilkon is another surprise. The scenery is constantly changing here in Arizona. We left our area of Winslow and headed down to Leupp again, this time turning right to head toward Dilkon. The mission area here is very hard rock and red sand. As we passed through Bird Springs, the scenery changes to more pure desert. There is less foliage and more white sand. It is almost impossible to see where a road turns off the road until you get right to it because the roads are mostly sand and dirt. We look out the window soon and there are mountains! They appear from nowhere and are just beautiful. Jerry mentioned the word “majestic” and all I could hear and sing was the song “Majesty.” The mountains were truly majestic. And, the closer we got to Dilkon, the higher in elevation we went. So that, by the time we arrived in Dilkon there was grass on the desert ground, with horses and sheep and cattle lounging on the free range that is the reservation. The Dilkon church building was nice and they even had a fellowship hall in back. Mr. Bill’s hooghan was nicely appointed inside with everything he appeared to need. He had made a lovely meal of chicken and steak, potato salad and baked beans and rolls and brownies. It was delicious. Afterward, all the kids played outside and found lots of “treasures” on the ground. Here there were shrubs growing in the ground that had mean briars in them all over the place. This reminded me of my childhood in Eastern Kentucky and visiting my grandmother in Manchester. We would play out in the mountains and woods for hours and find lots of “treasures” there too. When it was getting close to dark, we began the drive back home. It was an even more beautiful return drive through the “Little Painted Desert.” This is a very beautiful spot in the world to see. It seemed to me like New Zealand, like the scenery from the movie “The Man from Snowy River” just beautiful plains surrounded by beautiful mountains and cliffs. I also thought of Cade’s Cove located near Gatlinburg in Tennessee. If you have ever been there, where the settlement has the yellow grasses on flat land, surrounded by the Smoky Mountains, it was a lot like that.
Then we returned home to the mission and Abby and Kelcy had a great time playing pretend. Abby was pushing around her “new” baby stroller with her naked baby in it. Some day, my girls will learn to put clothes on their baby dolls. At one point, Abby was watching Kelcy’s baby while Kelcy was at work. Here came Kelcy, carrying a Bible, a purse with a cat in it (the one Eva got Abby for her first birthday) and a DVD and asked me which way it was to church, because she needed to get to work. As I type, they are settled down and watching the “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer” DVD.
Abby still asks about Kentucky and when we get to go back to our home. She misses her family and friends, but she is doing very well otherwise. She is making friends at school and at church. After her second week of school, her handwriting has improved dramatically. Kelcy is getting used to being with me at the office, but she loves going to Sunday school class by herself. She misses her friends too, but she has Noah with her all day, every day to play with and fight with, so she is adjusting too.
I am looking forward to Sunday school class tomorrow. I am teaching 2nd grade through high school and it is great. This will be my second week teaching, but I already get some challenging questions and I am just getting to know my class. I had five students last week. I am anxious to see who shows up this week.
Blessed be the day!
School Starts!
Monday, August 18th
6AM Abby leaps into our bed and says, “Does school start today?” It does indeed! Jerry jumps up and gets dressed for the 6:45 AM school bus departure. I get up, get breakfast ready. For the first day of school, we have sausage and biscuits for breakfast. Abby loves these. Thank you, Nana, for the canned sausage that makes them so quick and easy to make for breakfast. Kelcy wakes up closer to 7AM. Jerry is already gone, of course. The first day of school Jerry was riding the bus with Mr. Bill and the bus was running down to a community call Bird Spring, along with the stops in Leupp.
