A Productive Day

January 12, 2009

We had a productive day today. We began our day with a worship service with the teachers from the Handicapped School. Afterwards, Aimee, Katie O and Anita inventoried the library and set up the space for our literacy project. Later Bethany and Julie joined the group and assisted with the language experience process. It went exceedingly well! The students were engaged and interested in participating in the shared reading and text creation. The time ended with playful dancing. Kay and Jackie shadowed a young mother and videotaped her cooking routines. They are building their data day by day. Julie visited some of the wells her brother established in the past. Dan and Bekah made home visits to seven homes with the therapist from the clinic. Bekah got to hold a baby and pound millets (not at the same time - she is talented but that is a bit much!) It was a long day for them (8-3). Others are hoping to do the same in coming days. Katie P, Angela, and Jeff began home surveys today. They realized that this was time intensive but very rewarding work. As a way of thanking the people, Katie took pictures with a Polaroid camera to give the participants a picture of themselves. This gift was a warmly received. Dave continued to work on his trike project by putting on a parking brake on the trike. He also helped Matt and Dale with the water pump. After lunch (stuffing, bean salad, and fruit), most of the team participated in the Teachers' Workshop. As we walked to the school with the materials, we were joined by a number of children returning to school after Siesta. They insisted on taking our materials and carrying them for us. How kind the children are! The workshoop was a most rewarding time. The teachers were engaged and interested in the presentations. Despite some language barriers, we found ourselves laughing together and participating in conversations about teaching.

Now we are preparing for dinner. It smells wonderful so I am off to enjoy the meal. We thank all of our supporters for loving and praying for us. We are truly feeling God's hand in our work and His joy continues to sustain us. Be blessed and know that all is well with our team!

Anita