I get all three of us girls dressed and fed. Then I pack us all lunch for the day and we walk over to school about 7:45AM. Abby & Kelcy play on the playground until Miss Springer arrives and then they run inside the school building. Bill, Kelcy and I stay there for the opening programs, where we say the pledges to the American flag, Christian flag and the Bible and sing a few songs. The Bill, Kelcy and I leave to go to the mission and Abby and Jerry stay there at the school. The school children walk up to the mission for lunch time around 11:30AM. Abby comes in and give me a hug and then goes to sit with her class. She has a hard time the first day at lunch and wants me or Jerry to sit with her while she eats. After lunch is recess for half an hour and then back to their classes. School gets out at 3PM, Jerry drives up the hill and let me know that Abby is riding with him on the school bus to take the kids home.
This pattern is pretty much how our week days are continuing. Up at 6AM, school by 8AM, I’m at the office by 8:30. Then, at 3PM, Jerry picks up me and Kelcy and we all ride on the bus to take the kids home. I have become the school bus children monitor/rule enforcer.
The school is doing really well. All the kids at the school are very respectful and very nice. Jerry likes teaching, especially science and history. Jerry is teaching sixth and seventh grade, so he has to teach all of the subjects, whereas teachers at this grade level normally teach the same subject to different classes of children all day long. He has had one field trip, walking around the mission property to observe the weathering process. He has an unassigned student, which is our dog Josie. She goes into his classroom some days and hangs out. She always comes up to the mission for lunch, too.
Abby is doing well in school. She is making friends with the Navajo girls in her class. She is learning a lot and comes home with probably 10 papers each day that she has completed, along with art projects and puppets. Abby’s class has two pets that I have seen. One is a hamster; the other is a guinea pig. The kids all love the pets, including Abby. I cannot remember the name of the hamster or guinea pig, but I am sure that Abby knows. She has gotten to hold one of them. Abby did indeed get her ears pierced and she didn’t even cry! She picked out pink flower earrings to wear. She is doing well at taking care of her ears and they have healed very well.
Kelcy is adapting to going to the mission with me. I think she would rather go to school, if the entire truth is told. She loves to go to Abby’s room in the mornings and see the class pets. At this time, the board is interviewing a lady who may begin a preschool program here at the mission! This is very exciting and would be a blessing to all of the Navajo children and to all of the Navajo mothers who work outside the home.
I began my job the same day as classes started. I have gotten a lot of work done and am making some changes. The bookkeeping has been done very meticulously in the past and I am certainly trying to follow that pattern. I am working on an estimated budget for the mission for the coming year. We are now officially hooked up to the internet at the Navajo Trails Mission. Mr. Bill acquired internet service for us and it is working very well.
Thursday August 28th
Jerry was preparing to go on the church bus route so that he could learn where to stop and learn the route. So, God sent him an idea. We all (10 of us) went on the bus routes! We piled into the church van and on Thursday, drove toward Winslow for the church bus route there. We stopped at the individual “stops” and handed out a flyer with the church information on it, a pen from Navajo Trails Mission, a coloring book, crayons, stickers, and candy for any children there. If the stop was at one of the school children’s house, their teacher would get out and go to the door to drop off the packet. Sometimes, we all got out and visited shortly.
Friday night, we drove the second bus route, which went to Tolani Lake on the Navajo Reservation. This route is 70 miles in one direction. At one point, we went down a dirt road for seven miles. It was very dusty and very hot (the van has no air conditioning). We didn’t get too many people to answer the door on this trip, but we left packets where we thought people would find them. We plan to make another visit to Tolani Lake and see if we cannot visit more people there. Tolani Lake is a small group of houses in the middle of the desert. It appears that there used to be a lake there, but now there is just a dry lake bed.
I will end this one for now, but I have another big update soon.
Monday, August 18th
6AM Abby leaps into our bed and says, “Does school start today?” It does indeed! Jerry jumps up and gets dressed for the 6:45 AM school bus departure. I get up, get breakfast ready. For the first day of school, we have sausage and biscuits for breakfast. Abby loves these. Thank you, Nana, for the canned sausage that makes them so quick and easy to make for breakfast. Kelcy wakes up closer to 7AM. Jerry is already gone, of course. The first day of school Jerry was riding the bus with Mr. Bill and the bus was running down to a community call Bird Spring, along with the stops in Leupp.
I get all three of us girls dressed and fed. Then I pack us all lunch for the day and we walk over to school about 7:45AM. Abby & Kelcy play on the playground until Miss Springer arrives and then they run inside the school building. Bill, Kelcy and I stay there for the opening programs, where we say the pledges to the American flag, Christian flag and the Bible and sing a few songs. The Bill, Kelcy and I leave to go to the mission and Abby and Jerry stay there at the school. The school children walk up to the mission for lunch time around 11:30AM. Abby comes in and give me a hug and then goes to sit with her class. She has a hard time the first day at lunch and wants me or Jerry to sit with her while she eats. After lunch is recess for half an hour and then back to their classes. School gets out at 3PM, Jerry drives up the hill and let me know that Abby is riding with him on the school bus to take the kids home.
This pattern is pretty much how our week days are continuing. Up at 6AM, school by 8AM, I’m at the office by 8:30. Then, at 3PM, Jerry picks up me and Kelcy and we all ride on the bus to take the kids home. I have become the school bus children monitor/rule enforcer.
The school is doing really well. All the kids at the school are very respectful and very nice. Jerry likes teaching, especially science and history. Jerry is teaching sixth and seventh grade, so he has to teach all of the subjects, whereas teachers at this grade level normally teach the same subject to different classes of children all day long. He has had one field trip, walking around the mission property to observe the weathering process. He has an unassigned student, which is our dog Josie. She goes into his classroom some days and hangs out. She always comes up to the mission for lunch, too.
Abby is doing well in school. She is making friends with the Navajo girls in her class. She is learning a lot and comes home with probably 10 papers each day that she has completed, along with art projects and puppets. Abby’s class has two pets that I have seen. One is a hamster; the other is a guinea pig. The kids all love the pets, including Abby. I cannot remember the name of the hamster or guinea pig, but I am sure that Abby knows. She has gotten to hold one of them. Abby did indeed get her ears pierced and she didn’t even cry! She picked out pink flower earrings to wear. She is doing well at taking care of her ears and they have healed very well.
Kelcy is adapting to going to the mission with me. I think she would rather go to school, if the entire truth is told. She loves to go to Abby’s room in the mornings and see the class pets. At this time, the board is interviewing a lady who may begin a preschool program here at the mission! This is very exciting and would be a blessing to all of the Navajo children and to all of the Navajo mothers who work outside the home.
I began my job the same day as classes started. I have gotten a lot of work done and am making some changes. The bookkeeping has been done very meticulously in the past and I am certainly trying to follow that pattern. I am working on an estimated budget for the mission for the coming year. We are now officially hooked up to the internet at the Navajo Trails Mission. Mr. Bill acquired internet service for us and it is working very well.
Thursday August 28th
Jerry was preparing to go on the church bus route so that he could learn where to stop and learn the route. So, God sent him an idea. We all (10 of us) went on the bus routes! We piled into the church van and on Thursday, drove toward Winslow for the church bus route there. We stopped at the individual “stops” and handed out a flyer with the church information on it, a pen from Navajo Trails Mission, a coloring book, crayons, stickers, and candy for any children there. If the stop was at one of the school children’s house, their teacher would get out and go to the door to drop off the packet. Sometimes, we all got out and visited shortly.
Friday night, we drove the second bus route, which went to Tolani Lake on the Navajo Reservation. This route is 70 miles in one direction. At one point, we went down a dirt road for seven miles. It was very dusty and very hot (the van has no air conditioning). We didn’t get too many people to answer the door on this trip, but we left packets where we thought people would find them. We plan to make another visit to Tolani Lake and see if we cannot visit more people there. Tolani Lake is a small group of houses in the middle of the desert. It appears that there used to be a lake there, but now there is just a dry lake bed.
I will end this one for now, but I have another big update soon.
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